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PATHMASTERPICKERING TOWNSHIP HISTORICAL SOCIETY
SPECIAL EDITION NUMBER 7 • FALL 2022
Introduction: Pickering
Township in Early Gazetteers
In 1846, William H. Smith,
a British dentist who had
travelled extensively in Upper
Canada (or Canada West)
published what he referred
to as “the first Gazetteer of
Canada West.” He apparently
was unaware that Upper
Canada’s first Surveyor
General, David William Smith
(or Smyth) had compiled and
published a gazetteer nearly
half a century earlier. And still
another gazetteer of Upper
Canada was published in
New York in 1813. A little
more than a quarter of a
century after Smith’s Canadian
Gazetteer was published,
Henry Scadding returned to
the 1799 gazetteer and added
his own annotations. Here are
the items relevant to Pickering
from each of these works.
David William Smyth,
A Short Topographical
Description of His Majesty’s
Province of Upper Canada in
North America: to which is
annexed, a provincial gazetteer
(London: W. Faden, 1799).
You then pass by the fronts of
Clarke, Darlington, and Whitby;
and coming to Pickering, you
meet with an excellent salmon
and sturgeon fishery, at a river
called Duffin’s Creek, which
is generally open, and large
enough to receive boats at most
seasons of the year.
Duffin’s Creek runs into Lake
Ontario, in the township of
Pickering (east of the river of
Easy Entrance), and is remark-
able for the quantity of salmon
which resort to it.
Katabokokonk (or River of
Easy Entrance) empties itself
into Lake Ontario in the town-
ship of Pickering.
Pickering Township, in
the east riding of the County
of York, is situated between
Whitby and Scarborough and
fronts Lake Ontario. The River
Nen runs into Lake Ontario
through this township.
Nen River, in the east riding of
the County of York, rises several
miles in the rear of York, and
running southerly through the
township of Markham, parts of
Scarborough, and Pickering, emp-
ties itself into Lake Ontario, east
of the Highlands in Scarborough.
GAZETTEER OF
PICKERING AND AJAX
Compiled by John W. SabeanC CCaution: The reader is warned that some of the documents cited in this article
were written long ago in a different era. Some words that were in common use in times past
might be considered offensive or demeaning in today’s more inclusive society.
“A gazetteer is a geographical index or directory used in conjunction with a map or atlas.
It typically contains information concerning the geographical makeup, social statistics
and physical features of a country, region, or continent.” Wikipedia
Gazetteer of the Province of Upper Canada: to which is added An Appendix, Describing the Principal Towns,
Fortifications and Rivers in Lower Canada (New York: Prior and Dunning, 1813).
Nen River, empties itself into lake Ontario, in the township of Pickering; it runs for a considerable distance
in the country through Pickering, Markham, &c. crossing the Yonge-street, and apparently rising in the vicin-
ity of one of the branches of Holland’s river, with which it will probably, at some future period, be connected
by a canal. This river abounds with fish; at its embouchure are good intervals for meadow ground, and it is
the back communication from the German settlement in Markham to lake Ontario.
Home District, the, is bounded easterly by a meridian passing through the mouth of the river Trent; north-
erly by the Ottawa river, into lake Timmiskamain, and the bounds of Hudson’s Bay Company; also by part
of lake Huron; westerly by a meridian passing through the eastern extremity of Long Point, or the North
Foreland; and southerly by part of lake Ontario, and part of lake Erie.
Pickering Township, in the eastern riding of the county of York, is situated between Whitby and Scarbor-
ough, and fronts lake Ontario. The river Nen runs through this township.
Duffin’s Creek runs into lake Ontario in the township of Pickering (east of the river of Easy Entrance) and is
remarkable for the quantity of salmon which resort to it.
William H. Smith, Smith’s Canadian Gazetteer
(Toronto: H. and W. Rowsell, 1846).
Pickering. A Township in the Home District; is bounded on the north by the township of Uxbridge; on the
west by Markham and Scarborough; on the east by Whitby; and on the south by Lake Ontario. In Pickering
63,061 acres are taken up, 24,551 of which are under cultivation. The land in the interior of the township is
rather hilly, and the timber of a large proportion of it is pine. At the entrance of Duffin’s Creek, which runs
through the township, is a bay called Big Bay (also called Frenchman’s Bay, from a battle said to have been
fought on its banks between the old French settlers and the Indians), about three miles in circumference, with
a depth of two to three fathoms; it is separated from the lake by a narrow sand bar, through which a channel
is sometimes formed having a depth of six feet of water. In Pickering are four grist and twenty-one saw mills,
from which latter were exported last year about 3,000,000 feet of lumber. Population in 1842, 3752. Ratable
property in the township, £62,894.
Duffin’s Creek, or Canton. A Village in the township of Pickering, situated on Duffin’s Creek, about three miles
from Lake Ontario, and twenty-three miles from Toronto. Contains about 130 inhabitants. Churches and chapels,
4; viz.; Presbyterian, Catholic, British Wesleyan, and Quaker. The eastern road runs through the village.
Post Office, post every day. Professions and trades.—One grist mill, one brewery, one tannery, three
stores, two taverns, three shoemakers, two tailors, one blacksmith, one waggon maker.
First Gazetteer of Upper Canada with Annotations by Henry Scadding, D.D.
(Toronto: Copp, Clark & Co., 1876).
Nen River, in the east riding of the County of York, rises several miles in the rear of York, and running
southerly through the township of Markham, parts of Scarborough, and Pickering, empties itself into Lake
Ontario, east of the Highlands in Scarborough. (The Nen has lost its English and retained its French name —
The Rouge. The Otchipways distinguished it, A. Jones says, as Kitchi-Sippi, The Big River.)
Pickering Township, in the east riding of the County of York; is situated between Whitby and Scarborough,
and fronts Lake Ontario. The River Nen runs into Lake Ontario through this township. (From the name of a
market-town and parish in the north riding of Yorkshire.)
Home District, The, was originally constituted and erected into a district by the name of the District of Nassau,
in the Province of Quebec, by his Excellency Lord Dorchester’s Proclamation of the 24th of July, 1788. It received
its present name by an Act of the Provincial Legislature. It is bounded easterly by a meridian passing through the
mouth of the River Trent; northerly by the Ottawa River into Lake Tamiscaming, and the bounds of the Hudson’s
Bay Company; also by part of Lake Huron; westerly by a meridian passing through the eastern extremity of Long
Point or the North Foreland; and southerly by part of Lake Ontario and part of Lake Erie. (The Home District was
so named from the fact that York, the seat of the Provincial Government, was situated in it. In the Second Edition,
the above reads as follows: It is now bounded easterly by a line running northward from between Whitby and Dar-
lington townships, on the Lake Ontario, to Talbot River, and from thence to Lake Nipissing; westerly by London
District; and on the south by the District of Niagara and the Lake Ontario.)
2
3
By this compiler’s count there were, historically, 18 hamlets at one
time or another in Pickering Township, all of which had a post office
at one time or another: Altona, Atha, Audley, Balsam, Brock Road,
Brougham, Cherrywood, Claremont, Dunbarton, Fairport, Green
River, Greenwood, Kinsale, Liverpool Market, Pickering Village (or
Duffins Creek), Port Union, Rouge Hill, Whitevale. Two of these
hamlets, Claremont and Pickering Village, were raised to the status of
Police Villages for a time in the Twentieth Century.
In the latter half of the nineteenth century 17 School Sections and 4
Union School Sections were created; they lasted until about the 1960s
when the present day modern schools replaced them.
Below is the gazetteer we have compiled from 350 years of maps that are
relevant to Pickering. The gazetteer covers all of the places noted on at
least one map covering Pickering up to about 1960. There is no attempt
here to list all of the subdivisions created after that date. For the most
part, I have tried to find the earliest map to locate the places named.
AJAX
Location: Town between Pickering on the west
and Whitby on the east.
Comments:
The area covered by Ajax was originally a part of Pickering
Township. As a separate entity, it grew out of the war years when
what became Ajax was the home of the Defence Industries Limited.
Dilville was an early name. And Dilco Station was a stop on the
Grand Trunk Railway.
In 1950, Ajax was given a degree of independence with the cre-
ation of the Improvement District of Ajax. Full separation occurred
in 1954 with the creation of the Town of Ajax. The first Council
of the Town of Ajax was elected in December, 1954, and took up
office on 1 January 1955.
Sources:
1995 MacDonald
2015 Snapshots of Ajax
Maps:
1951 Topographical
1962 Ajax Topographical
ALTONA (P.O.)
Location:
Pickering-Uxbridge Townline at Sideline 30;
Con 9, Lots 29 & 30.
Comments:
A hamlet in the northwest corner of Pickering Township, equally
divided between Pickering and Uxbridge. While Altona had a
schoolhouse as early as 1834 and mills established in the 1840s, its
status as a hamlet really dates to 1850 when three entrepreneurs—
Joseph Monkhouse, Abraham Reesor and William Cooper—opened
a general store, refurbished the mill works, and erected a hotel (the
Altona Inn on the Uxbridge side). Much of the character of Altona—
as well as its name—was due to Mennonites who were among its
earliest settlers.
Partial map of School Sections in 1848.
PT
H
S
Plan of Altona, 1857
SS #1 Baseline East. BF, Lot 6
SS #2 Baseline West. BF, Lot 18
SS #3 Dunbarton. BF, Lot 26
SS #4E Reazin (or Hobbs). Con 1, Lot 10
SS #4W Pickering Public. Con 2, Lot 14
SS #5 Audley. Con 3, Lot 7
SS #6 Brock Road. Con 4, Lot 18
SS #7 Cherrywood. Con 3, Lot 30
SS #8 Whitevale. Con 5, Lot 28
SS #9 Greenwood. Con 5, Lot 11
SS #10 Brougham. Con 5, Lot 19
SS #11 Green River. Con 6, Lot 32
SS #12 Mount Pleasant. Con 6, Lot 21
SS #13 Mount Zion. Con 7, Lot 7
SS #14 Cedar Creek. Con 9, Lot 10
SS #15 Claremont. Con 8, Lot 19
SS #16 Atha. Con 7, Lot 30
SS #17 Altona, Con 9, Lot 31. Originally, USS #3 Pickering
and USS #5 Uxbridge
USS #1 Almonds. Con 2, Lot 1
USS #2 Kinsale. Con 5, Lot 1
USS #3 Balsam. Con 9, Lot 1
USS #4 Port Union. On the townline with Scarborough, at Ellesmere Road
PT
H
S
4
The Mennonites built a meeting house in 1853, and named the
hamlet after Altona, near Hamburg, in Germany, a town of impor-
tance in their history.
