Also Known As: Sherwood Forest, Upper King's Forest ParkThe campaign to purchase the King's Forest property was spearheaded by Parks Board member Thomas Baker McQuesten, who maintained that "large park areas in surroundings of natural beauty fulfill a need which cannot be met in any other way.". Approval to purchase the site was granted in August of 1929, and by 1930, 645 acres were acquired by the Board at a cost of $150,500. In 1958, another 44 acres were acquired, at a cost of $70,000. Ice rinks were sometimes created during the winter months. In 1960, floodlights were provided. On October 18, 1973, the golf course was officially opened.
At one time, this park was the bottom of a large river bed. Mud Street was so called because it fit perfectly the character of the pioneer thoroughfare which was laid out across some of the stickiest clay lands of Barton and Saltfleet on the mountain. The park was known as Sherwood Forest until 1935, when it was renamed "King's Forest Park" to mark the 25th anniversary of King George V's accession to the throne (the "silver jubilee" of the reign of King George V).
The stream that runs through the park, sometimes called the Red Hill Creek, has its source in a spring only a few miles away. The small Albion Falls, which is a branch of the Grand River, also flows through the park. The Albion Falls are located in the southernmost tip of the King's Forest Park property. This area, also known as Albion Mills or the village of Mount Albion, was the site of a settlement founded by William Davis (1741 - 1834) in 1792.
In 1840, the Rev. George Cheyne founded the first Presbyterian Church in the Albion area.
The present day Mount Albion was called Albion Mills until 1880. Much of the history of the community now known as Mount Albion has been passed down. "Albion" is a poetic name for Britain, and "Mills" refers to the 3 saw-mills and grist mill which once churned in the woods.
The grist mill was located at the head of the ravine. The ravine was 200 feet wide and nearly as deep. The Lover's Leap was on the opposite bank (a perpendicular wall of rock 100 feet high) and near by to the right was the old storehouse. The grist mill of three storeys, built about 1807, was constructed of huge timbers and fine pine lumber by the best of tradesmen. When it was constructed, workmen accidentally discovered natural gas, which is believed to be the first found in Ontario. This flour mill, serving a large farming district, was a busy industry in 1900. Today, the traveller can scarcely find any evidence that it ever existed.
A number of strange occurances and ghostly tales have arisen around the Albion ravine. A now demolished house on the road above the mill was reportedly haunted!