The Flooding of Hooverville

By 1940, the depot at Hooverville was not needed by the lumber company. All the staff who were working there left, save one. He remained there to look after the gate for the Department of Lands and Forests (now known as the Ministry of Natural Resources). All vehicles were registered when going in and coming out of the territory, and when fires occurred no unauthorized traffic went north.

In 1947 Ontario Hydro announced a plan to build a hydroelectric generating dam above the Tunnel Bridge, on the Mississagi River. This would flood the river, and so all low-lying land in the township of Gould would be flooded. Trees were cleared, and residents of the region -- specifically Hooverville -- were compensated for their property at a rate of $40 per acre. Houses and buildings had to be moved, and everything that remained was burned. Most of the residents moved to other nearby communities such as Wharncliffe. The flooding also resulted in changes to the road, as the original one was lost to the new Tunnel Lake. It took a total of three weeks to flood Hooverville.