Elgin County Facts
Historical
Hesse District was established as one of four districts in Upper Canada in 1788, and consisted of the territory of fifteen present-day counties, including Elgin.
In 1792, Hesse District was renamed Western District. Part of this became London District in 1800. This consisted of townships from what is now Brant, Elgin, Haldimand, Middlesex, and Norfolk Counties. At the time, Elgin County was a part of Middlesex County. The oldest town in the district was St Thomas. This district was abolished in 1849.
In 1851, Vienna, with a population of 1200, was reported to be as large as St. Thomas. There were even ideas of Vienna becoming the capital of Ontario.
In 1852, Elgin County was separated from Middlesex County by a proclamation and named after the governor-general of Canada at the time, Lord Elgin. The current municipal structure is the result of a reorganization in 1998.
This Proclamation also established local reeves and deputy reeves as representatives of a provisional municipal council for the county. Its first meeting took place in the Village of St. Thomas on April 15, 1852. The first act of the new council was to elect the county’s first warden.
The first representatives were from the Townships of Aldborough, Dunwich, Southwold, Yarmouth, Malahide, Bayham, and South Dorchester and the Villages of Vienna and St. Thomas. The latter village separated in 1861. These were followed by Aylmer (1871), Port Stanley (1875), Springfield (1878), Dutton (1891), West Lorne (1908), Rodney (1908), Port Burwell (1949), and Belmont (1961).
Elgin County was first settled in 1803 by a group of people led by Colonel Thomas Talbot, who had obtained a grant of 5000 acres of land in the southern part of Dunwich Township. He actually settled them outside of this grant, which he kept for himself.
There have been 26 railways which have run through St. Thomas since the railway’s completion in 1856, earning the city the title of “Railway Capital of Canada”.
Elgin and St. Thomas became a vital railway junction, with at least five different railroads steaming through the County. These included Michigan Central, Pere Marquette, London and Port Stanley, Canadian National, and Canadian Pacific.
Maps
Elgin County covers 725 square miles (1160 square kilometres). It is bordered by Lake Erie and the Counties of Norfolk, Oxford, Middlesex, and Kent.
See a map of Province of Canada in 1845. Note that Elgin was a part of Middlesex County.
See a map of Elgin County in 1880. Click on number 4. Note the road concession numbers.
See a map of Elgin County between 1941 and 1950.
See a map of Elgin County in 2008.
Municipal Offices
Bayham Municipal Office is at Straffordville.
Malahide Municipal Office is at Aylmer.
Central Elgin Municipal Office is at St. Thomas.
Southwold Municipal Office is at Fingal.
Dutton/Dunwich Municipal Office is at Dutton.
West Elgin Municipal Office is at Rodney.
Former South Dorchester Municipal Office was at Lyons.
Former Yarmouth Municipal Office was at Yarmouth Centre.
Former Dunwich Municipal Office was at Dutton.
Former Aldborough Municipal Office was at Rodney.
Origin of Township Names
Aldborough was named in 1792 after Aldeburgh, Suffolk, England.
Bayham was named in 1810 for Viscount Charles Pratt, a friend of Colonel Thomas Talbot.
Malahide was named in 1810 for Malahide Castle in Malahide, Ireland, birthplace of Colonel Thomas Talbot.
Southwold was named in 1792 after Southwold, in Suffolk, England.
Dunwich was named about 1810 after Dunwich in Suffolk, England.
South Dorchester was named about 1810 after Sir Guy Cartleton (Lord Dorchester).
Yarmouth was named about 1810 after Yarmouth, in Norfolk, England.
References
Colonel Thomas Talbot.
Elgin County Engineering 2008.
Government of Ontario. Archives. The Changing Shape of Ontario.
Masschaele, Brian. Documenting Our Roots: A Sesquicentennial History of the County of Elgin, 1852-2002. St. Thomas, 2002.
Tourism: Elgin County and St. Thomas.
Welcome to the Municipality of Bayham, Ontario, Canada.
Wikipedia.
(This page was updated in January 2013.)
