"He didn't want to sell any of his carvings, you know - he wasn't carving for the money."

     This article is unlike the previous TAMARACK magazine articles, as Tom Mills has been deceased for over a quarter century. Therefore, our information on Tom's life was obtained through his friends and family.
     Thomas Henry Mills was a gentle, laid back man who was born on September 7, 1882 in Eganville, Ontario. In his younger days, Tom was a logger and a river man. In 1919, he began working for Imperial Oil in Eganville and later made the first fuel deliveries to the Atomic Energy of Canada Limited construction site in Chalk River. Although he whittled his whole life, he never had a chance to focus all of his attention on carving until after his retirement in 1947.
     Native statues were a common trend found among Tom's carvings. Every carving of Tom's was unique and never had a price; he simply gave his carvings away to friends, family and children. Tom's carvings are a constant reminder of his quiet, modest nature and ensure that he will never be forgotten.

By Tyler Chartier and Heidi Curtis
Tom O'Brien (Deep River, Ontario)

"Tom Mills was my wife's uncle. I met him back 'bout 1935. He was born in Eganville on a farm. He lived in Eganville all his life, except when he got older and retired. His wife died and then he went to Kirkland Lake to live with his daughters. In his early years, when he was a young man, he worked in a quarry in Eganville. At that time, the workers were taking stone out for making basements. I met him at my wife's mother and father's house. He worked for the Imerial Oil Company
Grandpa Mills sparking a cigar
 when they made deliveries with the tanker and horses, you know. That was a long time ago. I don't think he was a carver then, but he was a whittler.
     He never started carving 'til he came up to our place [on the Ottawa River]. He used to be up there with us a lot and he used all
Geez we had an awful pile of his carvings...
- Tom O'Brien

those branches and driftwood that would wash in on the shore. He made lamps out of burrs off trees and he made nice axe handles on