In the great lineage of prosperous pillars of Coaticook, Arthur Osmore Norton was one of those who left a deep mark. He was an important player in the arrival of the train in the region, especially with his company of jacks for railroads.
He was a man modelled on his time: determined, brave and generous. He purchased Frank Sleeper's concept of the jack which had a simple to make the railroad workplaces laborers' work much easier.
Money wasn't missing at the Nortons. The couple, formed of Arthur and Helen Richardson, married in 1870, had two children and bequeathed, in addition to the Norton castle, several memories from their stay in the region.
Admittedly, the Norton factory was a compay with a great productivity, but it clearly wasn't the only one. Indeed, Coaticook was for a long time the home port of several textile industries like the Penman's or the Belding-Corticelli. These companies came to settle on the river banks to have access to the necessary energy for their factories to function.
Since the region was not immune to wars, most of these industries had to change their production during international conflicts to help the war effort. So several textile industries started producing uniforms or military equipment and other factories often produced pieces of army artillery.
Harry Norton, Arthur's son, was his father's right-hand man to manage the company. They had the Coaticook factory, but they also had one in Boston. When his father died in 1919, he took over the company, but sold it soon after.
Source: Beaulne museum, Anne Dansereau, D'hier à aujourd'hui: l'industrie à Coaticook.