Driving south into Bruce County, Formosa suddenly appears deep in a pre-glacial river valley.  It is a romantic sight, living up to its name taken from a Portuguese word meaning “beautiful.”  The town was founded largely by German Catholic settlers, many from the Alsace district. They had names like Messner, Kuntz, Weber and Kramer. Beginning in 1852, they built a closely-knit community that came complete with a brewery.

By 1880, there were over 500 inhabitants.  Among them were brewers, coopers, seamstresses, merchants, butchers, photographers and an undertaker.  A growing Roman Catholic parish, Formosa was soon home to the Church of the Immaculate Conception that crowns the village north hill.  An architectural gem, it was built between 1875 and 1883, largely by the volunteer labour of parishioners.

Northbound visitors look out over the beautiful valley from the site of Formosa Mutual Insurance Company, established in 1880.  Just down the hill is the Formosa Springs Brewery, in business since 1869.  During province-wide beer strikes in 1957 and 1967, visitors to Formosa tripled and then tripled again when thirsty drinkers came to the brewery to buy a case of beer.  Formosa has many sturdy stone buildings that house the likes of the Formosa Inn and Oberle’s General Store.

Fun Fact

 At the turn of the 20th century several wells were drilled in Formosa in a search for natural gas or petroleum.  At the depth of 1,000 feet, a column of crystal clear water shot sixteen feet into the air.  This overflowing artesian well became the centerpiece of the Palace Gardens where, in the years before the First World War, thousands picnicked.  Today, the water still flows in the Lion and Lioness Park.

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