Sources:
1869 Anderson
“A Village in the Township of Pickering, County Ontario, 20
miles from Whitby, and 30 from Toronto. Stages to Toronto and
Stouffville. Population, 200.”
1869 Connor & Coltson
“A village in the township of Pickering, 20 miles north-west of
Whitby. Population about 200.”
1876 Crawford
“A village in the township of Uxbridge, 20 miles north-west of
Whitby.”
1883 Traveller (WC 12 Dec 1884; Pathmaster 4:3&4 (2002))
1947 Dunkeld
1973 Greenwald
1974 Gauslin
1985 Nighswander
Maps:
1857 Reesor Plan
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
ANNES BROOK
Location:
Cons 3-6, Lots 2-4
Comments:
Named for the daughter of Deputy Surveyor David William
Smith, through whose land the stream ran. It is now known as
Carruthers Creek.
Maps:
1802 Chewett
ATHA; ATHA ROAD (P.O.);
ATHA ROAD STATION
Location:
8th Concession Road at Sideline 28; Cons 7 & 8, Lots 27 & 28.
Comments:
The first settler to come to the area of what became the Hamlet
of Atha (in northwest Pickering) was Nathan Bentley (brother
to William and James of Brougham) who arrived in 1831 from
New York State. When other families—Nighswander, Spears, Bell,
Whitson, Lehman, and Hoover—joined him in the vicinity he had
the first schoolhouse in the area built on his farm in 1841. By
1869 Atha had a post office, a store, a blacksmith shop, and a new
school (built in 1864).
Sources:
1869 Anderson
“A Post Village in the Township
of Pickering, in the County of Ontario, 16 miles from Whitby, the
County Town, and 28 miles from Toronto. Population about 50.”
1869 Connor & Coltson
“A Post village in the township of Pickering.”
1876 Crawford
“A post village in the township of Pickering. Bell, John M. Postmaster.”
1947 Dunkeld
1973 Greenwald
1974 Gauslin
Maps:
1878 County of Ontario
1917 Guidal [Altha]
1943 Topographical
AUDLEY (P.O.)
Location:
Taunton Road (4th Concession Road) and Audley Road; Cons 3 &
4, Lots 2 & 3.
Comments:
First named Brown’s Corners, the hamlet had a post office as early
as 1857, at which time it was renamed Audley. Audley is now a
part of the Town of Ajax.
Sources:
1876 Crawford
“A post village in the Township of Pickering. McBrady D., Postmaster.”
1939 Chapman
1995 MacDonald
2015 Snapshots of Ajax
Maps:
1860 Tremaine
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
1943 Topographical
BALSAM (P.O.)
Location:
Highway 5 (9th Concession Road) at Sideline 4;
Cons 8 & 9, Lots 4 & 5.
Comments:
The general store at the core of the hamlet still stands, but no longer
serves in its original capacity. There is little difference in the look of
the old general store today from what it looked like 100 years ago.
Sources:
1869 Connor & Coltson
“A village in the Township of Pickering, 13 miles north-west of
Whitby. Population about 100.”
1876 Crawford
“A village in the township of Pickering 13 miles north west of Whitby.
Population about 75.”
1884 Traveller (WC 28 Mar, 11,18, & 25 Apr 1884;
Pathmaster 11:1&2 (2011))
1974 Gauslin
Maps:
1860 Tremaine
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
1943 Topographical Balsam, 1914
PT
H
S
PT
H
S
Altona c1900
5
BASE LINE
Location:
Bayly Street, Lots 1-35
Comments:
At the beginning of Pickering’s history, to prepare the area for
settlement it had to be surveyed to establish lots and concessions. “The
procedure for surveying lands along the shoreline was to run a ‘base
line’ sufficiently far inland to miss any bays or coastal indentations,
and on this land lay out townships approximately nine-by-twelve miles
in size. In each township the concessions were run parallel to the base
line, 1 ¼ miles apart. The land between the base line and the lake
shore was divided into ‘broken fronts’, and where the broken front
was deeper than 1 ¼ miles, further concessions (in Pickering Township
called ‘ranges’) were laid out.” Johnson (1973), 36.
Sources:
1973 Johnson
Maps:
1802 Chewett
BAY RIDGES
Location:
Between Liverpool Road and Sandy Beach Road, South of Bayly
Street; Broken Front, Lots 21 & 22; East side of Frenchman’s Bay.
Comments:
The first major subdivision built after the end of the Second World
War. Begun in 1960.
Maps:
1964 Topographical
BELFORD
Location:
Whitevale Road at the town line with Markham; Cons 4 & 5,
Lot 35 (also partly in Markham).
Comments:
Shared by Pickering and Markham Townships, little is known of
this tiny hamlet. The Tremaine Map (1860) shows an inn on the
property of P.W. Phillips, and a saw mill and grist mill. It had a
post office by 1878, which was closed in 1889; after which the
Locust Hill post office took care of the mail for the area.
Sources:
1973 Greenwald
1979 Champion
Maps:
1860 Tremaine’s Map of the County
of York
1878 Miles
1895 Electoral District
1932 Topographical
1943 Topographical
BENTLEY’S CORNERS – See BROUGHAM
BIG BAY
Location:
See Frenchman’s Bay
Comments:
An alternative name for Frenchman’s Bay.
Sources:
1846 Smith
“Pickering. A Township in the Home District …. The entrance of
Duffin’s Creek, which runs through the township, is a bay called
Big Bay (also called Frenchman’s Bay, from a battle said to have
been fought on its banks between the old French settlers and
the Indians), about three miles in circumference, with a depth of
two to three fathoms; it is separated from the lake by a narrow
sand bar, through which a channel is sometimes formed having a
depth of six feet of water.
Note: the author has confused the mouth of Duffin’s Creek with
Frenchman’s Bay.
Maps:
Not on any map.
BIG ROUGE
Location:
BF, R3, Lots 33-35
Maps:
1877 Beers
BROCK ROAD (Hamlet)
Location:
Taunton Road (4th Concession
Road) at Brock Road: Cons 3
& 4, Lots 18 & 19.
Comments:
Brock Road, the hamlet, in
the vicinity of Brock Road,
the road, and Taunton Road,
had its beginnings in the
1850s with the Jackson family
and once boasted its own
railway station—a part of the
Canadian Northern Railway.
First named Jackson’s Corners,
it was renamed when the post
office was opened there in
1891 (see PN 9 January 1891,
p. 8). It was also the location
of School Section #6.
Sources:
1973 Greenwald
Maps:
1895 Electoral District
1917 Guidal
1932 Topographical
1943 Topographical
1932 Topographical Map
PN 9 Jan 1891, p. 8
PT
H
S
Brock Road Railway Station, n.d.
6
BROCK ROAD (Street)
Location:
Runs north-south between Lots 18 & 19, from Lake Ontario to
Uxbridge Township.
Maps:
1878 County of Ontario
BROUGHAM (P.O.)
Location:
Highway 7 (6th Concession Road) at Mowbray
Street (formerly Brock Road); Cons 5 & 6,
Lots 18 & 19.
Comments:
Earlier known as Bentley’s Corners; renamed by Nicholas Howell
in honour of Lord Brougham, a British parliamentarian. The
Hamlet of Brougham lies at the very centre of the City of
Pickering geographically speaking. At one time, and for well over
100 years, it was also the administrative centre of (the then
township of) Pickering, as well as an important crossroad
community with no fewer than three hotels. It owes its existence
to William and James Bentley who immigrated to Upper Canada
from New York State around 1830. Settling in the area of the
Sixth Concession Road and Brock Road, William Bentley opened
the first store in Brougham about 1835 and his brother James in
the 1840s co-founded with
Nelson Woodruff a patent
medicine factory—Woodruff
and Bentley and Company—
an important early industry
for the hamlet, and, indeed,
for the whole township.
Sources:
1869 Anderson
“A Village in the Township of Pickering, County Ontario. Distant
from Whitby, the County Town, 12 miles, from Toronto 22
miles. Average price of land, $50 to $60. Money Order office.
Population 400.”
1869 Connor & Coltson
“A village in the township of Pickering, 12 miles north of Whitby,
to which place it is connected by daily stage. Was first settled
by Mr. Thomas Hubbard in 1807. The first store was opened by
the late Mr. W.M. Bentley in 1835. The first postmaster was Mr.
Richard Taun. At the present it contains one Sons of Temperance
Hall (division No. 104) of wood, erected in 1853 at the cost of
about $1,200. A town hall of wood, erected in 1856 at the cost
of about $1,000. A steam saw and planning mill erected in 1858,
destroyed by fire in 1867. Rebuilt the same fall with the addition
of a tub factory, one tannery, school house, two churches, one
Christian church of brick erected in 1859 at the cost of nearly
$2,000. One Wesleyan Methodist (now being completed) of
wood, and will cost when finished about 1,200. One Agricultural
Hall of wood, built in 1865 at the cost of about $800, with
extensive grounds adding to the cost some $500 or $600 more.
Several general stores, two hotels, one of which, the Brougham
Hotel, owned and kept by
Mr. C.W. Mathews, we can
recommend to the travelling
public, and last, though not
least, the celebrated Patent
Medicine Factory of Woodruff,
Bentley & Co. Population
between 200 and 300. Daily
mail.”
1876 Crawford
“A village in the Township of
Pickering, 12 miles north west of Whitby, to which it is connected
by daily stage. Was first settled in the year 1807 by Thomas
Hubbard. The first store was opened by the late W.M. Bently,
Esq., in 1835. The first post master was Richard Taun, Esq. The
principal buildings are a temperance hall, a town hall, a steam
saw and planning mill, three churches, one school house, one
tannery, one agricultural hall, with commodious grounds; several
stores and three hotels. Population about 200.”
1883 Traveller (WC 19 Oct 1883; Pathmaster 5:1&2 (2003))
c1927 Brown
1949 Brown
1973 Greenwald
1973 Miller
Maps:
1850 Rottenburg
1857 Plan of the Village of Brougham
1860 Tremaine
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
1943 Topographical
BROWN’S CORNERS – See AUDLEY
BRUNSWICK HILL
Location:
Highway 7 (6th Concession Road) at Sideline 28; Cons 5 & 6, Lots
28 & 29.
Comments:
Known only from its labelling in the Tremaine map.
Maps:
1860 Tremaine
PT
H
S
Portrait of Lord
Brougham
PT
H
S
Shier Plan of Brougham, 1869
PT
H
S
Brougham, 1910
Tremaine Map, 1860
7
CANTON
Location:
See Pickering Village
Comments:
Early name for Pickering Village.
Maps:
1850 Rottenburg
CARRUTHER’S CREEK
Location:
Originates south of the Oak Ridges Moraine in Pickering, and flows
south into Ajax where it empties into Lake Ontario.
