Located in the Parry Sound District, South River dates to the 1860s, when Fraser Lumber began logging in what’s now Algonquin Provincial Park. Hotels were built in 1881, electricity arrived in 1901, and the town incorporated in 1907. To the left is a 1907 pioneer-era real-photo postcard (RPPC) of Main St. in South River, with The Sovereign Bank of Canada in a frame building in the foreground. On the same side of the road, a sign can be read for the “South River Meat Market,” with a smaller sign on the building advertising “camper for rent.” If you know the names of other buildings seen here, let us know. The sender, who was in the area hunting, sent the postcard on 14 November 1907 to Mr. George Barclay of 119 Wabash Ave. in Detroit. He wrote: “This is a shot of the nearest village within 25 miles of where I have been for two weeks. It seems good to get back in civilization again. We shot seven deer and had a fairly good time, only walking in and out of camp.”

A 1911 RPPC of Main St., with what appears to be a hotel at right front and a series of frame falsefront Victorian stores beyond the brick hotel, is to the left. Fast forwarding to the 1940s, a CKC real-photo postcard shows many changes in South River. Three teen-aged boys are in front of Chequers Restaurant, with a taxi stand next door. Who ran the taxicabs in South River? A sign on a telephone pole indicates that the distance to North Bay is 37 miles. The R. R. Wood grocery store is on the same side of the street as Chequers. McGirr’s general store is at left front, with signs for Sweet Caporal cigarettes, a hardware store and “Quick Lunch” also visible. Note the railroad crossing down the street. At bottom left is a 1912 view of Main St. Published by Rumsey & Co. of 1528 Queen St. West in Toronto, it is finely detailed, which is a characteristic of Rumsey postcards. A scarce real-photo postcard shows the Grand Trunk Railway station in South River. A sign on the building says “North Bay, 39 Miles.”

The large two-story falsefront Victorian store seen on Ottawa St. (not Main St., as the post card indicates) was W. J. Elliot’s general store when this c. 1930s real-photo postcard was made. The store was originally the South River Lumber & Mercantile Co., managed by a Mr. Ard. After Mr. Elliott’s ownership, this became Harkness’ store and then the Harkness Apartments. Today, the building contains two smaller rental store fronts. In the right foreground, one can see a brick building which went through many name changes: Originally the King Edward hotel, it was renamed the New Queens and then the Norland hotel. It’s since been destroyed by fire. On the far side of Elliott’s store is a brick house built for Rienhart Cook, a partner in the South River Lumber & Mercantile Co. Home ownership then passed to James Prunty, who owned the Old Queens Hotel (Prunty purchased the King Edward Hotel, renaming it the New Queens when the Old Queens hotel was destroyed by fire in 1909.). The brick house remains today. Beyond Mr. Prunty’s house was Duvals barber shop and McGirr’s store, originally known as Vincent’s store. The final building visible on the right side of the road, on the other side of Isabella St., is Don Johnson’s BA Service Station. At the time this photo was made (pre-1943), part of Ottawa Ave. and Isabella Street were the Ferguson Highway (Highway 11). Many thanks to Keith Thornborrow for this fine description.

Two scarce and slightly earlier Atkinson Bros. patriotic postcards focus on the natural resources of the area: the 1904 private postcard at top left is entitled “A Day’s Sport at South River, Ont.” and shows two rifle-bearing hunters with numerous slain deer, while the 1905 Atkinson Bros. postcard shows a trusting gentleman perched precariously at the tip of a large boulder while the falls rush past him. In the background, one sees numerous early buildings. If you can identify any of the buildings or the gentleman on the rock, let us know and we’ll include that information. We’ve included a portional view below, to aid in identification of this man.