Dunk River a. Hatchery Bridge (Old M111 Hill).
Road, or the current Malpeque Road. In the Journal for 15 Feb., 1832, 10 pounds was alloted “to road north side of Dunk River leading to “Burn’s Settlement?’ This is obviously the existing Freetown Road which in 1832 was known as’the Burn’s Settlement Road. The above entry suggests that construction was already in progress prior to 1832. This road continued toward the Princetown or Malpeque Road until 1840, when an entry in the Journal for 27 March recorded “completing that part of the road from Burn’s Settlement to the Princetown RoadZ’ Originally, the Freetown Road followed the river and brook on the Burn’s property in Lower Freetown. The road was changed to the north side of the Burn’s property only later.
The third road to be constructed at Freetown was the one past Scales’ Pond between Kinkora and Freetown. A reference to this road is found in the March 1842 Assembly Journal. In later Assembly Journals, this is referred to as the road between Anderson’s Road and Burn’s Road.
The progress in the construction of roads up to 1845 in the Freetown area is given in appendix E of the Prince Edward Island Assembly Journal of 1846. Joseph Pope, The Road Commissioner for Distr1ct No. 5, gave a return of the linear extent of public roads, with a classification of bridges.
This report is summarized as follows:
1. From Anderson’s Road to Burn’s Settlement, Lots 25, 26 and 27, 41/2 miles of road, 1 second class bridge, 1 third class bridge.
2. From County Line to Dunk River Bridge, through Burn’s Settlement, 10 miles of road, 5 third class bridges.
3. Taylor’s Mills to MacMurdy’s (sic); and from Strang’s to Line of Lot 19, 7 miles of road, 2 second class bridges, 4 third class bridges.
This report proves that up to 1845, only 3 public roads were constructed or under construction in the boundaries of Freetown.
In 1851, two new roads were started in the Freetown area, according to the appropriations section of
Freetown road before it was paved. Birches in background.
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