Comments:
A stream within the boundaries of Pickering and Ajax. It
is named for Richard Carruthers (1819-1887), an English
immigrant from Cumberland, whose family owned property
along the banks of the creek (Con 1, Lots 4 and 5).
Maps
1997 DEN
CEDARWOOD – See SEATON
CHERRYWOOD (P.O.)
Location:
3rd Concession Road at Rosebank Road;
Con 2 & 3, Lots 30 & 31
Comments:
Named by James McCreight
after his home in Ireland.
McCreight came to Pickering
Township in 1834 and was
to serve as a Councillor
and Reeve (Mayor) of the
township, as well as a Justice
of the Peace, a Major in the
Militia, a trustee of School
Section No. 7, and President
of the Pickering Agricultural
Society. The hamlet grew up in
the vicinity of his farm.
Sources:
1883 Traveller (WC 23 Nov 1883;
Pathmaster 5:3&4 (2003))
c1950 Cober
Maps:
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
1943 Topographical
1973 Greenwald
CHERRYWOOD
STATION
Location:
Concession 2 Road, Lot 29
Comments:
There were two railway
stations across from
each other—one serving
the Canadian Northern
Railway, the other the Canadian Pacific Railway.
Maps:
1932 Topographical
1943 Topographical
CLAREMONT (P.O.)
Location:
Highway 5 (9th Concession Road,) and Old
Brock Road; Cons 8 & 9, Lots 18 & 19.
Comments:
Claremont, in the north of
Pickering, was one of the
earliest areas to be settled
in the township. About
1800, the Wixson brothers,
Joseph and Joshua, came
from New York State to the
9th Concession of Pickering
Township and settled one on
either side of Brock Road.
Both brothers had large
families and both families
contributed much to the growth and governance of the area. Ruth
Wixson, born in 1804, and who married a member of another early
Pickering family, Sylvanus Sharrard, is believed to be the first non-native
child born in Pickering Township.
The hamlet itself got its start in the 1840s due in large part to another
pair of brothers, John C. Michell and William H. Michell. In 1844, John
became the first merchant of what was to become Claremont. William
was the first Reeve of the township in 1850. Michell’s store was about
a half mile south of the four corners. A second store was created at the
four corners itself in 1847. It was run by Thomas Noble, and for a time
the developing hamlet was known as Noble’s Corners.
In 1851, a post office was established with Noble as the first
postmaster. For the creation of the post office a new name had to be
chosen for the community. It was William Michell who suggested
the name Claremont. Claremont has been noted over the years for
its general store housed in a brick building built in 1851 by John C.
Michel. From 1907 to 1968 Claremont was a Police Village with a
degree of control over its own affairs.
Sources:
1869 Anderson
“A Village in the Township of Pickering, County Ontario,
16 miles from Whitby, the County Town, and 10 from
Frenchman’s Creek. Station Grand Trunk Railroad. Money
Be
e
r
s
,
1
8
7
7
Cherrywood CNR Station, n.d.
Claremont in 1914
Cherrywood CPR Station, n.d.
PT
H
S
PT
H
S
1932 Topographical Map
Cherry Wood Farm, 1877
PT
H
S
8
Order Office. Population 200.”
1869 Connor & Colson
“A village in the township of Pickering, 16 miles northwest of
Whitby, was first settled by Mr. Joseph Wixson, in about the
year 1800. The first Store was opened by Mr. John C. Mitchell
in 1844. The first Postmaster was Mr. Thomas Noble. At present,
it contains 4 churches, one Primitive Methodist, built of wood
and roughcast in 1866, at the cost of about $700, one Wesleyan
Methodist, of brick erected in 1863, at the cost of about $1000.
One regular Baptist, of brick, erected in 1865, at the cost of
about $1500, one Canadian Presbyterian, of wood erected in
1848, at the cost of about $300. One Grist Mill, one Oatmeal
Mill, one Saw Mill, and one steam Tub and Pail Factory, one
Tannery, several general Stores (one of which, just erected by
John C. Michell, is an honor to the enterprise and industry of its
owner), one Hotel &c. Population about 200. Daily mail.”
1884 Traveller. WC 28 (7, 14, 21, 28 November); Pathmaster 7:1&2
(2006); 7:3&4 (2006); 8:1&2 (2007)
1938 Claremont Past and Present
1974 Gauslin
2013 Mulveney
Maps:
1850 Rottenburg
1860 Tremaine
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
1943 Topographical
CLAREMONT CONSERVATION
AREA
Location:
Between Concession Roads 7 & 8, and between Westney Road and
Sideline 14; Con 7, Lots 11-14.
Maps:
1979 Topographical
CLARKES HOLLOW
Location:
South of Concession 4 Road, east of Rosebank Road;
Con 3, Lot 28
Comments:
A small settlement, but not considered a hamlet.
Maps:
1932 Topographical
1943 Topographical
DECKERS HILL
Location:
Concession 3 Road & Brock Road
Comments:
A small settlement, but not considered a hamlet.
Maps:
1932 Topographical
1943 Topographical
DILCO STATION
Location:
Con 1, Lot 6
Comments:
Location of a Canadian National Railway Station.
Maps:
1943 Topographical
DIXIE
Location:
Concession 3 Road & Dixie Road; Cons 2 & 3, Lots 24 & 25?
Comments:
A small settlement, but not considered a hamlet.
Maps:
1932 Topographical
1943 Topographical
DUFFINS CREEK (P.O.) (Village)
– See also PICKERING VILLAGE
Location:
Kingston Road and Church Street; Cons 1 & 2, Lots 15 & 16
Comments:
An early name for Pickering Village; used throughout most of the
19th century.
Sources:
1846 Smith
“Duffin’s Creek, or Canton. A Village in the township of Pickering,
situated on Duffin’s Creek, about three miles from Lake Ontario,
and twenty-three miles from Toronto. Contains about 130
inhabitants. Churches and chapels, 4; viz.; Presbyterian, Catholic,
British Wesleyan, and Quaker. The eastern road runs through the
village. Post Office, post every day. Professions and trades.—One
grist mill, one brewery, one tannery, three stores, two taverns, three
shoemakers, two tailors, one blacksmith, one waggon maker.”
1869 Connor & Coltson
“Duffin’s Creek, or Pickering Post Office. A village in the township
of Pickering on Duffin’s Creek, 3 ½ miles from its mouth which
empties into Lake Ontario. It lies also on the Kingston Road
6 miles from Whitby and 22 from Toronto. It contains several
Churches, school house, two grist mills, brewery, two hotels and
several stores. It has a station on the Grand Trunk Road about
half a mile south east of the village. Population between 200 and
300. Daily mail.”
1875 Directory of the County of Ontario
“Duffin’s Creek. Pickering Post Office. A village in the Township
PT
H
S
Wilson Hotel in Claremont, n.d.
1932 Topographical Map
9
of Pickering, situated on Duffin’s Creek, about 3 ½ miles from its
mouth which empties into Lake Ontario. It also lies on the road
leading from Toronto to Kingston 6 miles from the town of Whitby
and about 22 from Toronto. It contains several churches, school
house, 2 grist mills, brewery and the usual number of stores and
hotels. It has a station on the Grand Trunk about half a mile south-
east of the village, at which all passenger trains stop. Daily mail.
Population about 200.”
1876 Crawford
“A village in the Township of Pickering, situated on Duffin’s Creek,
about 3 ½ miles from its mouth which empties into Lake Ontario. It
also lies on the road leading from Toronto to Kingston 6 miles from
the town of Whitby and about 22 from Toronto. It contains several
churches, school house, 2 grist mills, brewery and the usual number
of stores and hotels. It has a station on the Grand Trunk about half
a mile south-east of the village at which all passenger trains stop.
Daily mail. Population about 200.”
Maps:
1860 Tremaine
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
DUFFIN’S CREEK (Stream)
Location:
BF, Lots 13 & 14 (& north to 9th Con at Lots 9 (East) & 31 (West))
Comments:
Also found on maps as Rau Saumon (1757 Labroquerie) and
Salmon River (1802 Chewett).
Sources:
1799 Smyth
“Duffin’s Creek runs into Lake Ontario, in the township of Pickering
(east of the river of Easy Entrance), and is remarkable for the
quantity of salmon which resort to it.”
1882 PN 18 August.
Maps:
1791 OA B34 Stegman
1802 Chewett – wrongly located in BF, Lots 21-24
1851 A23 County of Ontario Act
1850 Rottenburg
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
DUNBARTON (P.O.)
Location:
Dunbarton Road, west of Dixie Road; Con 1, Lot 25
Comments;
In 1831, William Dunbar, for whom Dunbarton is named, came to
Pickering Township from Scotland and founded what was largely
a Scottish settlement along
Kingston Road. In the years
following Dunbar’s arrival
families with names like Annan,
Gilchrist, Lawson, McConochie,
and Wilkie soon joined the
Dunbars in the Scottish
enclave. Dunbar was one of the originators of the Pickering Harbour
Company, an elder in the Presbyterian church, and together with his
sons participated in the Rebellion of 1837.
Sources:
1869 Anderson
“A Village in the Township of Pickering, County Ontario, 9 miles
from Whitby, the County Town, 20 from Toronto. Average value
of land in vicinity, $50 per acre. There are several excellent water
powers in the neighborhood. Money Order office. Population 120.”
1869 Connor & Coltson
“A small post village in the township of Pickering, on the Kingston
road, 9 miles from Whitby, and 19 from Toronto, also about ½
mile north west of Frenchman’s Bay Station on the Grand Trunk.
Population 120.”
1875 Directory of the County of Ontario
“A small post village in the Township of Pickering on the Kingston
road, 19 miles from Toronto and about 9 miles from Whitby, and
about ½ mile north of Frenchman’s Bay, a station on the Grand
Trunk. Population about 100.”
1876 Crawford
“A small post village in the Township of Pickering on the Kingston
road, 19 miles from Toronto and about 9 miles from Whitby, and
about ½ mile north of Frenchman’s Bay, a station on the Grand
Trunk. Population about 100.”
1881 PN 2 December, p. 2.
Maps:
1860 Tremaine
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
1943 Topographical
DUNDAS STREET ROAD.
See also Kingston Road
Location:
BF & Cons 1 & 2, Lots 1-35
Comments:
In 1793, Deputy Surveyor General, Augustus Jones, was instructed
to open up a road called Dundas Street from the eastern edge of the
township of Toronto to the Bay of Quinte near Cataraqui. However,
it is clear from the 1791 Stegman map that the idea for the road
was not new. The road was later renamed Kingston Road.
Maps:
1791 OA B34 Stegman
1796 Tickell
1802 Chewett
DURHAM, REGIONAL
MUNICIPALITY OF (1974-)
Comments:
Created 1 January 1974 with the dissolution of Ontario County.
