Tell Us Your Jail Tales

Photo courtesy of https://antennastoheaven.wordpress.com/2010/08/07/millbrook_prison/

The word on the street is that David Clayton Thomas of Blood, Sweat and Tears fame was once a Millbrook resident at what inmates called “the Brook.”

The Millbrook Correctional Centre operated from 1957 until the end of 2003 as the province’s only maximum security correctional centre for convicted inmates serving sentences of up to two years.   For years it sat empty, and was finally demolished in 2015.  The site remains the property of the province despite interest expressed by both the municipality and the private sector to purchase the property located on the Oak Ridges Moraine at the western edge of Millbrook.

There are several conversations online from former inmates that describe a number of grim situations and events. On the brighter side, the food at “the Brook” is noted more than once as having been the best at any of Ontario’s facilities.  What isn’t recorded anywhere are the many services extended to the local area, and the experiences of those who worked on the hill.

On Friday, October 26, 7:00 – 9:00 pm, the Millbrook and Cavan Historical Society will host an evening at the Legion Hall to hear from those with some first hand experience of the time when the Millbrook Correctional Centre was in operation.  All are welcome to attend, to contribute a story, or just listen.  There will be tea, coffee, light refreshments and a cash bar.   Admission is free for Historical Society members and by donation for guests.

By Celia Hunter

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