Bradford West Gwillimbury is a town in south-central
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
, in the
County of Simcoe in the Toronto Census Metropolitan Area on the
Holland River
The Holland River is a river in Ontario, Canada, that drains the Holland River watershed into Cook's Bay, the southern extremity of Lake Simcoe. The river flows generally north, and its headwaters lie in the Oak Ridges Moraine. The Holland Riv ...
. West Gwillimbury takes its name from the family of
Elizabeth Simcoe
Dame Elizabeth Posthuma Simcoe (22 September 1762 – 17 January 1850) was an English artist and Diary, diarist in Canada under British Imperial control (1764-1867), colonial Canada. Her husband, John Graves Simcoe, was the first Lieutenant Gove ...
, née ''Gwillim''.
The former Town of Bradford was amalgamated with portions of the former Townships of West Gwillimbury and Tecumseth to become the Town of Bradford West Gwillimbury on January 1, 1991.
Communities
Holland Marsh
The Holland Marsh is a wetland and agricultural area in Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. It lies entirely within the valley of the Holland River, stretching from the northern edge of the Oak Ridges Moraine near Schomberg to the river mo ...
, a region of #9 humus soil, is located partly in Bradford West Gwillimbury. The town, along with the
Township of King is the governing body responsible for the maintenance of the drainage system of this source of Canada's produce supply. In 2007 a Holland Marsh Drainage System Joint Municipal Board was created in response to a crisis of maintenance of the Holland Marsh Drainage System.
The Holland River flows through the middle of the southernmost Holland Marsh
polder and eventually flows out to
Lake Simcoe
Lake Simcoe is a lake in southern Ontario, Canada, the fourth-largest lake wholly in the province, after Lake Nipigon, Lac Seul, and Lake Nipissing. At the time of the first European contact in the 17th century the lake was called ''Ouentironk' ...
. Geographically, the area is north of the
Oak Ridges Moraine
The Oak Ridges Moraine is an ecologically important geological landform in the Mixedwood Plains of south-central Ontario, Canada. The moraine covers a geographic area of between Caledon and Rice Lake, near Peterborough. One of the most sign ...
.
Bradford West Gwillimbury consists of the town of
Bradford and the former Township of West Gwillimbury, and includes the communities of Bond Head, Coulson's Hill, Deerhurst, Dunkerron, Green Valley,
Newton Robinson and
Pinkerton.
Government
![Bradford, Ontario](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Bradford%2C_Ontario.JPG)
The current mayor of Bradford West Gwillimbury is Rob Keffer, who defeated the previous and two term mayor, Doug White, in the election of October 2014. The first mayor was Bill de Peuter, who was mayor of Bradford from 1986 to 1990.
The municipality has a mayor, a deputy mayor, and seven councillors. The administration is led by a town manager and has the following departments: clerks, building, planning, human resources, recreation, finance, engineering, facilities and parks, fire and IT. Council shared space with a courthouse at 57 Holland Street East.
Bradford West Gwillimbury and the neighbouring town of
Innisfil
Innisfil is a town in Ontario, Canada, located on the western shore of Lake Simcoe in Simcoe County, immediately south of Barrie and north of Toronto. It has historically been a rural area, but due to being geographically sandwiched in between ...
share the
South Simcoe Police Service
South Simcoe Police Service is a municipal police force in Ontario, Canada, providing service to the municipalities of Innisfil and Bradford West Gwillimbury. It came into existence on January 1, 1997, through the amalgamation of the Innisfil Po ...
. The town also incorporates the YNOT Bradford West Gwillimbury Youth Council, an assembly of teens, into its town discussions. The non-governmental group works to create social opportunities, including recreation facilities; enhance environmentalism; and create a political voice for the town's youth.
Federally, the town is part of the riding of
York—Simcoe, represented by
Scot Davidson of the
Conservative Party, who elected in a by-election on February 25, 2019.
Provincially, it is part of the riding of
York—Simcoe, represented by
Tory
A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. The ...