Comprised of the city of Pickering, town of Ajax, town of Whitby,
city of Oshawa, municipality of Clarington, township of Uxbridge,
township of Brock, and township of Scugog. Note: the areas of
Ontario County north of the Trent-Severn Waterway (Rama and
Mara Townships) were transferred to Simcoe County. The parts of Dunbarton, c1911 PT
H
S
10
Pickering Township west of the Rouge River (West Rouge and Port
Union) were transferred to the then Borough of Scarborough.
EDINBURGH, Township of
Comment:
Early name for Pickering Township.
Sources:
1799 Smyth
“Edinburgh, now called the township of Pickering.”
Maps:
1791 Jones
FAIRPORT (VILLAGE)
Location:
Between Liverpool Road and Frenchman’s
Bay, south of Bayly Street; BF, Lot 23
Comments:
After two attempts to create a port on the north side of Frenchman’s
Bay, eventually a port was created on the east side and became the
nucleus of the Hamlet of Fairport. For a time in the last quarter
of the 19th century, Fairport flourished as a shipping port on
Lake Ontario. But in the end new transportation methods and
fluctuations in the economy
led to the demise of the
lake trade of Fairport and
Frenchman’s Bay.
Fairport would be born
again toward the latter
part of the 19th century as
one of five summer resort
communities in Pickering
Township (along with
Rosebank, Fairport Beach,
Simcoe Point and Pickering
Beach).
Sources:
1883 Traveller (WC 9 Nov 1883;
Pathmaster 9:3&4 (2009))
Maps:
1857 Hodder
1932 Topographical
1943 Topographical
FAIRPORT BEACH
Location:
Broken Front, Lots 25 & 26.
Comments:
Developed first as a summer resort community, it is now a
neighborhood on the west side of Frenchman’s Bay.
Maps:
1913 Plan of Fairport Beach
1943 Topographical
FRENCHMAN’S BAY
Location:
Between Liverpool Road on the east and West Shore Blvd. on the
west, south of Bayly Street; BF,
Lots 23-25.
Comments:
The French had a presence
at the bay, hence the
name. However, just which
Frenchmen or events gave
rise to the name is hotly
disputed. Even the spelling
is in dispute. One would
expect that Frenchman’s
Bay would be normative,
but the official spelling, according to city records, leaves out the
apostrophe. On the other hand, national gazetteers retain the
apostrophe.
After European settlement began, Frenchman’s Bay became
increasingly important as a port for the export of ship’s masts, pine
logs, cordwood, and squared timber. Dredging began in the bay as
early as 1843 to clear a channel large enough to admit larger ships from
Lake Ontario, and a wharf was built at the north end in the 1850s. It
is reported that in the year 1845 alone, with 20 sawmills in operation
in the township, one million metres of lumber were exported through
Frenchman’s Bay.
When the Grand Trunk Railway (later CNR) was opened through
Pickering Township in 1856, use of Frenchman’s Bay as a port declined
sharply. However, the provincial government poured in money for
an upgrading of the facilities. A new wharf replaced the old one, a
lighthouse was built, a new channel was dredged, and a 50 000 bushel
elevator was constructed. Once again the bay became a bustling
port. This time it was barley that became the chief export. Wagons
Bee
r
s
,
1
8
7
7
PT
H
S
Aerial View of Frenchmans Bay, 1923Front Street, Fairport, c1911
Beers Atlas, 1877
1791 Jones Map
PT
H
S
11
would line the road all the way to Liverpool Road waiting to unload
their cargoes of barley, which were destined for the breweries of the
United States. All this ended when an American duty on the importation
of barley closed the market and once again the port went into decline.
Other businesses survived for short periods on the bay, including
commercial fisheries and especially the harvesting of ice in wintertime.
The Lake Simcoe Ice and Fuel Company sawed huge blocks of ice,
sometimes almost three feet thick. The blocks were hauled by horse-
drawn sleigh to the seven ice houses located on Front Road, packed
with sawdust as insulation, and stored for use during the warmer
months of the year. Much of the ice was shipped to Toronto.
As Frenchman’s Bay faded away as an economic entity, it began
to develop as a centre for recreation. During the summer many
Torontonians, coming by boat, train or automobile, discovered the
bay. It was also a place of destination for people crossing the lake from
places like Rochester in New York State. In time, many of the cottages
were winterized and the number of residents stabilized.
Sources:
1883 Traveller. WC 28 (9 November); Pathmaster 8:3&4 (2007).
2022 Pathmaster 29:3&4, pp. 21-26.
Maps:
1850 Rottenburg
1851 A23 County of Ontario Act
1860 Tremaine
1874 Kingsford
1877 Beers
GANATSEKIAGON
Location:
West side of the Rouge River, north of Highway 2; BF, Lot 35
Comments:
A village of an estimated 500 to 800 residents established by the Seneca
First Nation in the 17th century. It was visited in 1669-1670 by Father
Fenelon of the Order of St. Sulpice (the Sulpicians). The spelling of the
name varies widely.
Sources:
1928 Dollier de Casson
1999 Pathmaster 2:2; 2:3
Maps:
1669 Galinée (Ganatsekiagouns)
1675 Franquelin (Ganatchitiagon)
1688 Raffeix (Ganestiagon)
1755 Bellin (Gandat Siagon)
1755 D’Anville (Gandatskiagon)
1770 Kalm (Gandatskiagon)
GLEN ALTHA
Location:
Con. 8, Lot 24
Comments:
Should actually be Glen Atha. A station on the Canadian Pacific
Railway—northeast of Atha.
Maps:
1917 Guida
GLEN MAJOR Railway Station
Location:
East of Sideline 4, just south
of the Pickering-Uxbridge
Townline; Con 9, Lot 4.
Comments:
A station on the Canadian
Pacific Railway. Not the
hamlet of the same name just
to the north in Uxbridge.
Sources:
2007 Pathmaster 8:1&2
Maps:
1917 Guidal
1923 Cummins
GREEN RIVER (P.O.)
Location:
Highway 7 (6th Concession Road), east of the
York-Durham Townline; Cons 5 & 6, Lot 34.
Comments:
Despite its small size, Green
River incorporated a number
of important industries and
served an area much broader
than its own domain. The first
industry in what was to become
the Hamlet of Green River was
a wagon and blacksmith shop
with the pretentious name of
the Dotenville Carriage Works,
created in 1849 by Benjamin Doten. In 1857, William Barnes built a
sawmill the first of several mills in the area. Later industries included
a factory that manufactured such items as pails and tubs and brush
handles, and a basket-making business. In 1877 P.R. Hoover bought
the mill and expanded the mill complex to one of the largest in the
township.
Sources:
1883 Traveller (WC 7 Dec 1883; Pathmaster 9:1&2 (2009))
1911 Wood
1973 Greenwald
Maps:
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
1943 Topographical
GREENBURN Railway Station
Location:
Concession 4, Lot 11
Comments:
A station on the Canadian Northern Railway. Also known as
Greenwood Railway Station.
Maps:
1923 Cummins
Glen Major CPR Railway Station
PT
H
S
Green River, 1916
PT
H
S
12
GREENWOOD (P.O.)
Location:
Highway 7 (6th Concession Road) and
Westney Road North; Cons 5 & 6, Lot 11
Comments:
Earlier known as Norwood. There are no mills in the Hamlet of
Greenwood today, but for the first one hundred years of its existence, it
was the mills—the “Lower” Mill and the “Upper” Mill that defined it.
And for most of that hundred years the mills were owned and operated
by the Green family, from whom the name of the hamlet is derived.
The first mill—the lower mill—was built about 1840 before the Greens
arrived. In 1843, Frederick Green
moved with his family to the
hamlet, purchased the old mill, and
began the process of expanding
the industry and creating the
community.
Sources:
1869 Anderson
“A Village in the Township of Pickering, County Ontario, 10 miles
from Whitby, the County Town, and 20 from Toronto. Population
200.”
1869 Connor & Coltson
“A village in the township of Pickering, 10 miles North west of
Whitby. Population about 200.”
1875 Directory of the County of Ontario
“A village in the township of Pickering 10 miles north west of
Whitby. Population about 150.”
1876 Crawford
“A village in the township of Pickering 10 miles north west of
Whitby. Population about 150.”
1883 Traveller (WC 14 Dec 1883; Pathmaster 6:1&2 (2004))
1911 Wood
1960 McLean
Maps:
1860 Tremaine
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
1943 Topographical
GREENWOOD STATION
Location:
Con 4, Lot 11; south of the Hamlet of Greenwood.
Comments:
A station on the Canadian Northern Railway. Also known as
Greenburn Railway Station.
Maps:
1917 Guidal
GREENWOOD CONSERVATION AREA
Location:
Cons 4 & 5, Lots 12-14
Maps:
1979 Topographical
HODGSON PARK
(also known as Paulynn Park)
Location:
Ravenscroft Road, south of Taunton Road; Con 3, Lot 13
Sources:
2016 Pathmaster 19:1&2
Maps:
1974 Military City
HOME DISTRICT
Location:
“[O]riginally bounded to the east by a line running north-south
from the mouth of the Trent River and to the west by a line
running north-south intersecting the extreme projection of Long
Point into the Lake Erie. The northern boundaries were vague
and overlapping Indian land.” (Wikipedia)
Comments:
One of four districts created in 1788 to create the colony of Upper
Canada. It was abolished with the adoption of the county system
in 1849. As established in 1788, it was originally named Nassau
District, and renamed as the Home District in 1792. Pickering
Township was within the Home District.
Sources:
1799 Smyth
“Home District, the, was originally constituted and erected into
a district, by the name of the district of Nassau, in the province
of Quebec, by his Excellency Lord Dorchester’s Proclamation, of
the 24th of July, 1788; it received its present name by an act of the
provincial legislature: it is bounded easterly by a meridian passing
through the mouth of the river Trent; northerly by the Ottawa
river, into lake Tomiscanning [Temiskaming], and the bounds of the
Hudson’s Bay Company; also by part of lake Huron; westerly by a
meridian passing through the eastern extremity of Long Point, or the
North Foreland; and southerly by part of lake Ontario, and part of
lake Erie.”
1985 Armstrong
Maps:
1818 “A map of the province of Upper Canada describing all the
settlements and townships”.
JOHNS BROOK
Location:
Cons 1 & 2, Lot 12
Comments:
So named for Lt. Col. John Smith to whom the land around it was
originally granted. It was a contributing stream to Duffin’s Creek.
Maps:
1802 Chewett
PT
H
S
Greenwood, c1911
13
KATABOKOKONK
(or Kutabokokonk; River
of Easy Entrance)
Location:
Frenchman’s Bay
Sources:
1799 Smyth
“Katabokokonk (or River of Easy
Entrance) empties itself into
Lake Ontario in the township of
Pickering.”
