Altona is a

ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * Ghost Town (1936 film), ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * Ghost Town (1956 film), ''Ghost Town'' ...

located in

Pickering, Ontario Pickering (2021 population 99,186) is a city located in Southern Ontario, Canada, immediately east of Toronto in Durham Region. Beginning in the 1770s, the area was settled by primarily ethnic British colonists. An increase in population occurre ...

, at Sideline 30 and the Pickering-Uxbridge Town Line. It is just east of

Whitchurch-Stouffville Whitchurch-Stouffville ( 2021 population 49,864) is a town in the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario, Canada, approximately north of downtown Toronto, and north-east of Toronto Pearson International Airport. It is in area, and located in the ...

, and was named after Altona, now a borough of

Hamburg, Germany (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

. It was founded by ethnic Swiss-German

Mennonites Mennonites are groups of Anabaptist Christian church communities of denominations. The name is derived from the founder of the movement, Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland. Through his writings about Reformed Christianity during the Radic ...

who had migrated from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

in the United States. The first flour and saw mills in Altona were built by Abraham Reesor, son of

Peter Reesor Peter Reesor (December 25, 1775 – November 16, 1854) was one of the original settlers of Markham, Ontario. Peter Reesor was born December 25, 1775, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania to Christian Reesor (1747–1806) and Veronica (Fanny) Reiff ...

and a nephew to

Abraham Stouffer Abraham Stouffer (January 8, 1781 – October 27, 1851) is the founder of the town of Stouffville, Ontario. Background and early years in the United States, 1781-1804 Abraham Stouffer was born January 8, 1781, near Chambersburg, Lancaster Co ...

, in 1850, on Lot 30, Concession 9, a short distance south of the Uxbridge-Pickering Townline. In the same year, Joseph Monkhouse built a general store and William Cooper an inn. In 1852, the Altona Mennonite Meeting House (5475 Sideline 30, Pickering) was erected, constructed by area Mennonite settlers. The bricks were made at the Cherrywood brick yard. Local families included the Barkeys, Reesors, Widemans, Nighswanders, Hoovers and Stouffers. The first grave is dated 1835. The founder of Stouffville,

and his wife Elizabeth Reesor Stouffer, are buried here. The first schoolhouse was built in 1834; in 1856 there were 256 inhabitants, "unable to read and write, about 30%." By 1869 the hamlet had 200 residents and a regular stage coach to Stouffville and

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

. In 1910 there was still a daily stage to Stouffville, but Altona's population had fallen to only 100 people. The churches, school, store (former hotel) and many homes remained into the 21st century, but all have been expropriated and most boarded up by the federal government for a proposed plan to build

Pickering airport The Pickering Airport Lands were expropriated in 1972 by the Government of Canada with the intention of building a second international airport to serve the city of Toronto, its metropolitan area, and the surrounding region known as the Golden H ...

, a second international airport in the

Greater Toronto Area The Greater Toronto Area, commonly referred to as the GTA, includes the City of Toronto and the regional municipalities of Durham, Halton, Peel, and York. In total, the region contains 25 urban, suburban, and rural municipalities. The Greater T ...

. One of the few remaining houses is the "Old Barkey Home", built in 1856 by the Mennonite farmer and preacher Daniel Barkey. Under the current plan, the approach for one of the three landing strips for the

Pickering Airport The Pickering Airport Lands were expropriated in 1972 by the Government of Canada with the intention of building a second international airport to serve the city of Toronto, its metropolitan area, and the surrounding region known as the Golden H ...

would be directly over the former hamlet of Altona, with planes descending at an elevation of approximately 300 metres. The plan anticipates 11.9 million passengers per year (or 32,600 per day) by 2032. A "Needs Assessment Study" was completed by the

Greater Toronto Airports Authority The Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA; french: Autorité aéroportuaire du Grand Toronto) operates Toronto Pearson International Airport in Mississauga, Ontario, west of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Toronto Pearson is Canada's largest airport ...

for the federal government in May 2010. After a "due diligence review,"

Transport Canada Transport Canada (french: Transports Canada) is the department within the Government of Canada responsible for developing regulations, policies and services of road, rail, marine and air transportation in Canada. It is part of the Transportati ...

released the report in July 2011.Transport Canada, News Release:
Transport Canada releases findings of the 2010 Pickering Lands Needs Assessment Study
," July 11, 2011.

References

External links

Altona (ghost town) info and photos
* {{coord, 43, 58, 35, N, 79, 11, 48, W, region:CA-ON_type:city_scale:50000_source:AtlasOfCanada, display=title Ghost towns in Ontario Pickering, Ontario Neighbourhoods in Pickering, Ontario German Canadian Swiss Canadian Settlements demolished to make room for airports