MPP
Caroline Mulroney
Caroline Anne Mulroney Lapham (born June 11, 1974) is a Canadian businesswoman, lawyer and politician who currently serves as the Ontario Minister of Transportation and Minister of Francophone Affairs.
Born in Montreal, Quebec, she is the dau ...
.
Fire & Emergency Services
Fire & Emergency Services has vastly evolved from the traditional functions of fire suppression and fire prevention. In addition to structural fire calls, the Fire Suppression division responds to calls such as residential and commercial fire alarms, motor vehicle collisions, vehicle fires, specialized rescues such as technical rope, confined space, and ice-water rescues, tiered medicals (ambulance assists) hazardous material responses (HAZMAT), mutual aid requests, as well as assistance during times of natural and/or man made disasters.
Bradford West Gwillimbury Fire & Emergency Services Headquarters is located at 75 Melbourne Drive, and currently has a fleet of 6 frontline apparatus, a fire prevention van, 2 Fire Chief vehicles, and a specialized response trailer.
Even though Bradford West Gwillimbury is part of Simcoe County, the station number and apparatus numbers are based on the York Region Fire Services numbering system, thus, Bradford is District 10, Station #1 (Station 10-1).
Transportation
The town is served by
Highway 400 and
Highway 9 at the southern border. It is also served by a number of Simcoe
county road
A county highway (also county road or county route; usually abbreviated CH or CR) is a road in the United States and in the Canadian province of Ontario that is designated and/or maintained by the county highway department. Route numbering can ...
s, including 88 (Holland Street West), 4 (Bridge Street, Holland Street East, and Barrie Street), 27, 41 (Simcoe Road), and 8 (Canal Road).
The town is also located on a bus and commuter train route, served by
GO Transit
GO Transit is a regional public transit system serving the Greater Golden Horseshoe region of Ontario, Canada. With its hub at Union Station in Toronto, GO Transit's green-and-white trains and buses serve a population of more than seven millio ...
.
Bradford GO Station is located in the community of Bradford and is on the
Barrie line
Barrie is one of the seven train lines of the GO Transit system in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada. It extends from Union Station in Toronto in a generally northward direction to Barrie, and includes ten stations along its route. From ...
. The station had been the northern terminus of the line until its extension opened in December 2007.
Bradford West Gwillimbury operates a local transit service,
BWG Transit
BWG Transit is a public transit service managed by the town of Bradford West Gwillimbury in Simcoe County, Ontario, Canada. It is operated by Switzer-Carty Transportation. It functions as the local and lowest tier of public transit in the area, ...
, which operates two routes primarily around Bradford. The routes provide a local transit connection to the town's railway station, and the bus system operates six days a week.
Notable people
''Also see
Notable people from Bradford, Ontario''
*
William Mulock
Sir William Mulock (January 19, 1843 – October 1, 1944) was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, educator, farmer, politician, judge, and philanthropist. He served as vice-chancellor of the University of Toronto from 1881 to 1900, negotiating th ...
, lawyer, businessman, educator, farmer, politician, judge, and philanthropist who is credited with the formation of the modern University of Toronto, was born on January 19, 1843, at Bond Head.
*
William Osler
Sir William Osler, 1st Baronet, (; July 12, 1849 – December 29, 1919) was a Canadian physician and one of the "Big Four" founding professors of Johns Hopkins Hospital. Osler created the first residency program for specialty training of phys ...
, called the "most influential physician in history", was born on July 12, 1849, at Bond Head, Canada West (now Ontario).
* Newton Robinson was the birthplace of NHL Hall of Famer,
Bob Pulford
Robert Jesse Pulford (born March 31, 1936) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward who played for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Los Angeles Kings in the National Hockey League. He later served as head coach of the Kings before spe ...
.
Demographics
In the
2021 Census of Population
The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sli ...
conducted by
Statistics Canada, Bradford West Gwillimbury had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.
See also
*
List of townships in Ontario
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
Lower-tier municipalities in Ontario
Municipalities in Simcoe County
Towns in Ontario