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People and organizations
Corporate body

The Ontario Lake Superior Company was incorporated in Connecticut in 1900 and was part of the industrial complex developed in Sault Ste. Marie by Francis H. Clergue. Following its incorporation it took control of the Algoma Central and Hudson Bay Railway, the Algoma Commercial Company, the British America Express Company and the Manitoulin and North Shore Railway Company. In 1901 the Consolidated Lake Superior Company was authorized to purchase the shares of the Ontario Lake Superior Company. In the reorganization following the bankruptcy of the Clergue industries in 1903, the Ontario Lake Superior Company remained in existance however it no longer controlled any other companies and had no assets.

Sault Shipping Company
Corporate body

The Sault Shipping Company Limited was incorporated with Dominion Letters Patent on November 15, 1916 and was a joint venture between the Algoma Steel Corporation and the Algoma Central and Hudson Bay Railway Company. The shares belonging to the Algoma Steel Corporation were held by the Lake Superior Corporation. In February, 1917 the Sault Shipping Company purchased the vessel " Valcartier" from Lake Commerce Limited of Toronto. The company was not very profitable and the vessel was sold in February, 1920 to the Montreal Transportation Company. With their only asset sold, the directors of the Sault Shipping Company voted to liquidate the company on March 20 and the corporate charter was cancelled on April 20, 1920.

Corporate body

The Sault Ste. Marie Pulp and Paper Company was incorporated by a Special Act of the Province of Ontario on April 16, 1895 and was part of the industrial complex developed in Sault Ste. Marie by Francis H. Clergue. It was a subsidiary of the Lake Superior Power Company until 1900 when it became a subsidiary of the Consolidated Lake Superior Company. After the bankruptcy of the Consolidated Lake Superior Company in 1902 and the subsequent reorganization, it became a subsidiary of the Lake Superior Corporation. In 1911, the director's of the Lake Superior Corporation decided that the company should concentrate on its iron, steel and transportation interests and took steps to dispose of the corporation's holdings in the Sault Ste. Marie Pulp and Paper Company. In February, 1911, a new company was formed, the Lake Superior Paper Company Limited, which received all the assets of the Sault Ste. Marie Pulp and Paper Company as well as the Lake Superior Power Company's sulphuric acid plant and reduction works, the Algoma Commercial Company's stock of pulpwood and woods department equipment and timber rights. In 1913, the Lake Superior Pulp and Paper Company was purchased by the Spanish River Pulp and Paper Company which was eventually purchased by the Abitibi Power and Paper Company Limited and then St. Mary's Paper Limited. The charter of the Sault Ste. Marie Pulp and Paper Company was surrendered on December 20, 1913.

Corporate body

The Trans St. Mary's Traction Company was incorporated by Francis H. Clergue on October 14,1901 to build a street railway in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. The company was transferred to the Michigan Lake Superior Power Company in return for a power contract. The Trans St. Mary's Traction Company was never a financial success. In January, 1917 the Board of Directors of the Lake Superior Corporation decided to foreclose on the company and refused to pay the bond interest, forcing the Trans St. Mary's Traction Company into receivorship. The receivorship continued throughout 1917 and 1918 as the directos sought a purchaser without success. In December, 1918 the Lake Superior Corporation decided to reorganize the company. The Sault Ste. Marie Traction Company was formed in January, 1919 to acquire the assets of the Trans St. Mary's Traction Company. On April 29, 1919 the sale was completed with the Algoma Steel Corporation and the Lake Superior Corporation holding the shares. With continued deficits it was decided to to wind up the company in 1928. On March 22, 1928 a group of Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan businessmen purchased the company.

Soo Transportation Company
Corporate body

In 1947, Algoma Steel Corporation under the direction of Sir James Dunn, purchased the bus transportation system operated by the Soo Traction Company in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. Sir James Dunn obtained a twenty year franchise for the company,however Algoma Steel Corporation discontinued operation of the bus system in 1950 and surrendered its franchise and charter.

Corporate body

The Steelton Brick and Tile Company was incorporated on July 12, 1910 and was part of the indistrial complex developed in Sault Ste. Marie by Francis H. Clergue.

Corporate body

The Tagona Water and Light Company was incorporated on October 9, 1894 and was part of the industrial complex developed in Sault Ste. Marie by Francis H. Clergue. It was a wholly controlled subsidiary of the Ontario and Sault Ste. Marie Company, later changed to the Lake Superior Power Company. It had obtained from the town of Sault Ste. Marie, the exclusive rights to supply water and electricity and lighting to the town for twenty years. In 1902 it became a subsidiary of the Consolidated Lake Superior Company and in 1904 a subsidiary of the Lake Superior Corporation. Its franchise expired October 1, 1915 and the company was purchased by the city of Sault Ste. Marie. This was confirmed by an Act of the Provincial Legislature. The company's charter was surrendered on August 14, 1915.

