Norval is an unincorporated community in the town of

Halton Hills ) , image_map = , mapsize = 200px , map_caption = , pushpin_map = CAN ON Halton#Canada Southern Ontario , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , subdivision_type ...

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. Situated on the

Credit River The Credit River is a river in southern Ontario, which flows from headwaters above the Niagara Escarpment near Orangeville and Caledon East to empty into Lake Ontario at Port Credit, Mississauga. It drains an area of approximately . The total le ...

, it is located approximately west of

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 is part of the

Regional Municipality of Halton The Regional Municipality of Halton, or Halton Region, is a regional municipality in Ontario, Canada, located in the Golden Horseshoe of Southern Ontario. It comprises the city of Burlington and the towns of Oakville, Milton, and Halton Hi ...

. Norval is believed to take its name from the Scottish play ''Douglas'' by poet

John Home Rev John Home FRSE (13 September 1722 – 4 September 1808) was a Scottish minister, soldier and author. His play ''Douglas'' was a standard Scottish school text until the Second World War, but his work is now largely neglected. In 1783 he wa ...

History

Around 1820

James McNab James McNab was the first settler in Norval, Ontario, originally called "McNab's Mills" McNab was an acting Lance Sergeant at the Battle of Queenston Heights during the War of 1812. He transferred to Captain John Powell's Provincial Artillery an ...

and his family arrived; McNab was a

United Empire Loyalist United Empire Loyalists (or simply Loyalists) is an honorific title which was first given by the 1st Lord Dorchester, the Governor of Quebec, and Governor General of The Canadas, to American Loyalists who resettled in British North America duri ...

and had fought in 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 ...

. The family raised sheep and built a grist and a saw mill on the Credit River. Some of their wood was shipped to England for use as masts on naval ships. Flour mills also opened in this area; the largest one operated until 1930 when it was destroyed in a fire. In 1836 the post office was established. Previously, the settlement had been called McNabsville and McNab's Mill. In 1838, the mills were sold to Peter Adamson. In 1851, the Guelph Plank Road passed through this area and by 1856 the

Grand Trunk Railway The Grand Trunk Railway (; french: Grand Tronc) was a railway system that operated in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario and in the American states of Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The rai ...

had arrived. The latter was useful for shipping goods from this area. In 1846, the settlement had a population of about 200 inhabitants, served by two churches, various tradesmen, a

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the Mill (grinding), grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist i ...

, an oatmeal mill, a distillery, two stores and a tavern. Norval became a thriving village, complete with a

broom A broom (also known in some forms as a broomstick) is a cleaning tool consisting of usually stiff fibers (often made of materials such as plastic, hair, or corn husks) attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. I ...

factory, ashery, bakery, woollen and flax mills,

carriage A carriage is a private four-wheeled vehicle for people and is most commonly horse-drawn. Second-hand private carriages were common public transport, the equivalent of modern cars used as taxis. Carriage suspensions are by leather strapping an ...

works, a

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

and harness shops, brass

foundry A foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal into a mold, and removing the mold material after the metal has solidified as it cools. The most common metals pr ...

, general stores, several hotels, a Mechanics' Institute and an

Orange Lodge The Loyal Orange Institution, commonly known as the Orange Order, is an international Protestant fraternal order based in Northern Ireland and primarily associated with Ulster Protestants, particularly those of Ulster Scots heritage. It als ...

. It was a main stop on the stagecoach ride from

Guelph Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as "The Royal City", Guelph is roughly east of Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Highway 6, Highway 7 and Wel ...

to Toronto.

Upper Canada College Upper Canada College (UCC) is an elite, all-boys, private school in Toronto, Ontario, operating under the International Baccalaureate program. The college is widely described as the country's most prestigious preparatory school, and has produce ...

's Norval Outdoor School is located at 10444 Winston Churchill Boulevard. Acquired in 1913, it was established in the property after 1935. Author

Lucy Maud Montgomery Lucy Maud Montgomery (November 30, 1874 – April 24, 1942), published as L. M. Montgomery, was a Canadian author best known for a collection of novels, essays, short stories, and poetry beginning in 1908 with '' Anne of Green Gables''. She ...

, who wrote the

Anne of Green Gables ''Anne of Green Gables'' is a 1908 novel by Canadian author Lucy Maud Montgomery (published as L. M. Montgomery). Written for all ages, it has been considered a classic children's novel since the mid-20th century. Set in the late 19th century, t ...

series, lived in Norval from 1926 to 1935. In her journal, Montgomery expressed her appreciation for the village’s natural beauty, and declared, “I love Norval as I have never loved any place save Cavendish rince Edward Island It is as if I had known it all my life". In 1954 the grist mill was destroyed by

Hurricane Hazel Hurricane Hazel was the deadliest, second costliest, and most intense hurricane of the 1954 Atlantic hurricane season. The storm killed at least 469 people in Haiti before striking the United States near the border between North and Sout ...

. In 1972 the remaining structures were removed to expand Highway 7. Many historic buildings still stand in Norval.Norval On The Credit - Norval, Ontario, Canada
/ref>

Annual festivals and events

*Earth Week Celebrations - Third week in April *Heritage Perennial Plant Sale - early May *Montgomery Christmas - the weekend of November closest to her birthday (November 30) *Lucy Maud Montgomery Seminars and Readings - various times during the year

Recreation and parks

*Willow Park Ecology Centre *Lucy Maud Montgomery Garden *Interpretive Gazebo & Signature Walk *Norval Park *Pioneer Cemeteries & McNab Park

Notable residents

A.J. Casson Alfred Joseph Casson LL. D. (May 17, 1898 – February 20, 1992) was a member of the Canadian group of artists known as the Group of Seven. He joined the group in 1926 at the invitation of Franklin Carmichael, replacing Frank Johnston. Ca ...

, Group of Seven, painted Norval in the 1920s and 30's * John Watkins, born in Norval, a former Ambassador to Russia. The book and movie ''Agent of Influence'' were inspired by events in his life. *

John Wycliffe Lowes Forster J. W. L. Forster or, more formally, John Wycliffe Lowes Forster (31 December 1850 – 24 April 1938) was a Canadians, Canadian artist specializing in portrait painting, portraits. Many of his works can be found at the National Gallery of Canad ...

, born in Norval, portrait painter. Many of his works hang in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, Toronto, and Ottawa Parliament Buildings. *

Shannon Crawford Shannon Crawford (born September 12, 1963 in Guelph, Ontario) is a Canadian rower. She won a gold medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), of ...

, Olympic Gold Medallist, rowed to victory as a member of the Women's Eight 1992 crew in Barcelona Spain. Now retired from the sport. *

, author of ''

'', lived in Norval for nine years. * Terry Evans, born in Norval, Olympic Gold Medalist, Middle Weight Wrestling, British Empire Games, London, England, 1934.

References

Mike Filey Mike Filey (October 11, 1941 – July 30, 2022) was a Canadian historian, radio host, journalist and author. He was awarded the Jean Hibbert Memorial Award in 2009 for promoting the city of Toronto and its history. Early life Born in 1941 in ...

. ''Toronto Sketches 5: The Way we Were''. *Halton County Railway Museum *Guelph Radial Line *Statistics Canada 2006 Census Data * F.A.I. 1976 World Speed Records *Ontario Decoys, R.B. Gates 1982 ;Notes

External links

Town of Halton Hills
{{Halton region Neighbourhoods in Halton Hills Populated places on the Credit River