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Delhi (; ) refers to both a former
township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, C ...
and unincorporated community located off of the junction of Ontario Highways 59 and 3. Delhi is known as the "Heart of Tobacco Country." Prior to 1880, this community was known for its lumber industry. One of the
Communities in Norfolk County, Ontario Norfolk County, Ontario, Norfolk County in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario consists of a long list of communities. Its four designated population centres are Simcoe, Ontario, Simcoe, Port Dover, Ontario, Port ...
, Delhi, had a population of 4,240 at the time of the 2016 Census. Founded by Frederick Sovereen (spelled Sovereign by a few sources), the settlement was called Sovereen's Corners or Sovereign's Corners and was located in Middleton Township. Later, the community was renamed Fredericksburg and, in 1856, to its present-day name of Delhi. The name is usually attributed locally to a postmaster honouring the major city of
Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders wi ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...
.


History

Frederick Sovereen (or Sovereign) settled here in about 1812. According to some genealogy records, his father, originally from Germany, was called Frederick ''Zavering'', ''Zafrin,'' or ''Safrein''. The records suggest that the family initially emigrated to New Jersey but moved to Norfolk County in Upper Canada because of the Revolutionary War in the U.S. Joseph Lawson bought land at about the same time as Frederick Sovereen (or Sovereign) Jr. but did not actually build a home in the area for some time. The village was named Fredericksburg after Sovereign until the post office opened under the name of Delhi. Sovereign was a tavern keeper for more than 30 years. He also manufactured plug tobacco, growing his own leaves, curing them, and pressing them. He donated the land for the Baptist church and served as the deacon for "many, many years". The population in 1869 was 300, and the village had some manufacturing as well as a lumber mill thanks to the abundant water power. The post office was receiving mail daily. The railway that arrived in the 1870s was a definite benefit to locals who opened businesses such as the Delhi Canning Company, established in 1878; the company shipped canned local produce across Canada. The village initially had a log schoolhouse, but a new school was built in 1892. By around 1900, the village had an opera house, two tanneries, a railroad station, an Orange Hall, and a Mechanics’ Institute as well as a flour mill, the Quance Mills or Sovereen-Quance Mills. At the time, the primary crops in the area were still fruit and vegetables. Delhi Cemetery was first established sometime in the 19th century. While it was originally a cemetery exclusively for residents who were members of the
Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, changes in cemetery policy made it possible to have anyone buried on their property. At least 4,372 individuals or families have been buried there. Fifteen people from the Delhi area who were killed in
the First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
are buried in this cemetery. The last names of the graves belong to different ethnic groups ranging from English, French, Canadian,
Eastern European Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whi ...
, and those of Belgian descent. There are even a few Chinese families buried within the cemetery, and a large number of tombstones are written in languages other than English. In the 1960s, Delhi had its own
police station A police station (sometimes called a "station house" or just "house") is a building which serves to accommodate police officers and other members of staff. These buildings often contain offices and accommodation for personnel and vehicles, al ...
, complete with its own jail. Until the 1970s, most non-essential services and businesses closed earlier on Wednesday afternoons. Other economic factors, including the abolition of Canada's
blue law Blue laws, also known as Sunday laws, Sunday trade laws and Sunday closing laws, are laws restricting or banning certain activities on specified days, usually Sundays in the western world. The laws were adopted originally for religious reasons, ...
s in 1985, eventually forced most businesses to operate seven days a week. In 1974, the Town of Delhi was amalgamated with the Township of Charlotteville and the Township of Windham to form the Township of Delhi as part of the municipal restructuring that created the Regional Municipality of Haldimand-Norfolk. The Township's administrative centre was located in the community of Delhi. In 2001, Haldimand-Norfolk was dissolved into two separate single-tier counties. Delhi became part of the newly formed Norfolk County. Delhi experienced a state of economic stagnation with the early-2000s decline in the tobacco industry; this problem has also affected the rest of the Ontario tobacco belt, including the nearby community of
Tillsonburg Tillsonburg is a town in Oxford County, Ontario, Canada with a population of 18,615 located about 50 kilometres southeast of London, on Highway 3 at the junction of Highway 19. History Prior to European settlement, the present site of Tillso ...
. People who live in the Delhi area say that farming in the area started becoming highly unprofitable around 2012 and that it is best for people to "forget about Delhi's 20th century tobacco legacy." While Quance Dam received all-time high water levels during the unusually warm winter of 2009, recent droughts and the erosion of the older portion of the dam are putting the future of this local public works facility into jeopardy. Partly inactive since the 1930s, it was sold to the Quance family in 1987. The newest part of Quance Dam was completed in 1995 once plans to convert it into a hydroelectric plant fell through. More than 1000 fish pass through Quance Dam on an annual basis; a great decrease since 1959 when more than 4000 fish would pass through. The reason for the collapse in fish population was sedimentation, the introduction of stocked fish, and human development.


