The Paris Independent
15
January 13, 2024
PA R I S PA S T Groundbreaking Paris Invention Revolutionizes Snow Removal
A.C. Lee
In the heart of a Canadian winter, where snow-covered landscapes create picturesque scenes, a remarkable invention emerged to transform the way we battle the relentless forces of nature. A.C. Lee, a mechanical genius from Paris, introduced the world’s first In March,1926, the Lee Rotary Master Model snowplow cleans Highway 2, between Eastwood and Woodstock, after it was impossible to clear the Rotary Snowplow for roadways, a road with any other equipment. Photo: Expositor Souvenir Edition game-changer in snow removal that promised to reshape winter concept that the Elliott-Jull his bedroom window. Motivated by travel across the nation. snowplow became the standard the inefficiency of manual labour equipment on trains throughout in snow removal, Lee's inventive Transportation has long been a North America. The introduction of mind began to churn. Drawing on challenge during the frigid the rotary snowplow revolutionized his experience as a machinist and Canadian winters, especially for winter travel, enabling trains to toolmaker, he meticulously crafted the burgeoning railway system that navigate even the harshest a small experimental model of a was gaining popularity in the 19th conditions and eliminating the need snowplow, which proved highly century. In a bid to keep the trains for large snow-shoveling crews. effective on a stretch of Highway 2 running smoothly, thousands of between the Village of Eastwood dedicated men were employed each However, it was A.C. Lee who took and the City of Woodstock. In a winter to tirelessly shovel snow off the concept of the rotary snowplow mere two hours and 30 minutes, the tracks. However, this labor- beyond the railway tracks and onto Lee's masterful creation cleared intensive process was far from the roads. In 1912, Lee, renowned both sides of the road, a task that efficient, and a groundbreaking for his mechanical expertise, had previously taken days to solution was desperately needed. opened the first gas station in Paris, complete. Ontario, where he embarked on a Enter Dr. J.W. Elliott, a visionary journey of innovation. By January Lee's snowplow exhibited Toronto dentist, who designed the 1925, while recuperating at his exceptional prowess in tackling first rotary snowplow in 1869. home in Paris from an illness even the most stubborn ice and Unfortunately, due to a lack of caused by overwork and worry, snow. Its unique design allowed it investors, Elliott's design never Lee witnessed a team of exhausted to pick up snow and discharge it materialized. It was not until the shovelers struggling to clear the several feet away, preventing brilliant mind of another Canadian, Paris to Brantford highway after a drifting. Orange Jull, stepped in to refine the severe winter storm in a view from. Continued on page 16
