By 1915, fewer men were being employed by the Sellwood mine and it became obvious that the mine would eventually close.

At first, many men would work on the railway lines in Capreol and return to Sellwood in the evenings but soon, signs of departure were becoming evident in the community as local businesses started to close up.  One such business was the general store of Henry Plexman.  Plexman, believing that Capreol would become an important town, moved from Sellwood to Capreol and set up a new store.

During the First World War, the amount of traffic on the railway lines was increasing due to the number of soldiers heading east.  Capreol was a booming town and Plexman decided to build his store where the Royal Canadian Legion now stands.  When the trains would stop in Capreol to change crews, the soldiers would go to Plexman's store because it possessed a post office where they could mail their postcards.

In 1923, news came that Sellwood mine would be closing.  People began to quietly move away in search of new employment opportunities and soon, the town was deserted without anyone even realizing it.

Many former Sellwood residents moved to Capreol including Joseph Castonguay, Thomas Lafleur, and Alex Nepitt.

Little remains of the Town of Sellwood thanks to the renewed mining efforts of 1957 to 1979 that obliterated any trace of the settlement.

Today, all that's left of this once prosperous town is a cemetery hidden within the confines of the woods.

For more information on the Town of Sellwood, visit the Ontario Ghost Town website.

Material compiled from Capreol: The First 75 Years, 1918-1993.