One of Kinmount’s iconic businesses is celebrating its 30^th year anniversary. Kinmount House Bed & Breakfast has stood on the hill overlooking the Burnt River and the Main Street for 3 decades. The actual house has a much longer history. John Hunter, who was credited with being the founder of the village, occupied the hill upon his arrival at the future village in 1858. He was a man of many talents who recognized the potential of the site. He ran a sawmill and grist mill powered by the first dam which stood on the footprint of the current dam. Richard Mansfield acquired the lot on Cluxton Street in 1883. He was the person responsible for the large brick house that graces the lot today. In 1913 Fred Dettmam Jr bought the house. He raised a large family of 14 children. In 1944, Harry Butts was the new owner, who resided there until 1991 when Patrick Healey purchased the property and converted the house into the current Bed & Breakfast.

    Over the years Kinmount House has been host to a great number of people from all over the world. Some have become great friends and have been back to Kinmount a number of times. Patrick has also taken in a lot of cyclists who have stopped here on their journey across Canada and have let him know once they have reached their destination.

   The rail trail opens up to the cyclists once they reach Kinmount and enter the Park. The Saw Mill, Railroad Station, Icelandic Monument and Artisan Market, plus all the shops on the main street, are there for them to explore. The Rail Trail has also delivered a lot of different customers, from cyclists to horseback riders (who by the way took their horses for a swim in the river once they reached the park). They had been on a week-long ride from Port Hope and ended up here in Kinmount. Not to mention the couple who decided to walk from Haliburton to Port Hope, on a route that their great grandparents had taken many years before----sorry to say their feet gave out once they arrived here and the “Kinmount House Taxi Service” took them to Fenelon Falls to catch a bus back to Port Hope.

    Fair weekend has always seen the house full to the brim, with vendors or entertainers bringing their stories and experiences with them to the breakfast table. Yes, weddings and family re-unions have also seen the house full on many occasions. Playwrights, actors, movie directors, and students taking courses from the School of Fine Art and other workshops in the area have shared their experiences over the years at the breakfast table, just to mention a few.

   Needless to say, last year (and this year) with Covid, the big draws to the Highland Cinema and Kinmount Fair were not possible. In non-Covid years a perfect get-a-way was for Cyclists to leave their cars in Lindsay and ride the trail to Fenelon ----have their lunch and continue on up to Kinmount, take in a Movie, stay over at Kinmount House and do the reverse the next day.

   Another attraction that was also visible for years was the famous "ShoeTree" that was at the side of the road once entering the village from the West.  It was there for many years and there were a great number of used shoes growing from it-----mysteriously it disappeared one night, never to be found again.

   Not to worry we now have a "Thunderbird" to greet you on your arrival.

Yes, it has been a great experience and I have enjoyed every minute.

 Patrick Healey