Old Stone Mill, Delta, Ontario

Christmas Lights at the Old Stone Mill

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Christmas Lights in the Old Stone Mill and Old Town Hall \n\nThis is a tradition of the Delta Mill Society going back to the 1980s. Every year, from mid-November to early January, the Old Stone Mill, the Old Town Hall and the Blacksmith Shop have wreaths on all the windows with "candles" lighting them up. \n\nSince 1999, it has been DMS Director Moel Benoit organizing this, utilizing a group of volunteers to get these heritage buildings beautifully lit up - literally a bright spot in Delta.
Christmas Lights in the Old Stone Mill NHS
Old Stone Mill National Historic Site with Old Town Hall in background. Delta, Ontario
Christmas Lights in the Old Stone Mill NHS


Christmas Lights in the Old Stone Mill NHS
Christmas Lights in the Old Stone Mill NHS
Christmas Lights in the Old Stone Mill NHS\n\nThe door on the left side, which has the lettering Hasting Steele & Son, is the original 1810 door blacksmith made wrought iron hinges.\n\nAlthough the building has been altered over the years, most is the original 1810-11 building, including the nearby quarried potsdam sandstone stones of the mill.
The candles stay lit throughout to early January. Old Stone Mill National Historic Site, Delta, Ontario


Stairs to third floor. Old Stone Mill National Historic Site, Delta, Ontario
A French burrstone is held up by the mill's original crane. The signature of the the millers, Walter Bush, who was the miller from 1850 to 1867, is written on this crane.
The Miller's Room warmly lit by candles in the windows.\n\nThis room on the 2nd floor was added to the mill in the early 1850s by new owner Walter Denaut. It was used as his private office.
A candlelit display of belts and pulleys


The Old Town Hall, built in 1879/80.\n\nThe original building is to the right, the left side portion was added in the early 20th century. \n\nThis building originally hosted the municipal office and district courthouse on the main floor and a Masonic Lodge on the 2nd floor.
The distinctive front entrance to the Old Town Hall.\n\nThe Delta Mill Society purchased the building in 1994 and uses it today for its offices and collections (artefact storage).\n\nThe DMS operates the hall as a community hall for Delta and offering public washrooms when the mill is open. Over the years, the DMS has made several hundred thousand dollars of improvements to the building.
The Old Town Hall, lit up with Christmas lights.
The Blacksmith Shop and the Old Stone Mill.\n\nThe Blacksmith shop building was purchased by the Delta Mill Society in 1992. The DMS called it the Drive Shed at the time since 2/3 of the building was used for oversized artefact storage.\nIn 2022, the DMS renovated the building, rebuilding the main stone forge and adding a metal forge as well as expanding the visitor space and adding a large lighed display cabinet.\n\nIt was then rebranded as the Blacksmith Shop, going back to a role it played since the late 1920s when George Snider bought the building from Hastings Steele.


The north wall of the Old Stone Mill NHS.
View of the Old Town Hall and Old Stone Mill from Millstream Park.
The historic Jubilee block on the left with the Blacksmith Shop and Old Stone Mill.


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