Maps:
1793 Jones
KINGSTON ROAD
See also Dundas Street Road
Location:
Runs east-west through Pickering, north of Highway 401.
Comments:
The idea for a major east-west road from York (Toronto) to Kingston
originated at least as early as 1791. In 1793, Deputy Surveyor
General, Augustus Jones was instructed to open up a road called
Dundas Street from the eastern edge of the township of Toronto to
the Bay of Quinte near Cataraqui. In 1799, Asa Danforth, Jr. was
contracted to build a road to connect York with the mouth of the
Trent River. This road, in Pickering following much the same route
as Dundas Street, was completed by the end of the year 1800, but
was not well maintained. In 1815, the Kingston Road was surveyed
and its construction was completed in 1817. The route of the road
from its earliest configuration has changed from time to time, but
it is still called Kingston Road. Since 1917, when the newly formed
Department of Public Highways (DPHO) assumed a segment of road
between Pickering and Port Hope, the road has also been known as
the King’s Highway 2, or more popularly just Highway 2.
Maps:
1878 County of Ontario
1943 Topographical
KINSALE (P.O.)
Location:
Highway 7 (6th Concession Road) & Kinsale Road; Cons 5 & 6, Lot 3
Comments:
Kinsale once boasted a Temperance Hall, harness shop, cheese
factory, cider mill, general store and post office, blacksmith,
carpenter, wagon shop, shoe store, church, schoolhouse, and a
population of eighty. Despite its small size its history has been
significant. The first settler in the area was Wing Rogers, son of
Timothy Rogers, the founder of Quaker communities in Newmarket
and Pickering Townships.
Sources:
1869 Connor & Coltson
“A village in the township of Pickering, 8 miles from Whitby.
Population 80.”
1875 Directory of the County of Ontario
“A post village in the Township of Pickering, 8 miles from Whitby.
Population 50.”
1876 Crawford
“A post village in the Township of Pickering, 8 miles from Whitby.
Population 50.”
1883 Traveller (WC 21 Dec 1883;
Pathmaster 6:3&4 (2004))
1931 Mowbray
See PN 26 May 1893, p. 4.
Maps:
1860 Tremaine
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
1943 Topographical
LITTLE ROUGE
Location:
BF, R3, Lots 33-35
Maps:
1851 A23 County of Ontario Act
1877 Beers
LIVERPOOL, PORT OF [Fairport]
Location:
BF, Lots 20 & 21
Sources:
1857. Edward M. Hodder. The Harbours and Ports of Lake Ontario
(Toronto: Maclear).
“The Port of Liverpool, or Pickering. Formerly Called Frenchman’s
Bay.
This Port is 26 miles N.E. ½ E. of Toronto. It is formed by a
deep bay running into the land, and separated from the Lake by a
sandy and gravelly beach, through which the Harbour Company
have cut a Canal 100 feet wide.
On the east pier there is a low miserable lighthouse, the light
from which cannot be seen five miles in the Lake.
The harbour itself is well sheltered, being completely land-
locked, but from the foulness of the bottom (principally from
weeds) an anchor will not hold during a hard blow.
Depth of Water.
The average depth of water inside the bay is 9 feet 6 inches; at
the outer mouth between the piers, 11 feet 6 inches; and at the
inner mouth 7 feet 6 inches.
Through this canal a current runs in and out with great
regularity, once in about every four minutes.”
1869. Thomas S. Thompson. Thompson’s Coast Pilot (Detroit: Thos. S
Thompson).“The Port of Liverpool, or Pickering. Formerly Called
Frenchman’s Bay.
This port is 26 miles NE ½ E of Toronto. It is formed by a bay
running into the land, and separated from the lake by a sandy and
Kinsale, c1915
PT
H
S
1793 Jones Map
14
gravely beach, through which is a cut 100 feet wide.
The light is on the east pier, and visible 5 miles.
The harbour itself is well sheltered, being completely land-locked,
but from the foulness of the bottom (principally from weeds) an
anchor will not hold during a hard blow.
The average depth of water inside the bay is 9 feet 6 inches; at
the outer mouth between the piers, 11 feet 6 inches; and the inner
mouth 7 feet 6 inches.
Through the cut into this harbor, a current runs in and out with
great regularity, once in about every four minutes.”
1899 Beers
“The Port of Liverpool, or Pickering, is situated 26 miles east of
Toronto. It is formed by a deep bay, formerly known as Frenchman’s
bay, running into the land, and it is separated from the lake by a
gravelly beach, through which the harbor company previous to
1857 cut a channel 100 feet wide. The average depth of water inside
the bay was then 9 feet, at the outer mouth between the piers 11
feet and at the inner mouth 7 feet. Through this channel a current
runs in and out of the bay with great regularity once in about four
minutes. The harbor is completely land locked, and is therefore
well sheltered. In 1857 there was a lighthouse on the east pier, but
the light could scarcely be seen five miles into the lake. Two piers
were built here by the local authorities in 1878 and 1879, and the
government extended the western pier 60 feet, and dredged between
the piers so as to give a depth of 11 feet of water.
In 1894 two cuts were made between the piers, 708 feet in length,
and 45 feet wide, by 11 feet deep. In 1895 one cut 800 feet long
was made, 25 feet wide and 10 feet deep.
The lighthouse here is known as Frenchman’s Bay or Pickering,
and is situated on the east pierhead. It was established in 1863, and
rebuilt in 1880.”
Maps:
1857 Hodder
LIVERPOOL MARKET (P.O.)
[also Liverpool Corners]
Location:
Kingston Road and Liverpool Road; Cons 1 & 2, Lot 22
Comments:
In the latter part of the nineteenth century, Liverpool Market,
also known as Liverpool Corners, at the junction of Kingston
Road and Liverpool
Road, was the base
of operations for
J.H. McClellan, the
owner of the Pickering
Harbour Company,
as well as housing a
branch of the Toronto
Dominion Bank.
Surviving from that
time period, although
much altered, is the
former Liverpool
House, originally a
hotel, now a restaurant. It was
operated in the latter half of the
19th century by Robert Secker,
and was both an important
stopping place for travellers
passing through Pickering
Township, and a local
community meeting place.
Sources:
1883 Traveller (WC 16 Nov 1883; Pathmaster 5:3&4 (2003))
Maps:
1863 G. and A. Bostwick Plan (“Liverpool”; Lot 24)
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
1943 Topographical
MAJOR; MAJORVILLE.
See also WHITEVALE
Location:
Whitevale Road (3rd Concession Road) at North Road; Cons 4 & 5,
Lots
Comments:
Now the Hamlet of Whitevale.
Maps:
1860 Tremaine (Major)
MOORE POINT
Location:
Broken Front, Lot 19
Comments:
Named for William Henry Moore, MP, who once owned this
property.
Maps:
1932 Topographical
1943 Topographical
MOUNT ZION
Location:
8th Concession Road, Lot 6
Comments:
Small settlement. Location
of School Section #13
Sources:
1974 Gauslin
Maps:
1951 Topographical
PT
H
S 1879 post card
PT
H
S
Pickering News
15 April 1892, p. 8 Mt. Zion softball patch, n.d.
15
NEN (or Nun) RIVER [Rouge River]
Location:
BF, Lots 30-35
Comments:
An early name for the Rouge River.
Sources:
1799 Smyth
“Nen River, in the east riding of the County of York, rises several
miles in the rear of York, and running southerly through the
township of Markham, parts of Scarborough, and Pickering,
empties itself into Lake Ontario, east of the Highlands in
Scarborough.”
Maps:
1791 OA B34 Stegman (Nen)
1796 Tickell (Nen)
1802 Chewett (Nen)
1838 Wyld (Nun)
NOBLE’S CORNERS – See CLAREMONT
NORTH CLAREMONT; NORTH
CLAREMONT Railway Station;
NORTH PICKERING JUNCTION;
CLAREMONT SDG [Siding]
Location:
Old Brock Road, south of the
Pickering-Uxbridge Townline;
Con 9, Lots 17 & 18.
Maps:
1917 Guidal
1943 Topographical
ONTARIO COUNTY (1852-1973)
Comments:
On 1 January 1852, the former County of York was divided into
three counties: York, Peel, and Ontario, but they remained united.
On 1 January 1854, Ontario County separated and became its own
independent county, comprising the townships of Pickering, Whitby,
Uxbridge, Brock, Reach, Scott, Thorah, Rama and Mara. Ontario
County was replaced by the Regional Municipality of Durham on 1
January 1974.
Sources:
1877 Beers
1907 Farewell
1973 Johnson
2014 Pathmaster 15:1&2
Maps:
1878 County of Ontario
PETTICOAT CREEK
Location:
Con 2, Lot 35 southeast to BF, R2, Lot 28
Maps:
1877 Beers
1932 Topographical
1943 Topographical
PETTICOAT CREEK CONSERVATION
AREA
Location:
On the lake front at the south end of White’s Road; BF, Lots 30 & 31
Comments:
Created in 1975, under the management of the Metropolitan
Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (MTRCA), it is a
72-hectare park along the lakefront with bluffs rising to 10 metres
above the waterline.
Maps:
1979 Topographical
PICKERING BEACH
Location:
BF, Lots 7 & 8?
Comments:
The last of five cottage communities to be established was Pickering
Beach. In the 1920s James Tuckett had a vision to create the ideal
summer resort. He had a site plan drawn up and hired a real
estate agent to promote it. It became the vacation destination for
a number of upscale Toronto families such as the Corbets, Eatons,
and Loblaws. Entertainment in the 1930s was provided by Freddie
Breakwell and his 6-piece orchestra, and in 1940 the Marquee
Dance Pavilion opened for dances and church services on weekends.
Sources:
1995 MacDonald
2015 Snapshots of Ajax
Maps:
1943 Topographical
1974 Military Topographical
PICKERING HARBOUR
Location:
BF, Lots 23-25
Comments
A harbour established at the
north end of Frenchman’s Bay
Sources:
1857 Hodder
Maps:
1857 Hodder
1860 Tremaine
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
PT
H
S
CPR Railway Station, North
Claremont, 1913
PT
H
S
Pickering Beach, 1950s
PT
H
S
Hodder, 1857
16
PICKERING TOWNSHIP
Location:
Between Toronto on the west and Whitby Township on the east.
Comments:
Surveyed in 1791 by Augustus Jones. Originally named Edinburgh,
but later changed to Pickering, after Pickering in North Yorkshire.
Jurisdictions:
East Riding of the County of York, Home District 1792-1853
Ontario County 1854-1973
Regional Municipality of Durham: 1974-present
Sources:
1799 Smyth
“Pickering Township, in the East Riding of the County of York, is
situated between Whitby and Scarborough and fronts lake Ontario.
