Grafton is a community in the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

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 Ca ...

. It is in Northumberland County, in the township of

Alnwick/Haldimand The Township of Alnwick/Haldimand is a township in central Ontario, Canada, in Northumberland County, situated between Lake Ontario and Rice Lake. It was formed in 2001 by the merger of Alnwick Township in the north and Haldimand Township in th ...

. It is 12 km east of

Cobourg, Ontario Cobourg ( ) is a town in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in Southern Ontario east of Toronto and east of Oshawa. It is the largest town in and seat of Northumberland County. Its nearest neighbour is Port Hope, to the west. It i ...

on the former Highway 2 (now County Road 2), with close access to

Highway 401 King's Highway 401, commonly referred to as Highway 401 and also known by its official name as the Macdonald–Cartier Freeway or colloquially referred to as the four-oh-one, is a controlled-access 400-series highway in the Canadian provin ...

. The hamlet is near the geographically significant

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 signif ...

at Rice Lake. Grafton was originally called Grover's Tavern until March, 1832. The original Grover's Tavern, the namesake building of the hamlet, still stands today as the Grafton Village Inn, a restaurant and B & B in the heart of the hamlet. It was also referred to early in its history as Haldimand, which is the name of the township it is located in. Grafton is an excellent example of the type of hamlets that flourished in the 19th century. Grafton had a bustling port for many years, shipping grain, barley and other commodities to communities along the Great Lakes. In addition, the hamlet included a

Sons of Temperance The Sons of Temperance was and is a brotherhood of men who promoted the temperance movement and mutual support. The group was founded in 1842 in New York City. It began spreading rapidly during the 1840s throughout the United States and parts o ...

group, an order of Freemasons, and numerous other social leagues. Bolstered by satellite communities such as Centreton, Castleton, Wicklow, and Vernonville, Grafton was a productive hamlet that supported itself through both agriculture and services. By the late 1870s the hamlet could boast of having a doctor, several taverns and inns, a cheese factory, a blacksmith, a public scale, and a train station on the G.T.R line. Milk and dairy products were shipped daily to both Kingston 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 ...

, and regular passenger service was also available. Grafton was successful enough at this time to earn a weekly column in the Cobourg daily newspaper, entitled "Latest Items from Grafton", which ran from 1875 through 1877. The column included news of the surrounding communities and hamlets and detailed various social, political, and economic on-goings in the area, such as picnics, local crime, sporting contests, and harvest reports. Benjamin Ewing is believed to be one of the first settlers in Grafton, and his property was located on what is currently Benlock road. Another early settler was Eliakim Barnum, the original owner of the

Barnum House The Barnum House was built between 1817 and 1819 by Eliakim Barnum, a United Empire Loyalist originally from Vermont. The house, which stands just outside Grafton, Ontario, in Alnwick/Haldimand Township, is the earliest example of Neoclassical ...

on Hwy #2.

is now a museum in Grafton, and it is thought that Eliakim Barnum bought the house from another family who owned it before. Ben Ewing and Eliakim Barnum were good friends and Barnum married Ben's sister Hannah Ewing Blanchard just after 1812. The Original Barnum house was accidentally burned down during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

by British soldiers who were billeting there; it was rebuilt a few years later. This building is a historical site in Ontario and has visiting hours in the summer (Wednesday to Sunday, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm). The town of Grafton currently has a small population of under one thousand, but it has considerable history. Many early settlers continue to have descendants living in the area; notable family names include Calnan, McBride, Johnston, Inglis, Harnden, Harrison, Raymond, Owens, Davis, Bryden, Broomfield, Chamberlain, Mian, Lackey, Lawless, Bryson and others. Many of these early settler families have routes, roads, and landmarks named for them in the hamlets and surrounding areas, such as Broomfield Road, which runs roughly between Vernonville and Centreton. Some current businesses and community buildings include the Haldimand Memorial Arena, the Grafton Community Centre & Library, Grafton Public School, St. Marys Elementary School, Grafton Variety, Prentice's Garage, The Durham Farmers Co-op farm and feed store, the Bullpen, 1812 Antiques, Lantern Books, the Grafton Village Inn, and the Lawless Art Gallery. Grafton is currently home to such notable places as St. Annes Inn & Spa, the former home of

Bob Homme Robert Mandt Homme, C.M. ( ; March 8, 1919 – May 2, 2000) was an American-Canadian television actor. Homme was best known as the host of '' The Friendly Giant'', a popular children's television program that aired from the 1950s through the 198 ...

("The Friendly Giant"), the

museum, and a defunct canning factory, Grafton Arena (since converted into a private residence). Grafton is now supported by these smaller businesses and tourism. Agriculture is still prevalent in the surrounding area, predominantly with crops such as corn, soybeans, and wheat, and livestock including beef, dairy, and poultry. The processing and shipping elements of the agricultural business have moved on beyond Grafton. There continues to be development and residential growth in and around the hamlet as the area grows in size. Grafton is the current site where Kirkland Signature brand (Costco) sources their spring water (sold in stores across the province). Also the source for water for the RealCanadian water bottle company. File:Grafton Ontario, Barnum House, 1819.jpg, Barnum House, 1819 File:Grafton, Commercial Building 1820 LK.jpg, Commercial Building, 1820 File:Grafton, Lawless Cottage, c. 1820, LK.jpg, Grafton, Lawless Cottage, c. 1820, LK File:Grafton, Grover House, 1822, LK.jpg, Grover House, c. 1822 File:The Grafton Inn, 1833 1 LK.jpg, The Grafton Village Inn, c. 1833 File:Grafton Ont. St. Andrew's United Church, formerly Presbyterian, 1844, LK.jpg, St. Andrew's United Church (Formerly Presbyterian), 1844

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External links

{{authority control Communities in Northumberland County, Ontario