Omemee is a community within the city of

Kawartha Lakes Kawartha Lakes (Canada 2021 Census, 2021 population: 79,247) is a List of municipalities in Ontario , single-tier municipality in Central Ontario, Canada. Though structured as a single-tier municipality, Kawartha Lakes is the size of a typica ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, formerly known as Victoria County. The community had a population of 1,247 in the

Canada 2011 Census The 2011 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population on May 10, 2011. Statistics Canada, an agency of the Canadian government, conducts a nationwide census every five years. In 2011, it consisted of a mandatory short for ...

. It is located between the city of

Peterborough Peterborough ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in the City of Peterborough district in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The city is north of London, on the River Nene. A ...

and the community of Lindsay. Lindsay is the largest population centre in the city of Kawartha Lakes, and serves as the administrative centre as it did with Victoria County.

History

The community that grew up around William Cottingham's mills on the Pigeon River was first called Williamstown and then Metcalfe. In 1857 the community was renamed Omemee, for the Omemee tribe, which once hunted in the area. The word means

pigeon Columbidae is a bird family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with small heads, relatively short necks and slender bills that in some species feature fleshy ceres. ...

in the

Mississauga Mississauga is a Canadian city in the province of Ontario. Situated on the north-western shore of Lake Ontario in the Regional Municipality of Peel, it borders Toronto (Etobicoke) to the east, Brampton to the north, Milton to the northwest, ...

language, and is traditionally spelled “omiimii”. The construction of the Port Hope, Lindsay and Beaverton Railway in 1857 (when the town also acquired a post office) fostered the growth of the community, which became a thriving shipping point for timber and grain. Until the 1860s, Omemee competed with Lindsay as the largest town in Victoria County. At its zenith in the late 1800s, Omemee had a grist mill, two sawmills, a tannery, a foundry, a shingle mill, a cloth mill, three churches, four hotels, an elementary and secondary school, and a newspaper. As Ontario’s economy shifted away from agriculture and surrounding towns grew, the industrial section of Omemee declined until, 100 years later, only the Regal Stationery Company remained (the factory has since closed). In late 2014, Omemee’s Youngtown museum closed for good and shipped its content to neighbouring town Lindsay for display. In August 2016, Omemee was featured on Canadian comedian

Jonny Harris Jonathan Harris (born 22 September 1975) is a Canadian actor and comedian from Newfoundland and Labrador.Still Standing'' program. Filmed at Thanksgiving the year prior, in the town's city hall, the episode focused on Neil Young and his childhood friend, taking rifle shooting lessons from the town doctor and going adventure diving in a swimming pool.

Education

Omemee has two public schools: Lady Eaton Elementary (kindergarten to grade 3), and Scott Young (c. 1969 grades 4 to 8). Scott Young Public School (c. 1993) was named after Scott Young, a journalist and author of many books, and father of musician Neil Young. In 2015 due to enrollment decline in Scott Young Middle school, “to the point where both schools were below 50 per cent Ministry of Education identified capacity”, the Trillium Lakelands District School Board moved the overflow of grade 4’s from Lady Eaton over to Scott Young. Then in late 2016 it was announced that Lady Eaton Elementary school will close for good in June 2018. Though Lady Eaton is to be closed, there are plans to keep the daycare open to the public: “the board anwork with the Omemee Children’s Centre in the hopes of moving the daycare to Scott Young”.

Legacy

The

ghost town A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...

of Omemee,

North Dakota North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...

, was named after the Ontario Omemee, as the former's first post master hailed from the latter. In 1970,

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young Crosby, Stills & Nash (CSN) was a folk rock Supergroup (music), supergroup comprising the American singer-songwriters David Crosby and Stephen Stills and the English-American singer-songwriter Graham Nash. When joined by the Canadian singer-so ...

released ''

Déjà Vu ''Déjà vu'' ( , ; "already seen") is the phenomenon of feeling like one has lived through the present situation in the past.Schnider, Armin. (2008). ''The Confabulating Mind: How the Brain Creates Reality''. Oxford University Press. pp. 167–1 ...

'' with a recording of the song " Helpless". The song refers to Omemee, Neil Young's hometown: “There is a town in north Ontario ... All my changes were there”.

Notable people

Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian and American singer-songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, forming the folk rock group Buffalo Springfield. Since the begi ...

, musician, during his childhood and since 2021. * Scott Young, writer and sportscaster, father of Neil Young owned a farm property during his second period back in the area. * Lady Eaton: Flora McRae Eaton, wife of Sir John Craig Eaton, the president and heir of the

Eaton's The T. Eaton Company Limited, later known as Eaton's, was a Canadian department store chain that was once the largest in the country. It was founded in 1869 in Toronto by Timothy Eaton, an immigrant from what is now Northern Ireland. Eaton's g ...

department store chain in Canada, during her childhood. The Eaton family donated many buildings to Omemee, including Coronation Hall (

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. George w ...

), Trinity United Church Manse, and also the organ for Trinity United church. Lady Eaton Elementary School was named in her honour. * Jules Sobrian, is a medical doctor, competitive marksman and author, who immigrated to Canada at the age of 21 and resides in Omemee, Ontario. Sobrian began shooting competitively at Hart House Revolver Club at the University of Toronto while studying medicine. He has competed for Canada in pistol-shooting events at four Olympic Games. His most noteworthy contribution to Omemee was the village doctor for almost 50 years. *

Charles Norris Cochrane Charles Norris Cochrane (August 21, 1889 – November 23, 1945) was a Canadian historian and philosopher who taught at the University of Toronto. He is known for his writings about the interaction between ancient Rome and emerging Christianity. E ...

, the historian and philosopher, was born there."Charles Norris Cochrane"
''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' * Walter H. Cottingham, general manager and later president of

Sherwin-Williams Sherwin-Williams is an American paints and coatings company based in Cleveland, Ohio. It is primarily engaged in the manufacture, distribution, and sale of paints, coatings, floorcoverings, and related products with operations in over 120 coun ...

References

{{authority control Former villages in Ontario Communities in Kawartha Lakes