Corporate body

The Trans St. Mary's Traction Company was incorporated by Francis H. Clergue on October 14, 1901 to build a street railway in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan and was transferred to the Michigan Lake Superior Power Company in return for a power contract. The Trans St. Mary's Traction Company was never a financial success. In January of 1917 the Board of Directors of the Lake Superior Corporation decided to foreclose on the company and refused to pay the bond interest, forcing the company into receivership. The receivership continued throughout 1917 - 1918 as the directors sought a purchaser without success. In December of 1918 th Lake Superior Corporation decided to reorganize the company. The Sault Ste. Marie Traction Company was formed in January of 1919 to acquire the assets of the Trans St. Mary's Traction Company. On April 29, 1919 the sale was completed with the Algoma Steel Corporation and the Lake Superior Corporation holding the shares. With continued deficits it was decided in 1928 to wind up the company and on March 22, 1928 a group of Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan businessmen purchased the company.

Woodbridge Mining Company
Corporate body

The Algoma Mining Company was incorporated in Minnestoa on November 20, 1902 and was a wholly owned subsidiary of the Algoma Commercial Company of Sault Ste. Marie. Its articles of incorporation stated that it was to carry out mining and working of iron ores and other minerals and the manufacture of iron, steel, copper and other metals. The Woodbridge Mine in Minnesota was held by the Algoma Iron Mining Company. In 1909 the Woodbridge Mining Company was incorporated and the Algoma Iron Mining Company transferred its claim for the Woodbridge Mine to the new compnay in return for 495 shares of the company. In 1912 with the reorganization of the Lake Superior Corporation and the creation of the Algoma Steel Corporation, the assets of the Algoma Commercial Company were transferred to the Algoma Steel Corporation including those of the Algoma Iron Mining Company and the Woodbridge Mining Company. The Woodbridge Mining Company was dissolved on March 28, 1914 and the Algoma Iron Mining Company remained for a while with no assets and was eventually dissolved.

Corporate body

The Algoma Central Telephone Company was incorporated in 1936 with a capitalization of $10,000. The 1899 charter of Algoma Central Railway allowed for it to operate telephone and telegraph lines along its rail lines. The company had operated a private line for the use of the company, but with the reopening of the Helen Mine in 1936, a telephone line was needed to link Wawa to Sault Ste. Marie. In February of 1957 two unsolicited offers were received to purchase the company. The Algoma Central Railway board decided to accept the offer by the Northern Telephone Company Ltd.

Algoma Central Terminals
Corporate body

Algoma Central Terminals was incorporated by letters Patent on October 18, 1912 to own and operate railway terminal facilities. It was capitalized at $100,000. The company was created in reponse to the Algoma Central Railway's need for funds in order to complete its rail line to the National Transcontinental Rail line. The Algoma Central Railway needed to complete the rail line if it was to have any hope of becoming profitable however the company had reached the limit of what it could mortgage to raise the necessary funds. Following the incorporation of the Algoma Terminals Company, the directors of the Algoma Central Railway passed a resolution stating that the terminal facilities of the railway were no longer necessary to the operation of the railway. These facilities including tracks, land and buildings were then sold to the Algoma Central Terminals for $1 and then promptly leased back to the railway for 999 years. The Algoma Central Terminals then issued a series of first mortgage bonds which were sold in England. This raised enough money to complete construction of the rail line. Similarly the Algoma Eastern Terminals Co. was also created to own and operate the railway terminal facilities of the Algoma Eastern Railway and its mortgage bonds were also sold to raise funds. The Algoma Central Terminals went into receiverships with the Algoma Central Railway in February of 1915. A Scheme of Arrangement was reached with the bondholders in February of 1916. The Algoma Central Terminals was dissolved on November 30, 1955.

Algoma Eastern Railway Co.
Corporate body

Like the Algoma Central Terminals, the Algoma Eastern Terminals was incorporated by letters Patents on October 18, 1912, to own and operate railway terminal facilities. The company was created in order to raise the funds necessary for the construction of rail lines. As with the Algoma Central Railway, the Algoma Eastern Railway had mortgaged its entire assets. However the directors by passing a resolution stating that the terminal facilities (rails, land, terminal, etc.) were no longer necessary for the operation of the company and then selling these facilities to the Algoma Eastern Terminal for $1, gave the new company something which it could mortgage. The Algoma Eastern Terminals then leased back to the Algoma Eastern Railway the terminal facilities for 999 years. The Algoma Eastern Terminals created $300,000 of bonds. It sold all its bonds and shares to the Algoma Central Terminals for $738,000 cash which in turn sold these bonds through the Canadian Agency to raise money for the construction of the Algoma Central Railway's line to the transcontinental line. When the Algoma Eastern Railway was sold to the C.P.R. in 1930, the Algoma Eastern Terminals was not sold. Instead the company was retained by the Algoma Central Terminals until 1931 when it was disposed of as part of the Scheme of Arrangement.

