Mill Creek Spring

Mill Creek Spring ... more

by Catherine Howard

Original - Not For Sale

Price

Not Specified

Dimensions

10.000 x 8.000 x 1.500 inches

Title

Mill Creek Spring

Artist

Catherine Howard

Medium

Painting - Acrylic On Canvas

Description

Mill Creek Spring
Orangeville, Ontario.
I see this wonderful creek from my Studio window. Orange Lawrence, for whom the town is named, bought up water rights in the mid 1800�s creating enough water flow from the existing creek, ponds and open races or man- made creeks to power the mills that were built along the waterway. The industries that began to develop in this small settlement depended on two local economies � agriculture and lumbering. In fact,
all citizens were ultimately dependent on these for their livelihood. Sawmills and gristmills were built along Mill Creek. Foundries and furniture factories, tanneries and a woollen mill soon followed. Actually, I now live in what was the woollen mill. It has been converted into gorgeous apartments, retaining the unique characteristics of the original building.
During the early history of Orangeville, the land in the adjoining townships was still rough and unsettled and large populations of wild animals roamed nearby with numerous wolves and very large bears! In 1863, one farmer shot three bears with one weighing over 500 pounds.
Today, Mill Creek is alive with abundant trees of every variety along its shores, wildflowers and all manner of wildlife, including a family of beavers that I sometimes glimpse from my window. Many of the stones that were used to build the early mills now lie in the creek bed, creating miniature waterfalls and soothing sounds.
This is the first of my Mill Creek Series of paintings. This one is acrylic on stretched canvas, painted with a knife.

Uploaded

August 5th, 2013