Pickering (

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...

population 99,186) is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

located in

Southern Ontario Southern Ontario is a primary region of the province of Ontario, Canada, the other primary region being Northern Ontario. It is the most densely populated and southernmost region in Canada. The exact northern boundary of Southern Ontario is disp ...

, Canada, immediately east 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 ...

Durham Region The Regional Municipality of Durham (), informally referred to as Durham Region, is a regional municipality in Southern Ontario, Canada. Located east of Toronto and the Regional Municipality of York, Durham forms the east-end of the Greater Toron ...

. Beginning in the 1770s, the area was settled by primarily ethnic British colonists. An increase in population occurred after the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, when the Crown resettled Loyalists and encouraged new immigration. Many of the smaller rural communities have been preserved and function as provincially significant historic sites and museums. The city also includes the development of

Durham Live Durham Live is an entertainment district that is currently under development in the Canadian city of Pickering, Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern ...

, a multi-billion-dollar casino complex.

History

Early period

The present-day Pickering was Aboriginal territory for thousands of years. The

Wyandot Wyandot may refer to: Native American ethnography * Wyandot people, also known as the Huron * Wyandot language * Wyandot religion Places * Wyandot, Ohio, an unincorporated community * Wyandot County, Ohio * Camp Wyandot, a Camp Fire Boys and ...

(called the Huron by Europeans), who spoke an

Iroquoian language The Iroquoian languages are a language family of indigenous peoples of North America. They are known for their general lack of labial consonants. The Iroquoian languages are polysynthetic and head-marking. As of 2020, all surviving Iroquoian ...

, were the historical people living here in the 15th century. Archeological remains of a large village have been found here, known as the Draper Site. Later, the Wyandot moved northwest to

Georgian Bay Georgian Bay (french: Baie Georgienne) is a large bay of Lake Huron, in the Laurentia bioregion. It is located entirely within the borders of Ontario, Canada. The main body of the bay lies east of the Bruce Peninsula and Manitoulin Island. To ...

, where they established their historic homeland. There they encountered French explorers in the early 17th century, followed by missionaries and

fur trader The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of a world fur market in the early modern period, furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the mos ...

s. The first recorded history of this area was made in 1669, when the French

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

François de Salignac de la Mothe-Fénelon François () is a French language, French masculine given name and surname, equivalent to the English name Francis (given name), Francis. People with the given name * Francis I of France, King of France (), known as "the Father and Restorer of ...

noted reaching what he called the

Seneca Seneca may refer to: People and language * Seneca (name), a list of people with either the given name or surname * Seneca people, one of the six Iroquois tribes of North America ** Seneca language, the language of the Seneca people Places Extrat ...

(more likely the

Onondaga Onondaga may refer to: Native American/First Nations * Onondaga people, a Native American/First Nations people and one of the five founding nations of the Iroquois League * Onondaga (village), Onondaga settlement and traditional Iroquois capita ...

) village of Gandatsetiagon, on the shores of

Frenchman's Bay Frenchman's Bay is a body of water in Pickering, Ontario, Canada, believed to be named for François de Salignac de la Mothe-Fénelon. The bay was once land locked before a canal was dug into the sandbar to allow vessels to serve what was then ...

(for whom it would be named). The Onondaga (and the Seneca) were among the Five Nations of the

Iroquois Confederacy The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast North America/ Turtle Island. They were known during the colonial years to ...

. The Onondaga (and other Iroquois) generally occupied territory to the south and west of Lakes Ontario and Erie in present-day New York that extended into Pennsylvania and the Ohio Valley, where they maintained hunting grounds. (The Seneca were located farther west, near Seneca Lake, among the

Finger Lakes The Finger Lakes are a group of eleven long, narrow, roughly north–south lakes located south of Lake Ontario in an area called the ''Finger Lakes region'' in New York, in the United States. This region straddles the northern and transitional ...