Algoma Rolling Stock Co.
Corporate body

Algoma Rolling Stock Co. was incorporated in 1916 to purchase new equipment for the Algoma Eastern Railway. It was capitalized at $40,000. Only 7 shares were issued and all of them were allotted to the Algoma Eastern Railway.

Algoma Shipping Co.
Corporate body

The Algoma Shipping Company was incorporated in February, 1935 under the Companies Act of the Dominion of Canada and was a wholly owned subsidiary of the Algoma Central Railway. It was formed in order to purchase two ships from the Detroit Trust Co., the 'John J. Barlum' and the 'Thomas Barlum', which had been part of the defunct Barlum fleet. A separate company was formed in order to keep the ships out of the Algoma Central Railway's mortgage until the notes were paid. According to Barber the earnings from these two vessels kept the railway company going during the following years. The company was wound up in March, 1936.

Algoma Steamships Ltd.
Corporate body

The Algoma Central Steamships Ltd. was incorporated on August 28, 1951. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of the Algoma Central Railway and was established for the purpose of advancing money for the building of new vessels. The company was disbanded on July 31, 1987.

Superior Rolling Stock Co.
Corporate body

The Superior Rolling Stock Company was incorporated in 1911 by letters Patent in Ontario, to own equipment and lease it back to the Algoma Central Railway. Only 7 shares were issued and in reality the company the was a car trust. The Company issued bonds secured on the equipment and guaranteed by its parent company, the Algoma Central Railway. The bonds were sold to the public and the proceeds used to purchase rolling stock as it became necessary. Its corporate charter was surrendered November 6, 1974.

Ferris, John, b. 1910
Person

An alderman and labour leader, John Ferris was born in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan in 1910 and grew up in Sault Ste. Marie, Canada in the James Street area. In 1931 he was instrumental in forming a union of unemployed which successfully marched on Sault Ste. Marie's city hall to demand additional relief money. He worked on lake freighters and became involved in the Canadian Seaman's Union. In 1940 he began work at Algoma Steel and was elected chief steward in 1941. In 1942 Ferris was actively involved with the Algoma Steel workers joining the United Steelworkers of America. After serving in the Navy from 1943-1945, he returned to Algoma Steel and was elected Vice President of Union Local 2251 of the United Steelworkers of America. He served local 2251 as Treasurer in 1956 and President from 1958-1962 and 1964-1973 when he was named Honourary President of the local. Ferris also served as Alderman for Ward 4 from 1957-1973 and then was re-elected in 1974. Mr. Ferris wrote a history of trade unionism in Algoma in 1951 titled, Algoma Industrial and Trade Union development, and helped prepare a publication titled, 50 Years of Labour in Algoma: Essay's on Aspects of Algoma's Working Class History, in 1978. He also served on the Algoma Fall Festival Association, the Children's Aid Society, the James's St. Mall Board, the River Front Phase 2 Committee and was a member of the Board of Management of the District of Algoma Homes for the Aged.

Person

Charles Oakes Ermatinger was the seventh child of Lawrence and Jemima Ermatinger, a Swiss merchant who settled in Montreal c1761. Lawrence was one of the original traders that formed the North West Company. In 1805 Charles Oakes Ermatinger was admitted as a partner of the North West Company and he moved to Sault Ste. Marie in 1806. He married Charlotte, a daughter of chief Catawabeta, and they had thirteen children. He built the home known as the Ermatinger Old Stone House in 1814. In 1816 Ermatinger became an agent for the Hudson Bay Company and after the Hudson Bay Company and the North West Company amalgamated he became an independent trader until 1928 when he retired and moved to Montreal with his family. He died in 1833 at the age of 57.

Ermatinger, Edward
Person

The Ermatinger family is well-known in the history of pre-Confederation Canada; members of several generations of the Ermatinger family were involved with the fur trade, and others achieved notoriety as politicians, lawyers, and public servants. The first Ermatinger known to have settled in North America was Lawrence Ermatinger (b. ca. 1736 in Schaffhausen, Switzerland), a merchant who settled in Montreal in the early 1760s. Ermatinger supplied goods to North American and British buyers, including fur traders and the British army. Lawrence Ermatinger married Jemima Oakes and had eight children. Two of the Ermatinger sons were particularly prominent in North America. Frederick William Ermatinger (1769-1827) served as Sheriff of Montreal and was one of the Bank of Montreal’s first directors. Charles Oakes Ermatinger (1776-1833) was a fur trader, initially working for the North West Company and then independently. Another Ermatinger son, Lawrence Edward Ermatinger, moved from Montreal to Italy, Spain, and England. Lawrence Edward Ermatinger is the father of Edward and Francis Ermatinger, brothers who came to North America as clerks for the Hudson’s Bay Company. Records from many members of the Ermatinger family survive in libraries and archives throughout Canada. The Ermatinger Old Stone House in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario (built 1814) and the Francis Ermatinger House in Oregon City, Oregon (built 1845) are today museums dedicated to providing insight into North American pioneer life.