~ Fort Hill Cemetery ~

NOTABLE PEOPLE

Hugo B Rathbun

Born 1812, died 1886.
One of the eight founders of the Fort Hill Cemetery.

from the web site of Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board:

In 1848, H. B. Rathbun & Company, a lumber concern, was set up in Deseronto, Ontario, Canada, to exploit the rich timber resources. The companies members were: Hugo Burnhardt Rathbun, Thomas Y. Rowe (?Howe?), L. E. Carpenter, and Amos Rathbun. The company established a saw and grist mill, and a store.
In 1855 Mr. H. B. Rathbun took full control of the company, and owned it solely for the next 9 years. In the year 1864, he brought his eldest son, Edward Welkees Rathbun, into the company. After several years of service, Mr. E. W. Rathbun took over the company from his father.
The year of 1885 was the last for Banella Rathbun the wife of H. B. Rathbun. She passed away on February 15. A year later H. B. Rathbun died at the age of 74.
In 1890 the Rathbun Company employed around 5,000 people in various industries, which consists of two saw mills, a sash, door and blind factory, flour mill, railway car shops, boiler repair shops, blacksmith shops, shipbuilding yards, gas works, railway yards, printing works and offices, general store, and many other manufacturing ventures such as the manufacture of Portland cement from a formula obtained in Germany.
The mill closed in 1916 and the Rathbun company officially retired in 1923, although up to the recent past timber rights in local properties of Deseronto are still in the Rathbun name.

The Rathbun lot is located in the Mount Hope section of the cemetery.

This photo is of the Rathbun lot in 1890.

This photo is the Rathbun lot in 2003.