. Fenelon wintered at the village and started missionary work with this people.)

Township of Pickering

The British took over Canada in 1763 following defeat of the French in the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

, known in Colonial America as the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

. They likely completed survey of the township about 1776. British colonial settlers were steadily migrating into the area from eastern areas of Canada. There is some controversy over the identity of the earliest European settler in the area. One of the candidates is Mike Duffin, who settled in what later became the Pickering Village (now in Ajax), possibly in the 1770s. The other candidate is Benjamin Wilson of

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

, who probably lived in Pickering for sometime, before moving to

Whitby Whitby is a seaside town, port and civil parish in the Scarborough borough of North Yorkshire, England. Situated on the east coast of Yorkshire at the mouth of the River Esk, Whitby has a maritime, mineral and tourist heritage. Its East Clif ...

in 1794. In the 1780s, the present-day Pickering area was a part of the

Nassau District The Home District was one of four districts of the Province of Quebec created in 1788 in the western reaches of the Montreal District and detached in 1791 to create the new colony of Upper Canada. It was abolished with the adoption of the county ...

of the

Province of Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirteen p ...

. In 1791,

Augustus Jones Augustus Jones ( – November 16, 1836) was an American-born Upper Canadian farmer, land speculator, magistrate, militia captain and surveyor. Jones trained as a surveyor in New York City, and fled as a United Empire Loyalist to Upper Can ...

undertook a survey of the area, establishing the baseline and some of the concessions. The same year, the District was transferred to the newly created province of

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the ...

. In 1792, the district was renamed Home District, and Pickering was established as a

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, Ca ...

. The township was originally called "Edinburgh" but in 1792 was renamed after

Pickering, North Yorkshire Pickering is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Ryedale district in North Yorkshire, England, on the border of the North York Moors National Park. Historic counties of England, Historically part of the North Ridin ...

. Pickering Village, now part of Ajax, emerged as the major population and commercial centre of the Pickering Township in the early 19th century. The conversion of a local trail into the Kingston Road in 1799 contributed greatly to the increased settlement in the area. In 1807,

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...

led by

Timothy Rogers Timothy Rogers (1658–1728) was an English nonconformist minister, known as an author on depression as a sufferer. Life The son of John Rogers (1610–1680), he was born at Barnard Castle, County Durham on 24 May 1658. He was educated at Glas ...

settled in the area, and by 1809, the population of Pickering Township consisted of 180 people, most of whom lived along the

Duffins Creek Duffins Creek is a waterway in the eastern end of the Greater Toronto Area in Ontario, Canada. The watershed of the Duffins Creek is part of the Durham Region (Uxbridge, Pickering and Ajax) and the York Region (Markham and Whitchurch-Stouffville). ...

. In 1811, the Pickering Township became a separate municipality. Several

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...

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 ...

s, taverns, and other businesses operated in the area. 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 ...

, the maintenance of the Kingston Road improved because of the increased military traffic and further contributed to the development of the area. Reesor Mills Altona Ontario Illustrated Historical Atlas of the County of Ontario 1877.JPG , Reesor Mills, Altona in 1877 Pickering Village Ontario - Grand Trunk Railway bridge on Duffins Creek - 1908.png ,

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 ...

bridge on the

in 1908 WhitevaleLibrary.jpg , Historic Whitevale Library File:BentleyHouse,ON.JPG , Benley House, a heritage site in

Brougham Brougham may refer to: Transport * Brougham (carriage), a light four-wheeled horse-drawn carriage * Brougham (car body), an automobile with a similar style Automobile models * Cadillac Brougham, 1987–1992 * Chrysler New Yorker Brougham, c. 1 ...

In the 19th century, several other small communities developed in the Duffins Creek

watershed Watershed is a hydrological term, which has been adopted in other fields in a more or less figurative sense. It may refer to: Hydrology * Drainage divide, the line that separates neighbouring drainage basins * Drainage basin, called a "watershe ...

