Kinmount is a village with a population of approximately 500, located on the
Burnt River in
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 ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
. The village is apportioned by three municipalities, they are,
City of Kawartha Lakes
The City of Kawartha Lakes (2021 population 79,247) is a unitary municipality in Central Ontario, Canada. It is a municipality legally structured as a single-tier city; however, Kawartha Lakes is the size of a typical Ontario county and is mostl ...
,
Minden Hills
Minden Hills is a township in and the county seat of Haliburton County, Ontario, Canada. It is an amalgam of the townships of Snowdon, Lutterworth, Anson, Hindon and Minden. It is usually referred to as Minden, after its largest community.
The to ...
and
Trent Lakes
The Municipality of Trent Lakes is a lower-tier township (Canada), township in the rural, mostly wooded northern section of Peterborough County, Ontario, Canada. The municipality has a primarily cottage and tourist industry based economy but has g ...
. The village's
hinterland
Hinterland is a German word meaning "the land behind" (a city, a port, or similar). Its use in English was first documented by the geographer George Chisholm in his ''Handbook of Commercial Geography'' (1888). Originally the term was associated ...
covers large sections of both
Haliburton and
Peterborough
Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...
counties for which it is a shopping and cultural centre. Prior to the formation of the City of Kawartha Lakes, Kinmount was the
seat
A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but also headquarters in a wider sense.
Types of seat
The following are examples of different kinds of seat:
* Armchair (furniture), ...
of
Somerville Township.
Economy
The economy of Kinmount once relied on
forestry
Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. Th ...
but is now primarily based on
tourism
Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...
. The village is an important source of supplies for summer cottagers in the area and, consequently, becomes nearly dormant in winter. One of Kinmount's primary businesses and tourist draws is the
Highland Cinemas
Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...
— a first-run movie theatre with a movie poster and equipment museum.
The local
post office
A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...
, at 4078 County Rd 121, offers lock boxes and services one rural delivery route.
History
Kinmount was originally named ''Burnt River'' (a name now used by a
nearby village), after the river which flows through the village. In 1859, it was renamed ''Kinmount'' by Mrs. Malcolm Bell, after
Kinmount, Scotland.
Kinmount is notable for being one of the first sites of
Iceland
Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
ic settlement in Canada. Although the group moved to
Manitoba
Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...
after two years, their story is told and their presence commemorated by an Ontario Historical Plaque.
A memorial paying tribute to these early settlers was erected there in September 2000. Over 500 people gathered for the dedication including the Foreign Minister of Iceland and the Deputy Prime Minister of Canada.
The Victoria Railway connected Kinmount with Lindsay and Haliburton. The line was absorbed by Canadian National Railways as the Haliburton subdivision. Passenger service ceased in 1960, freight service ended in 1978 and the line was abandoned in 1981.
Kinmount most recently gained national attention in the summer of 2004, when it became the first Ontario village to actively canvas a
family physician to move to the community. The grass-roots
campaign
Campaign or The Campaign may refer to:
Types of campaigns
* Campaign, in agriculture, the period during which sugar beets are harvested and processed
*Advertising campaign, a series of advertisement messages that share a single idea and theme
* Bl ...
included leaflets, posters, and newspaper ads throughout the province.
Attractions
The Kinmount Fair
is held annually on the Labour Day weekend.
See also
*
List of communities in Ontario {{short description, None
There are various lists of communities in Ontario, grouped by status, type or location:
* List of census subdivisions in Ontario - counties, districts and regional municipalities
*List of cities in Ontario - places which ...
References
External links
Official Kinmount website
{{authority control
Communities in Kawartha Lakes