The town is situated on the edge of a large limestone plain, just south of the edge of the Canadian Shield in the deciduous forest ecoregion of North America. Carleton Place was first settled by Europeans when British authorities prompted immigration to Lanark County in the early 19th century. The Morphy and Moore families were among the first to arrive. Edmond Morphy chose the site in 1819 when he realized there was potential in the area's waterfall. He built a mill there and was the first of many such textile and lumber industries to locate in the area. The settlement was then known as Morphy's Falls. In 1829, the area was renamed Carleton Place, after a street in Glasgow, Scotland, when a post office was constructed. It became a village in 1870, and a town in 1890. The community's economic growth was enabled by the construction of the Brockville and Ottawa Railway later in the century. The town was also renowned for its access to Mississippi Lake, and had steamship service to Innisville on the west end of Mississippi Lake between the 1860s and 1920s.
Moore House
170 Bridge Street Constructed in the mid-1800, Moore House originally sat at the north end of Moore street, opposite Lansdowne Avenue. In 2007 the building was moved to its current location, 170 Bridge St. Today, the Moore house is home to the Carleton Place Chamber of Commerce and Visitor and Information Center. Moore House served as a home to multiple generations of the Moore family, including Ida Moore, who lived there with her parents and her four siblings. The Hauntings of the Moore House In 1900, at age 21, Ida died from tuberculosis in the home, and many believe her spirit has haunted the building ever since. Some of Ida's antics allegedly include moving objects, opening and closing windows, turning radios off and on, and staring out windows. A paranormal investigation was conducted at Moore House in July 2017, by Ottawa Paranormal Research and Investigations and released in the web series, Into the Haunting.
Industry
The logging industry stimulated economic development in the 19th century, with white pine logs exported to Europe. Local forests were depleted of hemlock to provide bark for the leather tanning industry. Both textile and lumber mills flourished, but none still operates. "The Findlay Foundry", founded by David Findlay in 1862, operated until 1974, making cast-iron cookware and woodstoves. Some of the designs created by this company are still being made by another company. Today, the remaining mill buildings house condominiums and high-tech industry. The "Crash Position Indicator" was manufactured and marketed in Carleton Place by Leigh Instruments Ltd.