, within the Pickering Township. These included Whitevale,

Green River Green River may refer to: Rivers Canada * Green River (British Columbia), a tributary of the Lillooet River *Green River, a tributary of the Saint John River, also known by its French name of Rivière Verte *Green River (Ontario), a tributary of ...

, Claremont, Altona, Greenwood, and Balsam. A few communities also developed in the smaller

Carruthers Creek Carruthers Creek may refer to: * Carruthers Creek (Australia), a tributary of Blue Lake Creek, itself a tributary of Snowy River * Carruthers Creek (Canada), a tributary of Lake Ontario {{geodis ...

watershed, including Audley (now part of Ajax), Kinsale, and Salem. In 1849, the village of Dunbarton was established along the Dunbarton Creek. The

reached the Township in 1856. Pickering was represented in the Mackenzie Rebellion of 1837. One of its leaders, Peter Matthews, had been one of the most prominent members of the community. In 1851, the Pickering Township was severed from the York County, and became a part of the newly established Ontario County. In the later decades of the 19th century, a fall in the demand for wheat led to economic decline in the primarily-agricultural township. The township lost over 40% of its population in the second half of the 19th century, and the decline continued in the first half of the 20th century. In the first half of the 20th cenutry, two new communities emerged in the Pickering Township: the cottage community of Pickering Beach and the self-contained community around the federal government-owned

Defence Industries Limited Pickering Works Defence Industries Limited (DIL) Pickering Works was a munitions plant owned by the Government of Canada and operated by DIL during 1941–1945, in the Pickering Township of Ontario. The unincorporated community that developed around the plant was ...

munitions plant. Both areas are now part of Ajax. After the

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, urbanization began in the southern part of Pickering, and later spread to other parts of the Township.

City of Pickering

On 1 January 1974, the Ontario County was dissolved, and the area became part of the

Regional Municipality of Durham The Regional Municipality of Durham (), informally referred to as Durham Region, is a regional municipality in Southern Ontario, Canada. Located east of Toronto and the Regional Municipality of York, Durham forms the east-end of the Greater Toron ...

. The southeastern portion of the Pickering Township, including the Pickering Village and Pickering High School, became part of the independent town of

Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Greek ...

. The rest of the township became the Town of Pickering, which in 2000, became the City of Pickering. In the last quarter of the 20th century, much of the government-owned land in northern Pickering sat idle because of uncertainty over the proposed

Pickering Airport The Pickering Airport Lands were expropriated in 1972 by the Government of Canada with the intention of building a second international airport to serve the city of Toronto, its metropolitan area, and the surrounding region known as the Golden H ...

. That included the land expropriated by the federal government for the airport and the adjacent land expropriated by the provincial government for the proposed Seaton community that would benefit from the airport. The development of Seaton picked up pace in the 21st century, but as of 2022, only 1,549 of the 20,989 planned units had been built. The city also considered the development of a new community called Veraine, to be built in northeastern Pickering. The city also saw a rise in the number of high-rise condos.

Geography

The city covers an area of 231 square kilometres (89 sq mi) with an elevation of 89 metres (292 ft). Toronto,

Markham Markham may refer to: It may also refer to brand of of clothing which originates from South Africa which saw it's establishment in 1873. Biology * Markham's storm-petrel (''Oceanodroma markhami''), a seabird species found in Chile and Colombia * ...

, and

Rouge Park Rouge National Urban Park is a national urban park in Ontario, Canada. The park is centred around the Rouge River and its tributaries in the Greater Toronto Area. The southern portion of the park is situated around the mouth of river in Toron ...

border Pickering on the west; Ajax and Whitby border Pickering on the east;

Uxbridge Uxbridge () is a suburban town in west London and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. Situated west-northwest of Charing Cross, it is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Uxbrid ...

is to the north; and

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border sp ...

forms Pickering's southern boundary.

