Selwyn, Ontario

Selwyn is a township in central-eastern Ontario, Canada, located in Peterborough County.

"Bridgenorth" redirects here. For the town in the UK, see Bridgnorth. For the locality in Tasmania, see Bridgenorth, Tasmania.
Selwyn
Township (lower-tier)
Township of Selwyn
Lakefield
Selwyn
Coordinates: 44°25′N 78°20′W
Country Canada
Province Ontario
CountyPeterborough
Settled1822
FormedJanuary 1, 2001
Government
 • TypeTownship
 • MayorAndy Mitchell
 • Federal ridingPeterborough—Kawartha
 • Prov. ridingPeterborough—Kawartha
Area
 • Land315.69 km2 (121.89 sq mi)
Population
 (2016)[1]
 • Total17,060
 • Density54.0/km2 (140/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC-5 (EST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
Postal Code
K0L 2H0 & K0L 0A0
Area code(s)705
Websitehttp://www.selwyntownship.ca/
Chemong Lake with Bridgenorth in background

Formerly known as Smith-Ennismore-Lakefield, the township passed a by-law changing its name to Selwyn in 2012.[2] The change became official on January 15, 2013.[2]

Geography

The township comprises the communities of: Bridgenorth, Chemong Heights, Chemong Park, Connaught Shore, Deer Bay, Emerald Isle, Ennismore, Fife's Bay, Flood's Landing, Fowlers Corners, Gannon Beach, Gannon Village, Kawartha Park, Kimberley Park, Lakefield, Selwyn, Selwyn Shores, Stewart Heights, Tera View Heights, Tindle Bay, Victoria Springs, Village Meadows, Windward Sands, Woodland Acres, Young's Cove, Young's Point and Youngstown.

The township is 67 percent rural including small villages and hamlets, along with the urban areas of Lakefield, Bridgenorth - Chemong Park, and Woodland Acres (part of the urban area of Peterborough). Farms have been established on most of the flat areas, which are intermixed between the rolling hills and lakes. The Trent-Severn Waterway passes through the township.

History
See also: Peterborough County, Ontario § Historic Townships

On January 1, 1998, Ennismore and Smith Townships were merged to form the Township of Smith-Ennismore. On January 1, 2001, a Minister's Order created the township in its current form by amalgamating the formerly independent Village of Lakefield with the Township of Smith-Ennismore and part of Douro–Dummer Township.

On December 11, 2012 the township council voted to select a new name after Canada Post notified many residents that addresses would have to be changed to reflect the municipality due to a phasing out of its rural route system. By a vote of 3 to 2, the township council voted to adopt the new name of Selwyn.[2]

Economy

The region is in the heart of Ontario's eastern cottage country, where urban residents (mostly from the Toronto region) have cottages on many of the small lakes. Many of the retail and services offered in the region cater to this seasonal market.

Small scale farms are a large industry, and dairy and meat production are some of the notable goods.

Government

In the 2010 municipal election, Mary Smith won the position of reeve (now mayor) from former reeve Ron Millen by 1,355 votes. Former federal Member of Parliament Andy Mitchell succeeded Smith as deputy reeve.

Demographics
Canada census – Selwyn, Ontario community profile
2016 2011 2006
Population: 17,060 (+1.3% from 2011) 16,846 (-1.1% from 2006) 17,413 (+6.1% from 2001)
Land area: 315.69 km2 (121.89 sq mi) 315.64 km2 (121.87 sq mi) 318.77 km2 (123.08 sq mi)
Population density: 54.0/km2 (140/sq mi) 53.4/km2 (138/sq mi) 54.6/km2 (141/sq mi)
Median age: 51.4 (M: 51.0, F: 51.7) 46.2 (M: 45.8, F: 46.6)
Total private dwellings: 8,404 8,006 7,988
Median household income: $79,349 $63,632
References: 2016[3] 2011[4] 2006[5] earlier[6]

Mother tongue:[5]

  • English as first language: 92.4%
  • French as first language: 1.3%
  • English and French as first language: 0%
  • Other as first language: 6.3%
Selwyn historical populations
YearPop.±%
199616,109—    
200116,414+1.9%
200617,413+6.1%
201116,846−3.3%
201617,060+1.3%
[7][8][1]

Population prior to amalgamation (2001):

  • Population total in 1996: 16,109
  • Ennismore (township): 4,465
  • Lakefield (village): 2,444
  • Smith (township): 9,200
  • Population in 1991:
  • Ennismore (township): 4,284
  • Lakefield (village): 2,555
  • Smith (township): 8,997

Education

Near the village is Lakefield College School which Prince Andrew, Duke of York attended in 1977. The campus was the filming location for the 1977 Canadian film Age of Innocence/Ragtime Summer.[9] In the village itself is the Lakefield District Public School,[10] which opened in 2018 after the Ridpath Junior Public School, named after James William Ridpath, publisher in the late 19th century and early 20th century of the Lakefield News, local businessman, sportsman and dignitary, was closed. LDPS took over the building formerly used for the now closed Lakefield District Secondary School. St. Paul's Catholic School, which is situated very close to the high school, is the area parochial school.

In fiction

In Paul Nicholas Mason's novel Battered Soles (2005), Lakefield is the site of a pilgrimage, begun in July 1997, which sees thousands of pilgrims from all over the world walk from Peterborough along the Rotary Greenway Trail to St. John's Anglican Church in the village. The focus of the pilgrimage is a life-sized statue of a blue-skinned Jesus in the basement of the church. Mason's second novel, The Red Dress (2008), is also set in Lakefield, although this time the community is thinly-disguised as Greenfield.

In film
  • Lakefield and Lakefield College School were used as the location for the 1977 Canadian film Age of Innocence (aka Ragtime Summer) starring David Warner, Honor Blackman and Trudy Young. One memorable scene was shot at the location of the old Lakefield train station on Stanley St. The first four letters were removed on the Lakefield sign and replaced with the name Rockfield.
  • In the winter of 2010 Verizon made a commercial at Lakefield's Ontario Speed Skating Oval outdoor speed skating rink.
  • Unheralded (2011), a National Film Board documentary directed by Aaron Hancox, is about the Lakefield Herald. It focuses on this community paper's journalists as they cover newsworthy events taking place in and around the town.

Famous persons

See also

References
  1. "Census Profile, 2016 Census: Selwyn, Township". Statistics Canada. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
  2. "Smith-Ennismore-Lakefield Township to be renamed Selwyn Township". Peterborough Examiner, December 12, 2012.
  3. "2016 Community Profiles". 2016 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. February 21, 2017. Retrieved 2019-06-29.
  4. "2011 Community Profiles". 2011 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. July 5, 2013. Retrieved 2012-03-09.
  5. "2006 Community Profiles". 2006 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. March 30, 2011. Retrieved 2012-03-09.
  6. "2001 Community Profiles". 2001 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. February 17, 2012.
  7. Statistics Canada: 1996, 2001, 2006
  8. "Smith-Ennismore-Lakefield census profile". 2011 Census of Population. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 2012-03-09.
  9. Age of Innocence/Ragtime Summer (1977)
  10. "Principal says students are buzzing with Lakefield District Public School finally expected to open Monday". ThePeterboroughExaminer.com. 2018-01-04. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  11. "There's a new name (that you've never heard of) in Canadian running - Canadian Running Magazine". Runningmagazine.ca. Retrieved 2017-04-28.
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