MacMillan Farm Master Plan

MacMillan Farm, located on the east side of Dufferin Street, just north of Marc Santi Boulevard at 9605 Dufferin St., was purchased and occupied by the MacMillan Family in 1934. The original property encompassed over 59 hectares of natural woodlot and agricultural lands. In 2004, the MacMillan Family severed the property into two parcels, one 49 hectares and the second, 10 hectares, and donated the larger portion to the Nature Conservancy of Canada. The donated lands are a mix of agricultural, woodland and riparian habitats. In 2010, the remainder of the property was sold to the City of Vaughan. 

The property contains two houses that are designated under the Ontario Heritage Act. 

The MacMillan Farm and adjacent Nature Conservancy of Canada properties are placed within the increasingly urban area within Vaughan, providing the perfect setting to create an open space that promotes active and passive living for the community.

Image

The City of Vaughan contains a rich Indigenous history spanning well over 15,000+ years and is positioned with Treaty 13, signed by the Mississaugas of the Credit Nation in 1805. Situated between both the Humber and Don Rivers, along with numerous tributaries, this land has long served as a vital connecting place for Indigenous peoples. These waterways functioned as highways and trade routes, facilitating both travel and survival for thousands of years. Archeological sites such as Seed-Barker and Skandatut underscore the deep presence to the Carrying Place trail along the Humber River route, offering valuable insights about these sophisticated civilizations including the Haudenosaunee and Anishinaabeg. 

The MacMillan Farm and surrounding area specifically exemplifies these connections to travel and trade. Notably, the Baker Site, located approximately 4km south of MacMillan along the Don River, reveals a permanent Huron-Wendat settlement that once existed in the early 15th century. These settlements highlight the significance of the Don River as a place that sustained Indigenous life and societies. Indigenous peoples shared their vast knowledge of the land and these water routes with Europeans which then formed the basis for the fur trade that became the backbone of the Canadian economy. Recognizing and honoring this heritage not only pays tribute to the contributions of Indigenous peoples but also enriches our understanding of Vaughan’s past and informs a more inclusive narrative for the future.

MacMillan Farm is associated with the early settlement of this area and was originally part of a large 300-acre farm owned by William Cook in 1878. William Cook emigrated from England in 1831 and purchased the farm from his brother, Thomas Cook, who had assembled 600 acres. Thomas retained the adjoining 300 acres for himself, which contained the earliest sawmill in the area, which had been built by Michael Fisher. Thomas then built a house for himself and operated and expanded the sawmill on his property. 

William Cook returned to England and rented his land out to a tenant farmer named Nathaniel Kirby. Nathaniel Kirby may have lived in a mud brick house on the site, a portion of which was discovered within the walls of the William Cook House during renovations in 1981. That wall has been preserved as evidence of this earlier structure, which dates from the early to mid-1800s.

When William Cook returned from England in 1847, he built a two-storey, three-bay brick house for himself and his family that he later expanded. This house is now designated as the William Cook House because of its architectural and historical significance. 

The Cook family was instrumental in the establishment of the historic mill town of Carville. This historic town, now built over by modern development, was located across the Concession line from the Cook property. The 1878 County Atlas shows that Carville consisted of a store, post office, church and school. The Cook family played an important part in the early industrial and agricultural development of this area. Due to their influence, Carville became an important mill center for the region. 

William Cook served the community as Deputy Reeve and was on the Town Council from 1861-63. His brother Thomas Cook operated the Carville Mill and store containing the Carville Post Office and was Carville’s first Post Master. 

Descendants of William Cook lived on this property until 1936 when it was purchased by Robert and Lyn MacMillan. The MacMillans’ purchase included the William Cook House, barns and out-buildings and a large tract of land containing agricultural land, forest, a stream and a pond. Robert and Lyn MacMillan used the property as a country retreat. Robert had a medical practice in Toronto. Lyn MacMillan was the granddaughter of Lloyd George, Prime Minister of England from 1916 to 1922.

Ownership of the property passed to their son Robert MacMillan Jr. In the early 1980s, he and his wife made a number of changes to the property including renovations to the William Cook House and relocation of the Valentine Keffer House from 1931 Langstaff Road to their property. The wood frame Keffer House was sited a short distance from the Cook House and used by the MacMillans as a guest cottage. After its relocation and restoration, the Valentine Keffer House was Designated because it is a very fine example of ‘plank on plank’ construction, a rare type of construction, only found near milling centers in the early pioneer period. 

In 2004, Robert MacMillan Junior and his wife donated a large portion of their land to the Nature Conservancy of Canada which is now the MacMillan Nature Preserve and contains a mix of forest, streams and agricultural lands on a gently sloping topography.

In 2010 the remainder of the property including the houses, tennis courts, dams and barns was sold to the City of Vaughan. 

Image