Communities

The southern part of the city is mainly

suburban A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...

, with

industrial Industrial may refer to: Industry * Industrial archaeology, the study of the history of the industry * Industrial engineering, engineering dealing with the optimization of complex industrial processes or systems * Industrial city, a city dominate ...

areas restricted to the area around

Pickering Nuclear Generating Station Pickering Nuclear Generating Station is a Canadian nuclear power station located on the north shore of Lake Ontario in Pickering, Ontario. It is one of the oldest nuclear power stations in the world and Canada's third-largest, consisting of eight ...

. Most of the suburban areas were built as

subdivisions Subdivision may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Subdivision (metre), in music * ''Subdivision'' (film), 2009 * "Subdivision", an episode of ''Prison Break'' (season 2) * ''Subdivisions'' (EP), by Sinch, 2005 * "Subdivisions" (song), by Rush ...

after

, starting in the area around Frenchman's Bay. Prior to the war, the few suburban areas in the township were the communities of Dunbarton, Fairport Beach, Liverpool Market, and Rouge Hill. Squires Beach, located by the lakeshore in the southeast part of the city, is now a

ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * Ghost Town (1936 film), ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * Ghost Town (1956 film), ''Ghost Town'' ...

as the area was cleared from 1966 to make way for the construction of the

. The only home standing in Squires Beach was built by

in 1842 and relocated to Montgomery Park Road. Squires Beach Road is now cut off from the lake by a waste water treatment plant. The northern part of the municipality is mainly

rural In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are describ ...

, primarily used for

agricultural Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating Plant, plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of Sedentism, sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of Domestication, domesticated species created food ...

purposes. However, a number of residential developments are found in this area, and the locally controversial Seaton area also falls within this part of the city. The primary rural communities in Pickering are Claremont,

, and Whitevale; a number of smaller communities exist throughout northern Pickering, such as Greenwood.

John Diefenbaker John George Diefenbaker ( ; September 18, 1895 – August 16, 1979) was the 13th prime minister of Canada, serving from 1957 to 1963. He was the only Progressive Conservative party leader between 1930 and 1979 to lead the party to an electio ...

, a Prime Minister of Canada, lived in Greenwood for a number of years. The abandoned

of Altona is located there. Cherrywood, another

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

in Pickering, is one of the few areas that are protected within the

Greenbelt A green belt is a policy and land-use zone designation used in land-use planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wild, or agricultural land surrounding or neighboring urban areas. Similar concepts are greenways or green wedges, which hav ...

. The communities of Kinsale in the northeast and Green River on the York-Durham town line are other small communities in Pickering, with a population each of between 50 and 100 people. Most of these communities were founded in the 1700s and 1800s and have churches and historic estates that have been restored through government funding. Dixie is a small rural community situated in rural Pickering, with more contemporary buildings. The film industry has been very active in communities such as Whitevale, since the 1980s, due to the quality of the historical buildings and untouched nature of the landscape. The television shows ''Hannibal'' (2013–2015) ''Suits'' (2011–2019), and ''American Gods'' (2017) have filmed extensively in Whitevale and in other locations in Pickering. Nautical Village is located at Frenchman's Bay and features entertainment, a playground, a boardwalk, restaurants, shops and an art gallery. Hamlet of Cherrywood.jpg, Cherrywood Historic Whitevale Craftworks Store.jpg, Whitevale Craftworks Store Green River sign.jpg, Green River Greenwood Pickering.jpg, Country road to Greenwood The city is divided into following neighbourhoods: * South Urban Pickering ** Rosebank ** West Shore ** Bay Ridges ** Brock Industrial ** Rougemount ** Woodlands ** Dunbarton ** City Centre ** Village East, the eastern part of the former Pickering Village municipality ** Highbush ** Amberlea ** Brock Ridge ** Liverpool ** Rouge Park ** Duffin Heights * Seaton Urban Area ** Lamoureaux ** Brock-Taunton ** Mount Pleasant ** Wilson Meadows ** Thompson's Corners ** Innovation Corridor * Rural Pickering ** Claremont & Area ** Greenwood, Kinsale & Estate Residential Clusters ** Other Rural Area

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; french: Statistique Canada), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and cultur ...

