sentences:  From 1845 to 1852, he served as government inspector during the building of harbours at Port Dalhousie and Port Colborne.He was a lumber merchant and built a sawmill in Flos township in 1870; the community that developed nearby became known as Phelpston.Phelps served as reeve for Grant and Flos townships and was warden for Simcoe County in 1881.