June 16, 1959 – Filmed as wind-whipped flames snarled and crackled through the little village of Lanark, near Ottawa, Canada, gutting the main part of the business section, demolishing a score of homes, and burning down the town hall.
January Update: Bad News, Good News
Well, there’s disappointing news and good news.
The disappointing news: the owner of the Kitten Mill responded to our offer by simply saying he doesn’t want to sell. That wasn’t altogether a surprise, as he’d said that before; nevertheless, it was a disappointment. We would have liked to know what his reasons were so we could reframe and re-submit our proposal.
The good news: We had a Zoom meeting (with Michael Rikley-Lancaster, curator of the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum) to plan for next steps. Here’s what we decided:
News and Hopes for 2022
Despite the disappointment of seeing the continued erosion of the roof this December, we have a number of positive news items to report!
First, and most importantly, after working with a lawyer over the past few weeks, an official offer to purchase has been submitted to the owner.
December Update
Michael Rikley-Lancaster, the Curator of the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum in Almonte, arranged a couple of very helpful Zoom meetings about the Kitten Mill on Thursday, December 2.
Ontario Historical Society
Michael and I spoke with Rob Leverty of the Ontario Historical Society (OHS) about the process of incorporating the Lanark Heritage Preservation Board (we’ve already reserved the name, a necessary first step). The OHS can guide us through incorporating the Society, including development of the required constitution and by-laws (if you don’t get them right, tedious delays result, and the OHS has helped multiple Ontario organizations through the process).
Time for an update – Nov. 24, 2021
First, some really good news!
On Tuesday (November 23) Linda and Susan met with Michael Rikely-Lancaster, the curator of the Almonte Textile Museum. Many of you will know that he was instrumental in making the Museum into a major social and economic force in Almonte.