Old Delhi train station

The St. Thomas and Eastern Railway started operations in the area on November 9, 1998. It is a shortline railroad that serves places like St. Thomas and
Tillsonburg Tillsonburg is a town in Oxford County, Ontario, Canada with a population of 18,615 located about 50 kilometres southeast of London, on Highway 3 at the junction of Highway 19. History Prior to European settlement, the present site of Tillso ...
that lack the feasibility for service by a Class I rail carriers like
Canadian National The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN ...
or
Canadian Pacific The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canad ...
. The primary customer for the St. Thomas and Eastern Railway in Delhi is Growmark, Inc. (formerly the Norfolk Co-Op). A railway station for passengers was located on the corner of William and Main streets () prior to the 1970s. While the railways were originally thought to be the way to ship cargo in and out of Delhi, the faster and cheaper truck convoys eventually won the day, bringing an increase in traffic volumes and smog into the community. Major products like
ethanol Ethanol (abbr. EtOH; also called ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, drinking alcohol, or simply alcohol) is an organic compound. It is an alcohol with the chemical formula . Its formula can be also written as or (an ethyl group linked to a h ...
,
rye Rye (''Secale cereale'') is a grass grown extensively as a grain, a cover crop and a forage crop. It is a member of the wheat tribe (Triticeae) and is closely related to both wheat (''Triticum'') and barley (genus ''Hordeum''). Rye grain is u ...
, agricultural chemicals, and
fertilizer A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...
products are sent back and forth between Delhi and St. Thomas.


Geography

There are hills on several of the town roads, particularly on Old Mill Road, William Street, Western Avenue, and Talbot Road. Most of Delhi is situated on flat land. Modes of transportation that are possible in Delhi include cycling, running, walking, and hiking. The streets that are in older neighborhoods tend not to have
sidewalk A sidewalk (North American English), pavement (British English), footpath in Australia, India, New Zealand and Ireland, or footway, is a path along the side of a street, highway, terminals. Usually constructed of concrete, pavers, brick, stone ...
s, making urban trail walking a perilous adventure. Shops in addition to a war memorial and the park at Quance Dam are considered to within a reasonable walking distance from the houses and apartments. The overall difficulty of walking through Delhi is considered to be easy. A bus service makes scheduled trips to the major communities of Simcoe, Delhi, Port Dover, Port Rowan, and Waterford. Service is from Monday to Friday, with no services on Saturdays, Sundays, on major statutory holidays, or after 6:00 P.M. There is a valley that spans a distance of between Delhi and Lynedoch that contains remnants of Ontario's original old-growth
Carolinian forest The Carolinian forest refers to a life zone in eastern North America characterized primarily by the predominance of deciduous (broad-leaf) forest. The term "Carolinian", which is most commonly used in Canada, refers to the deciduous forests which ...
, adding up to just over . The major highway route connecting this community to
Port Talbot Port Talbot (, ) is a town and community in the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales, situated on the east side of Swansea Bay, approximately from Swansea. The Port Talbot Steelworks covers a large area of land which dominates the sout ...
was constructed primarily on an old Aboriginal trail. Delhi remained isolated from the rest of Southwestern Ontario until 1816, when Colonel Thomas Talbot directed the surveyor to build the Talbot Trail on higher elevation land to avoid swampy marshland. This decision led to the irregular and winding route to Aylmer that Ontario Highway 3 is today. Most of Delhi was basically a dense forest until the first generation European settlers came in to build farms and mills during the 1820s. Swamps can be seen within the lower elevation portions of the region, while Big Otter Creek is located in close proximity to the downtown core. North Creek joins
Big Creek Big Creek may refer to: In Australia * Big Creek, Tasmania, a tributary of the Inglis River in Tasmania, Australia In Belize * Big Creek, Belize, a sea port in Belize In Canada * Big Creek (British Columbia), a tributary of the Chilcotin River * ...
at Delhi, eventually draining into
Lake Erie Lake Erie ( "eerie") is the fourth largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has t ...
at
Port Rowan Port Rowan is a town in Norfolk County, Ontario, Canada. It is located on Lake Erie, adjacent to Long Point. The lakeside community has a population of fewer than 1500 people and sports a number of traditional small businesses such as Twin's Ice ...
. The
Lehman Reservoir Lehman may refer to: People * Lehman (surname) * Lehman Engel (1910–1982), American composer and conductor of Broadway musicals, television and film * Lehman Kahn (1827–1915), Belgian educationalist and writer Places and physical features ...
is on North Creek in Delhi and is used for water supply and recreation.