The River Nen runs into lake Ontario through this township. “
1846 Smith
“Pickering. A Township in the Home District; is bounded on the
north by the township of Uxbridge; on the west by Markham and
Scarborough; on the east by Whitby; and on the south by Lake
Ontario. In Pickering 63,061 acres are taken up, 24,551 of which
are under cultivation. The land in the interior of the township is
rather hilly, and the timber of a large proportion of it is pine. The
entrance of Duffin’s Creek, which runs through the township, is a
bay called Big Bay (also called Frenchman’s Bay, from a battle said
to have been fought on its banks between the old French settlers
and the Indians), about three miles in circumference, with a depth of
two to three fathoms; it is separated from the lake by a narrow sand
bar, through which a channel is sometimes formed having a depth
of six feet of water. In Pickering are four grist and twenty-one saw
mills, from which latter were exported last year about 3,000,000
feet of lumber. Population in 1842, 3752. Ratable property in the
township, £62,894.”
1869 Connor & Colson
“The township of Pickering is bounded on the north by the township
of Uxbridge, on the south by Lake Ontario, on the east by the
township of Whitby and on the west by the townships of Markham
and Scarboro, county of York. This township being the largest,
together with the richness of its soil makes it one of the most wealthy
municipalities in the county. Its principal villages are Whitevale,
Brougham, Claremont and Duffin’s Creek. Population over 7,000.”
1877 Beers
Like Whitby, it is a fine, fruitful, well-tilled, well-farmed and well-
settled township; the character of the soil a loamy clay, and the
face of the country well watered. It embraces an area of 74,000
acres. Population 7,375, according to last returns. The value of real
and personal property, $3,688,928; number of ratepayers, 1,657.
The principle villages are Brougham, Greenwood, Duffin’s Creek,
Whitevale, Claremont, Balsam, Green River, Kinsale, Dunbarton.
Sources:
1961 McKay
Maps:
1791 Jones
1791 OA B34 Stegman
PICKERING VILLAGE (P.O.).
See also DUFFIN’S CREEK
Location:
Kingston Road at Church Street;
Cons 1 & 2, Lots 15 & 16
Comments:
Pickering Village was the earliest hamlet to emerge in Pickering
Township. As early as 1807 Timothy Rogers moved to Pickering
Township bringing with him his large family. They settled near
Duffin’s Creek, where Timothy built the first mill in the township. It
was just to the south of the eventual village. To the west of Duffin’s
Creek, along Kingston Road, Hawkins Woodruff established a tavern
about 1805. The first recorded general store in Pickering Township
was opened nearby by 1818 by William Smith. By 1829 the village
was sufficiently developed for Francis Leys to open the first post
office in the township. Until Leys opened the post office the hamlet
was known variously as Canton or Duffins Creek. The latter name
hung on until the end of the century for many people even though
the official name after 1829 was Pickering Village.
For much of the 20th century (1900-1974), Pickering Village was
incorporated as a Police Village, giving it a degree of independence
administratively.
Sources:
1846 Smith. See above under Duffins Creek.
1869 Anderson
“A Post Village in the Township of Pickering, County Ontario, 6
miles distant from Whitby, the County Town, and 23 from Toronto.
Average price of land $60 per acre. Daily mails. Money order office.
Population 300.”
1869 Connor & Coltson. See above under Duffins Creek.
1883 Traveller (WC 26 Oct & 2 Nov 1883; Pathmaster 9:3&4 (2009)
1911 Wood
1956 Blake
1970 Village of Pickering
1976 Historical Sketches of Ontario
1995 MacDonald
Maps:
1878 County of Ontario
1943 Topographical
PINEWOOD CREEK
Comment:
An early name for Duffin’s Creek.
Sources:
William Butler. “The Journal of Captain Walter Butler, on a Voyage
along the North Shore of Lake Ontario, from the 8th to the 16th of
March, 1779”. Naval Marine Archive: The Canadian Collection online.
13th March—Got off at daylight; the wind from the land, could
not sail, rowed till twelve; passed the high lands and a small bay. Put
into Pinewood Creek. Here one Duffin resided formerly; since when
a Frenchman has resided here. He went off a little before we came.
Two houses a little up the creek, one entire, the other stripped. This
creek is famous with the Indians for great quantities of fish.
See James F. Kenney, “Walter Butler’s Journal of an Expedition
Pickering Village from the top of the Spink Mill, 1916
PT
H
S
17
Along the North Shore of Lake Ontario, 1779”, Canadian History
Review 1:4 (1920), 381-391.
Maps:
Not on any map.
PORT UNION (P.O.)
Location:
BF, Lot 35
Comments:
Port Union is now a part of the City of Toronto, but at one time
it was situated in Pickering Township. Beginning in 1847, it was
a busy port and the home of the Scarborough, Markham, and
Pickering Wharf Company. The wharf itself was in Pickering, as
was the village and later the
railway station—the Grand
Trunk Railway was built in
this section in 1856. Serving
the three municipalities, the
wharf gave the port its name.
Port Union was at its peak in
the 1870s, but by 1895 the
wharf had washed away and
farmers were taking their
trade to Toronto.
Sources:
1869 Anderson
“A Village in the Township of
Pickering, County Ontario,
12 miles from Whitby the County Town and 17 from Toronto.
Population 100.”
1869 Connor & Coltson
“A village on the Grand Trunk, in the township of Pickering,
12 miles west of Whitby. Population about 100.”
1875 Directory of the County of Ontario
“A post village in the Township of Pickering, about
12 miles west of Whitby.”
1876 Crawford
“A post village in the Township of Pickering, about
12 miles west of Whitby. C, Cravens post master.”
1998 Spilsbury
Maps:
1796 Tickell
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
1943 Topographical
RAU SAUMON – See DUFFIN’S CREEK
RICHARDSON POINT
Location:
BF, Lot 6?
Maps:
1974 Military City
ROSEBANK; ROSEBANK
STATION
Location:
BF, Lots 30 & 31
Comments:
The first of five cottage communities established in Pickering
Township at the end of the nineteenth century and beginning of the
twentieth, Rosebank derived its name from the name of William
Cowan, Jr.’s farm on the east side of the Rouge River. It was centred
on the Rosebank House and
began to attract Torontonian
vacationers in the 1880s. So
popular was Rosebank as a
summer resort that it eventually
had its own train station and
was served by seven passenger
trains as well as Picnic Specials.
It also had its own post office
from 1916.
Maps:
1932 Topographical
1943 Topographical
ROUGE HILL (P.O.)
Location:
Highway 2 (Kingston Road) at Altona Road;
BF, Lots 34 & 35
Comments:
At one time getting from Scarborough to Pickering was an achievement
as there was a steep hill to transcend. As one early traveller put it: “The
Rouge Hill was for years a dangerous crossing place and accidents have
not unfrequently happened in ascending or descending, in consequence
of the steep and unprotected nature of the roadway.” It took engineers
the most part of the nineteenth century to work out a safe passage along
the Kingston Road, and about every 30 years or so, at great expense, a
new bridge had to be built spanning the Rouge River and climbing the
hill on the east side of the river.
Rosebank Hotel, c1911
PT
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Share Certificate, 1853
Do
r
o
t
h
y
W
e
s
t
n
e
y
Beers Atlas, 1877
18
At the top of the escarpment was the Hamlet of Rouge Hill. It had
a general store and two inns, one of which was used as a stagecoach
stop in the days before the automobile. It also had its own post office.
Sources:
1869 Anderson
“A Post Office in the Township of Pickering, County Ontario.”
1869 Connor & Coltson
“A village in the township of Pickering, 11 miles west of Whitby.
Population about 150.”
1875 Directory of the County of Ontario
“A village in the Township of Pickering, 11 miles west of Whitby.”
1876 Crawford
“A village in the Township of Pickering, 11 miles west of Whitby.
Hugh Graham, post master.”
1883 Traveller (WC 23 Nov 1883; Pathmaster 5:3&4 (2003))
1972 Purcell
Maps:
1850 Rottenburg
1860 Tremaine
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
1943 Topographical
ROUGE RIVER
Location:
BF, Lots 31-35
Maps:
1851 A23 County of Ontario Act
1850 Rottenburg
SALMON RIVER – See DUFFIN’S CREEK
SEATON
Location:
Bounded on the north by Highway 7, and to the south by the CP
Rail line (near the 3rd Concession Road); to the west by West Duffins
Creek (near the York-Durham Townline) and the east by Sideline 16.
Comments:
A proposed community in north Pickering, originally named
Cedarwood, but renamed Seaton for John Colborne, 1st
Baron Seaton (1778-1863), a colonial administrator. Covering
approximately 8 100 hectares, the land was expropriated in the early
1970s by the provincial government to accompany the proposed
federal international airport to the north.
Sources:
1977B Nostrand
Maps:
1997 DEN
SIMCOE POINT
Location:
BF, Lot 12, on the west bank of Duffin’s Creek
Comments:
Location of the settlement of William and Margaret Peak, believed
to have been the first permanent settlers in Pickering Township.
A summer resort. Simcoe House was built in 1912 by John
Henry Greenlaw, a relative of the Peak family. Greenlaw died
shortly after and the resort and lands were sold. However, the
resort continued to prosper right up to World War II.
On the bank above Duffin’s
Creek is a pioneer cemetery,
the resting place of the Peak
and Greenlaw families.
Maps:
1979 Topographical
SQUIRES BEACH (Simcoe Point PO)
Location:
BF, Lot 15 & 16; west of the mouth of Duffin’s Creek.
Comments:
One of several cottage communities in Pickering Township.
Maps:
1962 Ajax Topographical
1964 Topographical
1979 Topographical
THOMPSONS CORNERS
Location:
Whitevale Road (Concession 3 Road) and Brock Road;
Cons 4 & 5, Lots 18 & 19.
Comments:
Thompsons Corners was for a time—from 1835 to the 1860s—the seat
of municipal government for Pickering Township, when the township
meetings were held at Andrew Thompson’s tavern. A well-known
meeting place, Thompson’s tavern over the years entertained the likes of
William Lyon Mackenzie, Oliver Mowat and George Brown.
Sources:
1973 Greenwald
Maps:
1850 Rottenburg
1860 Tremaine
THORNTONS CORNERS
Location:
Whitevale Road (3rd Concession Road) and Sideline 22; Cons 4 & 5,
Lots 22 & 23
Maps:
1860 Tremaine
WEST ONTARIO RIDING
(Ontario West)
Comments:
A federal electoral district from 1882 to 1904. It consisted of the
townships of Pickering, Whitchurch and Uxbridge, the town of
Newmarket, the village of Uxbridge and the village of Stouffville.
