Rod Morrison

Rod Morrison. . , Rod Morrison Sr. and the Algoma Ore Athey Wagon go hand in hand. , Roderick F. Morrison was born in the Muskokas in 1917. He followed his brother Neil to work in the gold mines of Matechewan in 1936. In 1940 the newly constructed Sinter Plant of Algoma Ore Properties in Wawa beckoned. Rod worked as a labourer in the crushing plant and eventually became Assistant Master Mechanic and Superintendent of Plant Maintenance. , Following World War II, Rod married a young Polish bride named Mary and raised four children in the house they built on Hillcrest Avenue. Rod was a quiet and patient man with the intelligent and ingenious mind of an engineer. He was often sought out to solve an endless stream of mechanical puzzles in an ever-evolving industry of underground mining and material processing. , In 1952 the expansion of facilities at the Sinter Plant meant the relocation of all 23 company homes in this closely knit neighbourhood known as Sinterville. Rod was instrumental in customizing an old Athey Wagon exactly like the one in the Mining Heritage Park on Broadway Avenue. The removal of the bucket and an expansion of the sturdy track system allowed all 23 homes to be safely transported in one piece to their new addresses on Hillcrest, Beck, First, Second, Third and McKinley Avenues. , "In his inevitably quiet way, he supplied the steel intricacy with which the houses were moved, and a pillar of encouragement for their owners. He was thus largely instrumental in reducing the cost of the move per house from $600 to precisely nothing." , Sault Daily Star, October 22, 1952. , Rod retired from Algoma Ore Division in 1982. Former co-workers and employees fondly remember using the code R.S.S. (Rod Says So) whenever direction was given to complete a project. An employee never questioned an R.S.S. project. Rod Morrison Sr. passed away just shy of his 93rd birthday in 2010. , Story written by Johanna Rowe www.wawahistory.com