Climate

Delhi has a
humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freez ...
( Köppen ''Dfb''). Winters are cold with a January average of in January and most days have maximum temperatures below . Though winters are cold, mild stretches of weather can bring temperatures above in January. The average annual snowfall is , with maximum accumulations of it occurring in February when the snow depth is . Summers are warm and humid with a July high of and a July low of . Temperatures above occur 10 days per year. The average annual precipitation is , which is relatively evenly distributed throughout the year. Delhi averages 2021 hours of bright sunshine per year or 43% of daylight hours, ranging from a low of 21.2% in December to 62.2% in July.


Demographics

Until 2001, Delhi was located within the Township of Delhi, a municipal government within the Regional Municipality of Haldimand-Norfolk. Delhi continues to have several subdivisions located nearby, including Pinegrove, Gilbertville, and Atherton. Prior to the amalgamation of Norfolk County, the population of the former Township of Delhi was 16,365 in the Canada 2001 Census. The majority of the residents at that time were married Anglophones who were born in Canada. Even though Delhi is home to a number of Roman Catholic churches, the majority of residents in Delhi during the early 2000s were Protestant. The population includes a sizable number of residents with Dutch, Portuguese, Caribbean, Ukrainian,
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
, British, and First Nation ancestry. As of 2016, the majority of Delhi's residents speak English as a first language and were born in Canada. Females outnumber males, and working-age people outnumber children and elderly people. Delhi will experience a surge in old-age pensioners by the year 2026. Seventy people were born in the United States of America, while 250 were born in Europe. Ten residents were born in Africa, while 20 residents were born in Asia. Delhi's population is expected to grow to approximately 5,215 residents by 2056, although future wars and pandemics may affect this population growth. People are less likely to have children or emigrate to Canada if there are any major political/medical events happening in the world.


Economy

Farming remains the predominant local industry, with tobacco and ginseng as the main cash crops. While Delhi used to be a place where transient adolescent workers could find employment quickly, the local police force started to take a less tolerant stand towards these job seekers in the later years. Local farms rely in part upon the Caribbean and
Central American Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. C ...
workers, who usually arrive around mid-to-late April and return to their homelands around early-to-mid November. Recent years have seen migrant workers complaining of unequal treatment and economic hardships in the hands of local farmers. Proper Spanish-language services for these offshore workers are only available in Simcoe, where these businesses tend to prosper during the farming months and be vacant buildings during the winter. Three manufacturing plants once were located here; Delhi Industries, Delhi Foundry, and Delhi Metal Products. They both closed due to the changing Canadian economy that emphasized more on service jobs than jobs in traditional manufacturing fields. Delhi Industries lasted until the midst of the Canadian economic recession when it closed down in March 2010, terminating 61 jobs on a permanent basis. They once made fans and blowers for industrial operations in the region. Lake Erie Warehousing is currently located in the former Delhi Industries building; it provides industrial customers in Southern Ontario with logistics, trucking, and storage services. 2600 people in Norfolk County have officially joined the workforce between June 2012 and June 2013. Local businesses have been slowly expanding again. Innovative ways to operate business ventures have indirectly improved the lives of workers who live in Delhi. The economy of the Greater Toronto Area, along with the rest of the world, may become further interconnected with the economy of Delhi. Delhi has the only Your Independent Grocer franchise in Norfolk County. It is owned by Mr. and Mrs. Matt Wilkinson and is located on the Main Street of Delhi leading into the downtown core. The store itself is a basic one-storey building with three rows of parking and eight aisles for shopping. A drug store is located nearby. As of 2017, there were eight
medical doctor A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the ...
s who practice conventional medicine within the town of Delhi. The local health clinic was built in the mid-2000s and continues to expand in order to attract more medical personnel.