When abolished it was redistributed between the former ridings of
Ontario North, Ontario South and York North from which it
had been created.
Simcoe Point House
PT
H
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19
Sources:
Pickering News 5 May
1882, p. 2
Maps:
1895 Electoral District of
Ontario West, (Ont.)
Map 57 from the
Electoral Atlas of the
Dominion of Canada,
WHITEVALE (P.O.).
See also MAJOR.
Location:
Whitevale Road (5th Concession Road) at North
Road; Cons 4 & 5, Lots 31 & 32.
Comments:
The early history of Whitevale is elusive and confusing with historical
reports differing as to when the hamlet was first settled and who were
its first European residents. All seem to agree, however, that John
Major built a sawmill here in the 1820s. While very few residents are
officially on record as living on the site until the 1850s it apparently
was sufficiently populated to be known as the Village of Major. Most
of that population was strung out along the Fifth Concession Road
especially to the east of the hamlet.
Everything changed in 1855, however. In that year Donald McPhee
opened the hamlet’s first store and Truman P. White erected the largest
gristmill in the township. White would go on to purchase much of the
surrounding land, erect several other mills (woolen, saw, and planing),
enter at the Land Registry Office a plan of development, and rename
the hamlet after himself. From this point on Whitevale’s history was
one of industrial growth interspersed with periods of tragedy. A
number of disastrous fires plagued the hamlet destroying not only all
of White’s mills, but also his great plans, eventually causing him to
abandon his efforts and relocate out west.
Sources:
1869 Anderson
“A Village in the Township of Pickering, County Ontario, 14 miles
from Whitby, the County Town, to which place it is connected by
daily stage. Daily mail. Population about 300.”
1869 Connor & Coltson
“A village in the township of Pickering, 14 miles north-west of
Whitby to which place it is connected by daily stage, was first settled
by Mr. A. Bates in 1834. The first store was opened by Mr. Donald
McPhee, in 1855. The first acting Postmaster was Mr. Thomas
Burton, at present it contains one mill, built by T.P. White, Esq.,
in 1855, at the cost of $10,000. One large woollen factory of red
and yellow brick, erected by the same party in 1867, at the cost
of $30,000. One planning mill also erected by Mr. White in 1866,
at the cost of $1000. One saw mill, also built and owned by Mr.
T.P. White. A Town hall erected in 1860, at the cost of $600. One
steam carriage factory, one cheese factory, a school house, and two
general stores, several other trades and professions are represented
in the place. The religious congregation is one regular Baptist, about
to erect a church, holding service at the present in the Town Hall.
Population about 300. Daily mail.”
1875 Directory of the County of Ontario
“A village in the Township of Pickering, 14 miles north west of
Whitby, to which place it is connected by daily stage. Was first
settled by Mr. A. Bates in 1834. The first store was opened by Mr.
Donald McPhee in 1855, and the first acting Postmaster was Mr.
Thomas Burton. Quite a number of different branches of industry
are represented. Population about 200.”
1876 Crawford
“A village in the Township of Pickering, 14 miles north west of
Whitby, to which place it is connected by daily stage. Was first
settled by Mr. A. Bates in 1834. The first store was opened by Mr.
Donald McPhee in 1855, and the first acting Postmaster was Mr.
Thomas Burton. Quite a number of different branches of industry
are represented. Population about 200.”
1883 Traveller (WC 30 Nov 1883; Pathmaster 9:1&2 (2009))
1911 Wood
1973 Greenwald
Maps:
1877 Beers
1878 County of Ontario
1943 TopographicalBeers Atlas, 1877
Whitevale Village, n.d.
PT
H
S
PT
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S
Whitevale Village, n.d.
Pickering News
5 May 1882, p. 2.
20
YORK COUNTY,
East Riding
Sources:
1799 Smyth
“York County, consists of two ridings, the east and west.
The east riding is bounded on the east by the westernmost line of
the county of Durham; on the south by lake Ontario, until it meets the
eastern boundary of a tract of land belonging to the Missassaga Indians;
on the west by the easternmost boundary line of the said tract, running
north 16 degrees west, the distance of twenty-eight miles, thence north
74 degrees east fourteen miles, thence south 16 degrees east sixteen miles
to the southern boundary of the lands belonging to the Indians, and
thence along the said tract parallel to lake Ontario, until it meets the
north-westernmost boundary of the county of Durham.”
Maps:
1793 Chewett
1799 Smith
ADDITIONAL PLACE NAMES
The old Pickering News (1881-1964) featured gossip columns from
the various hamlets and villages. Sometimes the items came from
obscure communities, otherwise unknown—such as Brimstone
Point (Con 7, Lot 32), Cobbler’s Corners, Punch Pond, Egypt,
Garbutsville, and Sunny Mount. Of Egypt, for example, the
Pickering News says: “This charming little spot is situated one mile
west of the Brock road, in the 4th con. of Pickering.” (1 April 1887).
But even the locals sometimes queried the location of these places.
For example, a Green River correspondent wrote: “Of late we
have frequently heard the query where is Punch Pond and where
is Cobbler’s Corners? We do not pretend to know, but we suspect
they are both in close proximity to Green River, as the names of our
young men figure prominently in the newsy items from both towns.”
(PN 15 Jan 1892) The vicinity of Green River seems to have laid
claims to a number of these local names: Bangor, Brunswick Hill,
Cobbler’s Corners, Cosy Nook, Eden, and Punch Pond, among
them. We have not attempted to include all of these local names.
In addition, we have also included a few other historic names for
which there is no map location available.
ALMONDS
Location:
On the border of Ajax and
Whitby, at Kingston Road.
Comments:
Union School Section #1, also
known as Almond’s School, was
located on the (then) Pickering
side on Con 2, Lot 1.
Sources:
1995 MacDonald
AMOS PONDS
Location:
Finch Avenue, Lot 35
Sources:
Pathmaster 23:3&4 (2018)
BANGOR
Location:
Cons 5 & 6, Lots ??
Comments:
A place name known only by
way of the comments in Connor
& Coltson.
Sources:
1869 Connor & Coltson
“A village in the township
of Pickering, 15 miles
north-west of Whitby.
Population about 175.”
BRIMSTONE POINT
Location:
7th Concession Road at Sideline 32
Comments:
See PN 4 July 1890, p. 1
CANAAN
Location:
On Whitevale Road
Comments:
See e.g., PN 14 September 1888. Teacher: Norman Poucher.
Connor & Coltson, 1869
Chewett Map, 1793
Pi
c
k
e
r
i
n
g
P
u
b
l
i
c
L
i
b
r
a
r
y
Union School Section #1
(Almonds), 1907
21
CEDAR CREEK
Location:
Cons 8 and 9, Lot 10
Comments:
Location of School
Section #14
Sources:
1974 Gauslin
CENTENNIAL CORNERS
Comments:
See e.g., PN 19 January 1900
COBBLER’S
CORNERS
Comments:
See e.g., PN
4 December 1891
COSY NOOK
Comments:
See e.g., PN 17 Nov 1893 (school teacher: Miss Phillips)
DEBITTS HILL
Location:
In the vicinity of the hamlet of
Greenwood, probably on the 6th
Concession Road (Highway 7),
Lots 12 or 13.
Comments:
Known only from a post card
image.
DUNBARTON SHORES
Location:
West side of Frenchman’s Bay. Broken Front, Lots 26 & 27
Comments:
Early name for
Fairport Beach.
EDEN
Location:
Near Green River? Cons 5 & 6, Lot 34?
Comments:
See e.g., PN 4 September 1891
EGYPT
Location:
“This charming little spot is situated one mile west of the Brock road,
in the 4th con. of Pickering.” PN 1 April 1887.
Sources:
See also 3 & 24 June 1887 & 21 June 1889; 27 Dec 1889, p. 4
(Poucher)
GARBUTSVILLE
Location:
“Near Brock Road”.
Comments:
See e.g., PN 30 Dec 1892
HOWELL’S HOLLOW
Location:
West of Greenwood, and south of Highway #7, at the north end of
the 5th Concession, Lot 15.
Comments:
Howell’s Hollow was named for Henry Howell who purchased
the property, complete with
saw mill and gristmill, in
1832. To this established
business he added a distillery
and mercantile business.
Henry’s son, Nicholas, took
over the business and built
12 cottages for the hired
men who worked the mill
and the other enterprises.
Competition from the thriving
mills operated by the Green
family in Greenwood, and
the growing importance
of Brougham at a major
crossroads of Pickering
Township, led
to the slow decline of
Howell’s Hollow until it
disappeared completely.
PN 15 Jan 1892, p. 1
PT
H
S
Post card of “Debitts Hill”
Jo
h
n
S
a
b
e
a
n
Howell’s Hollow cairn
Pickering News 13 December 1912, p. 8.
22
The plaque reads: “Brougham’s first Post Office was built on
this site in 1832”. This information is in error. Brougham’s first
post office was located in the Hamlet of Brougham, and George
Barclay was the first postmaster, in 1836. Nicholas Howell
succeeded Barclay in December 1837, and the post office was
removed to Howell’s Hollow. Howell continued as postmaster
until 1850, when the office returned to the hamlet of Brougham
in the person of Richard Taun.
Sources:
1960 McLean
1973 Miller
MOORLANDS
[now Petticoat Creek Conservation Area]
Location:
BF, Lots 30 & 31
Comments:
Named for one-time owner of the property, William Henry Moore, MP.
Sources:
2013 Fairburn
MOUNT PLEASANT
Location:
Cons 6 and 7, Lots 21 and 22
Comments:
Location of School Section #12
Sources:
1973 Miller
POVERTY HOLLOW
Comments:
See e.g., PN 4 December 1891
PUNCH POND
Location:
Near Green River? Cons 5 & 6, Lot 34
Comments:
See e.g., PN 8 January 1892
SALEM
Location:
At the intersection of Highway 7 (6th Concession Rd)
and Salem Road. Con 5, Lot 7.
Comments:
Also known as Hyfield or Salem’s Corners, the name Salem
derives from the Wesleyan Methodist Church built on the site
in 1848-1849. The church was closed in 1890, but still used
occasionally for special events. It is now the Salem United
Church. The area is also known for its cemetery.
Never attaining the distinction of hamlet, the property was
first settled by the Adamson family, who maintained a brickyard
on the property.