, Pickering had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. The city has estimated that by 2031, Pickering will be home to 131,608 residents. In 2021, 16.5% of the population was under 15 years of age, and 16.6% was 65 years and over. The median age in Pickering was 40.8 years. Immigrants made up 36.3% of the population in 2021. The top places of birth of the immigrant population were

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 so ...

(11.2%),

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

(8.2%),

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

(7.9%),

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

(7.5%),

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

(7.2%), the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

(7.0%),

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

(6.6%),

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

(3.7%),

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

(2.7%),

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

(2.5%),

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

(2.4%), and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

(1.7%). The median total income of households in 2020 for Pickering was $118,000.

Ethnicity

As per the 2021 census, the most common ethnic or cultural origins in Pickering are English (14.0%), Irish (11.5%), Scottish (11.0%), Canadian (10.6%), Indian (9.6%), Italian (5.6%), German (5.0%), Jamaican (4.3%), Filipino (4.3%), Chinese (3.9%), British Isles (3.6%), Pakistani (3.5%), Sri Lankan (3.3%), and French (3.3%).

Indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

people made up 1.1% of the population, mostly

First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...

(0.5%) and

Métis The Métis ( ; Canadian ) are Indigenous peoples who inhabit Canada's three Prairie Provinces, as well as parts of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and the Northern United States. They have a shared history and culture which derives ...

(0.5%). Ethnocultural backgrounds in the town included

European European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...

(47.0%),

South Asian South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geography, geographical and culture, ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, ...

(21.2%),

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...

(11.4%),

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

(4.1%),

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...

(3.0%),

West Asian Western Asia, West Asia, or Southwest Asia, is the westernmost subregion of the larger geographical region of Asia, as defined by some academics, UN bodies and other institutions. It is almost entirely a part of the Middle East, and includes An ...

(2.1%),

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

(1.7%), and

Latin American Latin Americans ( es, Latinoamericanos; pt, Latino-americanos; ) are the citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their diasporas are multi-eth ...

(1.5%). *Note: Totals greater than 100% due to multiple origin responses.

Religion

In 2021, 53.7% of the population identified as

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

, with

Catholics 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 ...

(25.7%) making up the largest denomination, followed by

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

(3.9%),

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pa ...

(3.8%),

United Church A united church, also called a uniting church, is a church formed from the merger or other form of church union of two or more different Protestant Christian denominations. Historically, unions of Protestant churches were enforced by the state ...

(3.0%), and other denominations. 23.2% of the population reported no religious affiliation. Others identified as

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

(12.6%),

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

(8.3%),

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

(0.8%),

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

(0.5%), and with other religions.

Language

The 2021 census found

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

to be the

mother tongue A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongu ...

of 69.2% of the population. This was followed by

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nati ...

(3.0%), Tagalog (1.8%),

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

(1.2%),

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

(1.1%),

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 ...

(1.1%),

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

(1.0%),

Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub- ...

(1.0%),

Dari Dari (, , ), also known as Dari Persian (, ), is the variety of the Persian language spoken in Afghanistan. Dari is the term officially recognised and promoted since 1964 by the Afghan government for the Persian language,Lazard, G.Darī � ...

(0.9%),

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

(0.8%), and

Cantonese Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding are ...

(0.8%). Of the official languages, 98.6% of the population reported knowing English and 7.3% French.

Economy

Pickering is home to the

, an eight-reactor facility with a capacity of 4,120 megawatts. The first station, Pickering A, opened with four reactors in 1971.

