Mille Roches was the birthplace of Levi Addison Ault, born into a well-known and established family in the town, who moved to Cincinnati, Ohio as an adult and became a successful businessman and the city's commissioner of parks in the early 1900s.
At various times, much like the rest of Eastern Ontario, it also became a home for migrants looking to escape authorities or find safe haven from overseas conflicts.
[4] The aftermath of the American Revolution resulted in the formal division of Upper and Lower Canada (later, Ontario and Quebec) to accommodate loyalists fleeing persecution in the new United States.
Cornwall (and the surrounding area), originally called "Royal Township #2" and "Johnstown", was a rough place, and bred a local culture of self-reliance.
Mille Roches' settlers and residents were more effectively integrated into the increasingly tight-knit region after the Loyalist arrival, with Cornwall as its economic centre.
Characterized by a mix of economic migrants, refugees and opportunists, the local population was a blend of different social classes and ethnic backgrounds.
Many people in the region have some native ancestry as a result, and family bonds have long linked the formal reservations and the surrounding area.
The area immediately around Mille Roches had been used as a source of attractive, highly prized and sought-after black stone for a long period before being formally settled by Europeans.
North of the townsite were limestone quarries, which had already been in use by suppliers in Montreal, and the name of the town in French refers to either the large numbers of rocky formations in the area or the rapids which prevented river navigation.
Mille Roches was also known for niche businesses, including the very respected Brooks Furniture Company, as well as a range of talented craftspeople in many industries.
Canal and lock construction in the late 1800s and early 1900s brought work, large boats and electric power generation stations.
Upon their departure from military camps in Montreal, Pointe Claire, Saint Anne, and Lachine in the fall of 1784, loyalists were given a tent, one month’s worth of food rations, clothes, and agricultural provisions by regiment commanders.
A delegation of townspeople eventually forced the government to provide compensation, after significant pressure, but this was insufficient to fully redress the damage that had been done.
Starting in the 1920s, plans began for damming the St. Lawrence to build a massive hydro-electric power plant and an artificial body of water that was navigable for ocean-going ships.
Long Sault, named in memory of the former rapids, still maintains many of the homes from Mille Roches that were moved to new sites in the town, as well as a museum devoted to the history of The Lost Villages.