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Barrie Gas Company fonds
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Fonds
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Physical description area
Physical description
2.7 m of textual records Records were extremely dusty and dirty upon arrival at the Archives.
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Biographical history
The Barrie Gas Company provided gas for lighting, cooking, heating and power in Barrie, Ontario, between 1878 and 1938. The Town of Barrie Council passed a by-law April 15th, 1878, which laid out the terms and conditions under which the Barrie Gas Company received a twenty-year franchise to provide service to the people and the Town. A plant was built by local contractors on the south side of Dunlop Street, Barrie, and included a steel holding tank capable of holding 96,000 cubic feet of coal gas. As well as supplying gas, the Barrie Gas Company sold fixtures and appliances, including gas ranges. In 1919 the Company was facing financial difficulties, and it was offered for sale to the Town of Barrie. After considerable negotiations, council finally passed a by-law January 28th 1928 to purchase the Barrie Gas Company and amalgamate it with the Town of Barrie Water and Light Commission. By December 1938 the popularity of electricity, combined with the rising cost of gas, made operation of the gas works unprofitable, and council unanimously approved a motion to dispense with the gas plant.
Custodial history
It is presumed the Barrie Gas Company records were maintained at their offices in the Music Hall Block on Owen Street, Barrie, until the company was purchased in 1928. It was likely then that the records were moved to the Town Hall at Mulcaster and Collier Streets. That building was torn down in 1985 and the Barrie Gas Company records were rescued from the demolition site by the County Archivist and removed to the Simcoe County Archives.
Scope and content
Fonds consists of the corporate records of the Barrie Gas Company, 1878-1939. According to an audit conducted in 1919, the old records of the Company had been mislaid or indifferently kept. This consideration, along with the fact the records were rescued from a demolition site, has made it nearly impossible to determine original order. Consequently, the records have been organized into five artificially-created series and, where possible, arranged in chronological order. Fonds consists of the following series: By-Laws Correspondence Financial Records Operational Records Miscellaneous
Notes area
Physical condition
Immediate source of acquisition
Fonds acquired from Barrie City Hall in 1985.
Arrangement
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Script of material
Location of originals
Availability of other formats
Restrictions on access
Open
Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication
Finding aids
A detailed inventory is available for this fonds.
Associated materials
Related material can be found in the Barrie Public Utilities Commission fonds.
Accruals
No further accruals are expected.
General note
Records have been surface cleaned to remove dirt and dust.
General note
Credit to Simcoe County Archives required for publication.