Ontario Power Generation Ontario Power Generation Inc. (OPG) is a Crown corporations of Canada, Crown corporation and "government business enterprise" that is responsible for approximately half of the electricity generation in the province of Ontario, Canada. It is w ...

, the plants' operator, is the largest single employer in the city. In 2001, the wind-powered

OPG 7 Commemorative Turbine The OPG 7 Gomberg Turbine was a Vestas model V80-1.8 MW wind turbine in Pickering, Ontario. At the time of its construction, it was one of the largest wind turbines in North America, a 117-metre high wind machine commissioned in 2001 and designed ...

was opened on the generating station site. The nuclear power plant is expected to start decommissioning in 2024. A number of manufacturers are also located in the city. Major employers include Yorkville Sound (audio equipment), the Canadian headquarters of

Purdue Pharma Purdue Pharma L.P., formerly the Purdue Frederick Company, is an American privately held pharmaceutical company founded by John Purdue Gray. It was owned principally by members of the Sackler family as descendants of Mortimer and Raymond Sackler ...

(pharmaceuticals and health & beauty products), Hubbell Canada (electrical equipment), PSB Speakers – Lenbrook (stereo equipment) and Eco-Tec Inc. (industrial water purification and chemical recovery systems). Pickering is a founding member of the Durham Strategic Energy Alliance or DSEA. The nucleus of the DSEA is primarily Pickering businesses, such as Ontario Power Generation, Veridian, Siemens/Trench, Tetra Tech WEI, AECL, Intellimeter, Areva and Eco-Tec Inc. Other notable organizations with headquarters in Pickering include:

Municipal Property Assessment Corporation The Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) administers property assessments and appeals of assessment in the Provinces of Canada, province of Ontario, Canada. MPAC determines the Assessor (property), assessed value for all real estate, p ...

. MPAC performs value assessment for property tax purposes for all municipalities in Ontario. In 2012 Search Engine People, Canada's largest Internet-marketing company, moved to Pickering's downtown. The

International Institute of Business Analysis The International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA) is a professional association formed in October 2003 with the stated goal of supporting and promoting the discipline of business analysis. IIBA offers help and information to business analys ...

is also headquartered in Pickering. In 2006, ''Profit'' magazine recognized Pickering as one of the top 10 cities in Canada for growing a business. In 2013, the Region of Durham released its Business Count (Employment Survey), which indicated that Pickering has the most jobs amongst Durham Region municipalities, with 29,000+ positions. This figure represents a near 1/3 ratio of jobs to residents. With the implementation of Seaton and downtown intensification, the Province of Ontario's planning anticipates the creation of 40,000 new jobs for Pickering over the next two decades. Pickering has planned a downtown intensification program, which includes new condominium developments around the Pickering GO station and Pickering Town Centre.

Pickering Town Centre Pickering Town Centre (PTC) is a large regional shopping mall located in Pickering, Ontario, Canada. Opened in 1972 as Pickering Sheridan Mall, the mall has over 150 stores. History The mall opened in 1972 as the Sheridan Mall with 80 stores. Its ...

is a two-story mall located in Pickering. An enclosed pedestrian bridge constructed over the 14 lanes of highway 401 was a recent development that has contributed to Pickering's push for more density downtown. The project

in south Pickering received approval for construction in 2017. It will include a water park, film studio, five star hotel, performing arts theater and possibly a casino.

