INDUSTRY

“As the mainstay of the economy centred on agriculture in the early years of Colchester Town­ship, most industrial endeavors were small oper­ations to serve the farming community. These included blacksmithing, carriage and wagon works, grain and grist mills, cheese and butter factories, farm fencing, home and barn building, timber cutting and lumber mills. The latter oper­ations cleared the land for farming and provided lumber for buildings on the farms and in the settlements. Many farmers were employed in lumbering in the winter months; some had their own sawmills. ” P 75

 

HARROW FEED STORE 

Harrow Feed store was originally built on the east side of Queen street in 1926. Over the years it changed ownership and name but always functioned in service to agriculture and farmers. In 2003 owner Brian Renaud made the decision to move to East Harrow (2546 Cty Rd 20 East) and built a larger facility to offer more products to customers.

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FOOD PROCESSING

“From 1900 to the present, a number of new industries opened up in Harrow, including the important canning industry. The W. Clark Com­pany was the biggest operation here between 1916 and 1969.”P81

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Charles Woodbridge founded the Lakeside Packing Company on the shores of Lake Erie in 1942. He was committed to selling quality products. Today, you can find a variety of Lakeside Packing products on local grocery shelves. The company produces and sells throughout Canada, United States, Europe, Caribbean, Asia and Australia.

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Adhering to traditional methods, the company has remained in the family with Charles’ grandson, Alan Woodbridge as Vice-President, managing the plant.