Sources:
1974 McLean
2000 Sabean
SPARK’S POINT
Now known as Lion’s Point
Location:
Broken Front, Lot 3
Comments:
A plaque erected by the Ajax Lions Club reads:
John Sparks, a papermaker, was born in Oxford, England in
1771. After his arrival in Canada, circa 1818, he initially settled
in York (Toronto), Upper Canada. Several years later in 1832, he
moved to Pickering where he purchased 200 acres of land for
150 pounds. The property included this lakefront point and
extended to Bayly Street. John Sparks cleared his land of its
dense forest and built a log house where he and his wife Sarah
lived. He earned his living by fishing for salmon in Duffins
Creek, then shipping his catch to York, and by building and
repairing ships in Frenchman’s Bay. According to family history
he would light a lamp on “Spark’s Point”, which at that time
jutted far out into Lake Ontario, to warn passing ships of its
danger during inclement weather. This point of land is now
referred to as Lions Point. John Sparks died in 1847. Both he
and his wife are buried in the Elizabeth Street cemetery located
in Pickering Village.
SUNNY MOUNT
Location:
Cons 4 & 5, Lot 20?
Comments:
See e.g., PN 1 June 1888.
WEST SHORE
Location:
Broken Front, west side of Frenchman’s Bay.
Maps:
1964 Topographical
Jo
h
n
S
a
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e
a
n
Salem church and cemetery memorial stones
23
LIST OF SOURCES:
Books & Articles
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Handbook of Upper Canadian
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Great Lakes. (Chicago: J.H.
Beers and Co.).
Blake, V.B. 1956. History Section of
the Rouge, Duffin, Highland,
Petticoat Valley Conservation
Report. Ed. A.H. Richardson
and A.S.L. Barnes (Toronto:
Ontario Department of
Planning and Development).
Boyle, David (ed.). 1896. The
Township of Scarboro 1796-
1896 (Toronto: William Briggs).Brown, Mrs. T.C. c1927. “Early History of Brougham”. Unpublished.Brown, Mrs. T.C. 1949. “Reminiscences of Early Days of Brougham,” Oshawa Times-
Gazette, 16 December.
Champion, Isabel. 1979. Markham
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Markham District Historical
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Chapman, F.M. 1939. “History of
Audley”. Unpublished.
“Claremont Past and Present.” 1938.
Cober, George. N.d. “History of
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Connor, J.C. and J.W. Coltson.
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and Directory of the County
of Ontario for the Year 1876 (Uxbridge).
Directory of the County of Ontario
1875.
Dollier de Casson, Francois. 1928.
The History of Montreal, 1640-
1672. Trans. & ed.: Ralph
Flenly (Toronto: J.M. Dent).
Dunkeld, Mrs. Thomas. 1947.
“Local History of Atha and
Altona Pioneers”, Stouffville
Tribune, 27 February.
Fairburn, M. Jane. 2013. Along the
Shore: Rediscovering Toronto’s Waterfront Heritage (Toronto: ECW Press).
Farewell, J.E. 1907. County of
Ontario: Short Notes as to the
Early Settlement and Progress
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Gauslin, Lillian M. 1974. From
Paths to Planes: A Story of the
Claremont Area (Claremont).
Greenwald, Michelle. 1973. The
Historical Complexities
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Scarborough and Uxbridge
(North Pickering Community
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Historical Sketches of Ontario.
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Recreation).
Hodder, Edward M. 1857. The
Harbours and Ports of Lake
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MacDonald, Archie (ed.). 1995. A
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McKay, William A. 1961. The
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McLean, Mrs. Irven and
Beatrice R. McLean. 1974.
Greenwood Through the Years
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Miller, Robert A. 1973. The
Ontario Village of Brougham:
Past! Present! Future?
(Brougham).
Mohr, Tom. 2020. “What’s in a
Name? or, the Curious Case of
Frenchman’s Bay”, Pathmaster
29:3&4, 21-26.
Mowbray, Victoria A. 1931.
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Unpublished.
Mulveney, Ken. 2013. The Road
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175th Anniversary – A Pictorial
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Nighswander, Joseph. 1985. “A
Brief History of Altona,”
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pp. 21-28.
Nostrand, John van. 1977A.
“Roads and Planning: The
Settlement of Ontario’s
Pickering Township, 1789-
1976,” City Magazine.
Nostrand, John van. 1977B. Seaton:
The Form of its History
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Housing).
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Purcell. C.R. 1971. “Gleanings
from the History of the Rouge
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Sabean, John W. (ed.) 2000. Time
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A Short Topographical
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Province of Upper Canada in
North America: to which is
annexed a provincial gazetteer
(London: W. Faden).
Snapshots of Ajax: A Pictorial
History: 1791-2015. 2015.
(Ajax: Town of Ajax).
Spilsbury, John R. 1998. Fact &
Folk Lore (John R. Spilsbury).
Thompson, Thomas S. 1869.
Thompson’s Coast Pilot
(Detroit: Thos. S. Thompson).
Traveller. Whitby Chronicle, 1884-
1885. Reprinted in Pathmaster,
vols. 5-11.
Village of Pickering 1800-1970, The.
1970. (The Corporation of the
Village of Pickering).
Wood, William R. 1911. Past Years
in Pickering (Toronto: William
Briggs).
Maps
1669. Galinée, René François
Bréhant de. “Carte du Lac Ontario et des habitations
qui l‘environment Ensemble
le pays que MM Dolier
et Galiné, missionaires du
Seminaire Saint Sulpice ont
parcouru”. [Ganatsekiagon]
1675. Franquelin, Jean-Baptiste.
Carte des Grands Lacs.
[Ganatchitiagon]
1688. Raffeix, Pierre. Le
Lac Ontario avec Les
Lieux circonvoisins &
particulièrement les cinq
nations Iroquoises 1688. [Ganestiguiagon]
1755. Bellin, Jacques-Nicolas.
“Cartes des Lacs du Canada”.
[Gandat Siagon]
1755. D’Anville Jean-Baptiste
Bourguignon. “Carte de
l‘Amérique septentrionale”. [Gandatskiagon]
1757. Labroquerie. Carte du Lac
Ontario Nouvelleman Rellevé
avac ces port a grand poid.
[Rau Saumon]
1770. Kalm, Peter. “A New and
Accurate Map of Part of North America, Comprehending the
Provinces of New England,
New York, Pennsylvania, New
Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode
Island & Part of Virginia,
Canada, and Halifax, per the
Illustration of Mr. Peter Kalms Travels”. [Gandatskiagon]
1791 Stegman, John. Ontario
Archives B34.
1791 Jones, Augustus. An accurate
Plan of a Survey of the River
Trent.
1793 Jones, Augustus. An accurate
Plan of a Survey of the River
Trent.
1793 Chewett, W. Plan of the
Province of Upper Canada
divided into Counties by order
of His Excellency John Graves
Simcoe, Esqre …
1796 Tickell. “Plan of Six hundred
Acres of Land appropriated
under an Order of Council for
Richd Baron Tickell, Esqr”.
D.W. Smith.
24
Board of Directors:
Honourary Presidents: Lilian M. Gauslin
Tom Mohr
Past President John Sabean
President: Laura Drake
Vice President: Alarna McKie
Recording & Corresponding Secretary: Carol Sabean
Membership Secretary: John Earley
Treasurer: John Earley
The directors of the
Pickering Township Historical Society
thank the Binns family
for a generous donation that will support
the society’s publications.
The directors of the
Pickering Township Historical Society
thank Elexicon Energy
for their generous annual grant in support
of the society’s publications.
Editor: John Sabean
Design: John Cormier
Hands On Art & Design
Pathmaster is the newsletter of
the Pickering Township Historical
Society and is issued occasionally.
Address correspondence to PTHS,
c/o 928 Reytan Blvd., Pickering,
Ontario, L1W 1Y7.
E-mail: johnsabean88@gmail.com.
1802 Chewet, William. “Plan of 7800 Acres of land in the Township of Pickering in Upper Canada of which 6600 Acres … are the property of the Hon. D.W. Smith ….”See
Pathmaster 21:3&4 (2017)1818 “A map of the province of Upper Canada describing all the settlements and townships”.1838 Wyld, James. A Map of the
Province of Upper Canada
describing all the New
Settlements, Townships, &c
with the Counties adjacent,
from Quebec to Lake Huron,
Compiled from the Original
Documents in the Surveyor
General’s Office. (London).1850 Rottenburg, George F. “Map of the Principal Communications in Canada West compiled from the most authentic sources, actual Surveys, District maps, etc., by Major Baron de Rottenburg Ast Quarter Mr Genl.”1851 A23 County of Ontario Act.1857 Hodder, Edward. The
Harbours and Ports of Lake
Ontario (Toronto).
1857 Reesor, David. Plan of Altona.1857 Phillips, George W. Plan of the Village of Brougham.1860A Tremaine, George C.
Tremaine’s Map of the County
of Ontario, Upper Canada (Toronto).1860B Tremaine, George. Map of the County of York (Toronto)1865 Bostwick Plan (of Liverpool)1874 Kingsford, William. “Map of Frenchman’s Bay or Pickering Harbour, Lake Ontario”.1877 Beers, J.H. Illustrated
Historical Atlas of the County
of Ontario, Ont. (Toronto).1878 County of Ontario, Map of.1878 Miles & Co., Illustrated
Historical Atlas of the County
of York (Toronto).1895 Electoral District Map 57. Ontario West. Ontario, Canada. From the Electoral Atlas of the Dominion of Canada, 1895 (with figures from the population census of 1891).1913 Fairport Beach. Plan of Fairport Beach [#175], Being a Subdivision of Lot 27, R2 & Part of South half of Lot
27, R3, Broken Front, Tp. of Pickering. Surveyed by John T. Ransom, O.L.S.1917 Guidal Landowners’ Map of
Pickering Township (Map and Advertising Co.).1923 Cummins Rural Directory
Map (Toronto: Cummins Map Co.).1932 Topographical. Department of National Defence. Markham 30 M/14.1943 Topographical. Department of National Defence. Markham 30 M/14.1951Topographical. Department of National Defence, Army Survey Establishment. Markham 30 M/14 East Half.1962 Topographical. Army Survey Establishment. Markham 30 M/141964 Topographical. Army Survey Establishment. Markham 30 M/14E (Edition 6).1967 Smith, George. Map of Pickering Township: Centennial Souvenir (Pickering Township Historical Society).
1974 Topographical. Highland Creek; Ajax; Whitby. Map 30 M/15d.1979 Topographical. Department of Energy, Mines and Resources. Markham 30 M/14 (Edition 7).1997 Durham Region State of the Environment Poster Map (Durham Environmental Network (DEN)).
Abbreviations:BF – Broken FrontCon – ConcessionDEN – Durham Environmental NetworkFBRA – Fairport Beach Ratepayers AssociationPN – Pickering NewsP.O. – Post Office R. -- RangeWC – Whitby Chronicle
Ed. note: The editor would be happy to hear from anyone who has any additions, corrections, or further suggestions to add to the above compilation.