Government

The city council consists of a mayor, three regional councillors, and three city councillors. The mayor and regional councillors sit on the council and also represent the city at Durham Regional Council. The city councillors sit on city council only. Pickering is divided into three wards of roughly equal population, with one city councillor and one regional councillor elected to represent each ward, in what are known as

single-member district A single-member district is an electoral district represented by a single officeholder. It contrasts with a multi-member district, which is represented by multiple officeholders. Single-member districts are also sometimes called single-winner vo ...

s. The current mayor, Kevin Ashe, has held the mayoralty since 2022.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Transit service began in Pickering with the Bay Shores dial-a-bus, which began in 1970–1973. In 2001 Pickering Transit merged with former

Ajax Transit {{more citations needed, date=August 2021 Ajax Transit was a public transit operator in the Town of Ajax, Ontario, Canada. Ajax Transit and Pickering Transit were merged on September 4, 2001, to form the Ajax Pickering Transit Authority (APTA). ...

to form the Ajax-Pickering Transit Authority (APTA). In 2006, the regional transit system

Durham Region Transit Durham Region Transit (DRT) is the regional public transit operator in Durham Region, Ontario, Canada, east of Toronto. Its headquarters are at 605 Rossland Rd East in Whitby, Ontario, and there are regional centres in Ajax, Whitby, and Oshawa. I ...

took over operations in the

Durham Regional Municipality The Regional Municipality of Durham (), informally referred to as Durham Region, is a regional municipality in Southern Ontario, Canada. Located east of Toronto and the Regional Municipality of York, Durham forms the east-end of the Greater Toron ...

. The Pickering GO station offers public rail transit on an east–west axis. In 2012, Pickering's landmark bridge opened – connecting the Pickering GO station to the city's downtown core. Durham Regional Roads serve the city, north and south.

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 ...

runs near the south end of Pickering and

Highway 407 The following highways are numbered 407: Canada * Manitoba Provincial Road 407 * Newfoundland and Labrador Route 407 * Ontario Highway 407 Costa Rica * National Route 407 Iceland * Route 407 (Iceland) Italy * State road 407 Japan * Japa ...

ETR runs through the mid-north of the city.

was a planned second major airport for the Greater Toronto Area. Lands were expropriated in north Pickering in 1972 but the plan was stopped. As of 2021 no firm plans for the airport exist.

Emergency services

Police services in Pickering are provided by the

Durham Regional Police The Durham Regional Police Service (DRPS) is the police service operated by and serving the Regional Municipality of Durham, Ontario, Canada. The force serves the following local municipalities, with a combined population of 706,200. * Pickering ...

from a division office located in the eastern section of the city. Officers from this location also patrol Ajax. Pickering Fire Services operates from four stations with a force of all full-time firefighters. Claremont Fire Hall is now fully staffed by full-time firefighters 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Ambulance/emergency medical services are provided by Durham Region.

Education

Pickering is served by the

Durham District School Board The Durham District School Board (DDSB) is a public school board in the province of Ontario, Canada. The board serves most of the Regional Municipality of Durham, except for schools within the Municipality of Clarington, which instead belong t ...

, the

Durham Catholic District School Board The Durham Catholic District School Board (DCDSB, known as English-language Separate District School Board No. 45 prior to 1999) is a Catholic school board located in Durham Region, east of Toronto, Ontario. It currently runs 39 elementary scho ...

, the

Conseil scolaire Viamonde The Conseil scolaire Viamonde (CSV) is a public-secular French first language school board, and manages elementary and secondary schools in the Ontario Peninsula and the Greater Golden Horseshoe. The school board operates 41 elementary schools and ...

and the

Conseil scolaire de district catholique Centre-Sud Conseil scolaire catholique MonAvenir ( en, My Future Catholic School Board) is a Roman Catholic French first language public- separate school board that manages elementary and secondary schools in the Greater Golden Horseshoe. The school board o ...

. As of early 2007, the public board operates 17 elementary schools and two secondary schools,

Dunbarton High School Dunbarton High School is located in Pickering, Ontario, Canada, and is part of the Durham District School Board. The school has students in grades 9-12 and offers a wide range of academic and extracurricular activities. Their mascot is the Sparta ...

and

Pine Ridge Secondary School Pine Ridge Secondary School is a public secondary school located in Pickering, Ontario operating within the Durham District School Board. It serves students in grades 9 through 12. Location The school is situated outside a natural conservation ...