Sports

Delhi is home to the
Delhi Travellers The Delhi Travellers are a junior hockey team based in Delhi, Ontario, Canada. The Travellers play in the Provincial Junior Hockey League of the Ontario Hockey Association. History Prior to 1966, the Delhi franchise was a member of the Shamr ...
, a junior hockey team that plays in the
Southern Ontario Junior Hockey League The Southern Ontario Junior Hockey League (SOJHL) is a former Canadian Junior ice hockey league sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Association based out of Southwestern Ontario. Prior to the 2012-13 season, the SOJHL was promoted to the Junior C ...
. They are also the home of various minor soccer, minor baseball, minor soccer, and minor hockey teams. Minor sports are played by young people between the ages of three (for the ''Initiation'' age group) and 20 (for the ''Juvenile'' age group) in this region. These events are played out either at or near the vicinity of the
Delhi Community Arena Delhi (; ) refers to both a former township and unincorporated community located off of the junction of Ontario Highways 59 and 3. Delhi is known as the "Heart of Tobacco Country." Prior to 1880, this community was known for its lumber indus ...
. The local high school plays against other high schools in the region in sports like football,
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
,
volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...
, soccer (association football),
tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball c ...
,
badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racket (sports equipment), racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net (device), net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per s ...
, cross country,
track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...
,
scholastic wrestling Scholastic wrestling, also known in the United States as folkstyle wrestling, is a style of amateur wrestling practiced at the high school and middle school levels in the United States. This wrestling style is essentially collegiate wrestling wi ...
, and
swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...
. Close rivalries have developed over the years, particularly with Simcoe Composite School,
Valley Heights Secondary School Valley Heights Secondary School (in French, "''L'École Secondaire Valley Heights''") is a two-story rural high school located near Walsingham, Ontario, Canada. The official initials for this high school are ''VHSS''. History Opened in 1971, Va ...
, and Holy Trinity Catholic High School. North Creek was once the most important spawning point for the local fish species until it was dammed in 1965. Prior to the 1960s, local residents and avid fishermen alike would often stake out ideal fishing spots near the once-fertile tributaries. North Creek is used today as a means to provide a supplemental water supply to the municipally-owned aquifers. The fishing scene within the actual town limits of Delhi has floundered since 1966, forcing today's fishermen to drive to the hinterlands in order to guarantee a catch. Some fishermen have been known to drive to Port Ryerse and Long Point in the search for their next meal or pleasure fishing expeditions.


Education

The local high school,
Delhi District Secondary School Delhi District Secondary School is a publicly funded high school that is located near downtown Delhi in Norfolk County, Ontario, Canada. Summary The rural school had one of the lowest enrollment rates in Norfolk County, and had been considered ...
, has faced the threat of closure in the past, but the local school board has committed to keeping the school open for the indefinite future. Delhi's high school offers courses in science, physical education, math,
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
, family studies, English, and co-operative education (for the transition from academic life to employment). The local secular elementary school is Delhi Public School.
Saint Frances Cabrini Catholic School In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Ortho ...
is also located in Delhi and is part of the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board's elementary division.


Notable people

* Barry Boughner (1948- ), retired NHL player *
Earl Frederick Crabb Lieutenant (later Major) Earl Frederick Crabb (March 27, 1899 – October 18, 1986) was a World War I flying ace credited with six aerial victories. After World War I, he was an aviation pioneer and bush pilot. He returned to military aviation dur ...
(1899–1986), World War I flying ace * John Leslie Hotson (1897–1992), scholar of Elizabethan literary puzzles * John A. Schweitzer (1952-), artist, art critic, and philanthropist * Ryan VandenBussche (1973-), retired NHL player raised in Delhi


See also

*
List of unincorporated communities in Ontario The following is a list of unincorporated and informal communities in the province of Ontario, Canada. These communities are not independent communities, these are usually a part of a township for the district, within a county. In non-urban areas ...


References


External links


Norfolk County
{{authority control Communities in Norfolk County, Ontario Former township municipalities in Ontario Populated places established in 1826 1826 establishments in Canada Populated places disestablished in 1974