Dalhousie's paper mill will stop running today, signaling the end of an era that defined New Brunswick's northernmost town for more than 75 years.

The paper-making machines that have been the engine of the region's economy will shut down for good as AbitibiBowater Inc. goes ahead with its permanent closure of the mill. Only a skeleton crew will remain of the 360 employees who counted on the mill for their livelihood, as did thousands of others who benefited indirectly from the mill's massive presence on the Dalhousie waterfront.

"Walking feels as if we've got no legs. They took the legs from underneath us. We counted so much on the mill for our lives, now it's turmoil," said Rene (Ti-Chou) Landry, who worked at the mill for 29 years.

At age 50, not only is Landry worried about his own future, but the future of this remote town of fewer than 4,000 people, and the entire Restigouche area.

"From St-Quentin to as far down as Bathurst, without the mill, people don't really realize the outcome that's going to happen, not only to people at the mill, but a lot of people around the area," he said. "It's the last nail in the casket for a lot of us people, a big big downfall. I wish to God something comes here for our people."

So much in the area depended on that mill, that the after-effects are sure to be felt far away, said Tony Tremblay, the Canada Research Chair in New Brunswick Studies at St. Thomas University.

"The mill was really everything in Dalhousie, to the extent that people who didn't work in the mill, in a way worked in the mill," said Tremblay, who grew up in Dalhousie, the son of three generations of mill workers. "People who owned clothing stores did tremendous business outfitting workers in coveralls and rubber boots "¦ fire crews were originally trained in the mill (and) there were indirect and direct influences everyone who lived in the town felt."

While the mill's daily grind will come to an end, Tremblay believes its presence planted a seed deep in the community that will flower into better days ahead.

"The mill gave people a sense of independence and self-reliance," he said. "Even though the mill is gone, that sense of self-reliance is still a large part of who the people are. That sense of self-reliance will take people beyond to whatever awaits them when the mill closes "¦ You had to be tough to work there all those years, all those crazy shifts, and people will translate that."

The town's mayor, Clem Tremblay, is also optimistic that Dalhousie has a future.

"After 75-plus years being known as the one-industry town of the paper mill, (today) will be the last functional day. It's going to be a sad moment for the employees "¦ and for the town seeing this icon," he said. "But I think we can change our mind and ideas around diversification."

Tremblay sees potential in Dalhousie's port, in the tourism industry, and for other industry to come to the town, possibly even to re-purpose the mill. At least one prospective buyer has been reported, after Natural Resources Minister Donald Arseneault met last week with a German company interested in using the mill to produce fuel pellets. The company has agreed to keep a handful of people on hand to heat the mill throughout the winter and will leave the main infrastructure intact until September.

As for the 300-plus people out of work, the mayor said he's heard of many enrolling in courses to learn a trade, or finding work elsewhere in Canada to support their families.

"Today we're faced with the reality we have to pull up our socks and look at other avenues," said Tremblay.

Playwright and actor Marshall Button, who grew up in Dalhousie, shares the mayor's optimism.

"I think now the community is going to redefine itself in its resiliency, but without the mill as part of its mix," he said. He envisions the town as "the ecological centre of the province," taking advantage of its natural beauty and outdoor sports.

However, Button's most famous character, north shore mill worker and blue collar philosopher Lucien, may not live on.

Button drew his inspiration for Lucien from the workers of Dalhousie.

"But it's getting harder to keep it funny as the news keeps getting worse up there. If not terrible tragic events on highways, it's ripping out the economic engine that drives the place," said Button, the artist-in-residence at Moncton's Capitol Theatre.

"That character may just have to lay down and die or disappear into thin air," he said. "He's very closely identified with the building and the activity inside of it. For me, like so many people in Dalhousie, my father worked there, and both grandfathers, my father-in-law "¦ It's paramount to who you are and what defines you."

In the words of Lucien: "Dat's all we ever know was da mill."

"I hope that humour they shared continues to live long and prosper,"said Button.

"Beyond the building and the paper made there."