( Pickering High School was previously located in Pickering, but was transferred to Ajax when the city boundaries were changed). The Catholic board runs eight elementary schools and one secondary school, Saint Mary Catholic Secondary School. The French public school board operates École Ronald-Marion, which serves both elementary and secondary students. Blaisdale

Montessori The Montessori method of education involves children's natural interests and activities rather than formal teaching methods. A Montessori classroom places an emphasis on hands-on learning and developing real-world skills. It emphasizes indepen ...

School, a private school chain, has several locations throughout Pickering serving children from preschool age to grade 8. There is also a private elementary and junior high school there called Montessori Learning Centre. Also serving the Durham Region is Durham Secondary Academy and Middle School, an inspected private high school and middle school for grades 5 to 12. In September 2012, the Durham College/Centennial College Joint Learning Site opened at the north terminus of the pedestrian bridge. The Joint Learning Site offers primarily graduate certificate programs, with a number of complementary courses and classes. At the time of its opening, it was the only public post-secondary institution in the Province of Ontario with a direct connection to public transit.

Gallery

File:Nautical Village Millennium Square, Pickering.jpg, Boats and benches by Frenchman's Bay by Millennium Square File:Nautical Village by Lake Ontario and Frenchman's Bay, Pickering.jpg, Nautical Village File:Pickering Nuclear Plant & Wind Turbine from Beachfront Park.JPG, Wind Turbine and Pickering Nuclear Plant from Beachfront Park File:Entrance to St. Isaac Jogues Church, Pickering.JPG, St. Isaac Jogues Church on Finch Avenue File:Andreas Drenters Pickering Pioneer Family.jpg, Pickering Pioneer Family by Andreas Drenters File:Pickering Museum.jpg, Pickering Museum File:Chestnut Hill Developments Recreation Complex Arena - Pickering, ON.jpg, Chestnut Hill Developments Recreation Complex

Notable people

Andy Andreoff Andy Andreoff (born May 17, 1991) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player for the Bridgeport Islanders of the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League (NHL). Andreoff was selec ...

, NHL player *

Andrea Lewis Andrea Desiree Lewis (born August 15, 1985) is a Canadian actress and singer known for her role as Hazel Aden in the long-running TV series '' Degrassi: The Next Generation''. Television and film Lewis appeared with Diahann Carroll in the biop ...

, singer, actor and songwriter *

Bree Williamson Bree Williamson Roberts (born December 28, 1979) is a Canadian actress. Career After graduating from Bayview Glen School, she completed her education at the University of Toronto. She played the role of Jessica Buchanan on the ABC soap opera ''O ...

, actress best known for her role as Jessica Buchanan on soap opera ''One Life to Live'' *

Bromley Armstrong Bromley Lloyd Armstrong, (February 9, 1926 – August 17, 2018) was a Canadian civil rights leader. He was active in the nascent civil rights era in Canada, beginning with his arrival in 1947. Armstrong was a committed union activist who worked t ...

, civil rights activist *

Cory Joseph Cory Ephram Joseph (born August 20, 1991) is a Canadian professional basketball player for the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He plays the point guard position and is also the captain of the Canadian national team. ...

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

player for the

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

Chris Van Vliet Christopher Van Vliet (born May 19, 1983) is a Canadian television/radio personality, YouTuber, professional film critic, and entrepreneur currently living in Studio City, Los Angeles. He is an entertainment reporter for FOX affiliate WSVN in ...

, journalist * Craig Hutchison, Olympic swimmer *

Dale Goldhawk Dale Goldhawk (born ) is a Canadians, Canadian broadcaster, journalist, and investigative reporter. Goldhawk graduated from the journalism program at Ryerson Polytechnical Institute in 1967 and began his career as a reporter for the ''Toronto Te ...

, journalist and consumer rights advocate *

Daniel David Palmer Daniel David Palmer (March 7, 1845 – October 20, 1913) was a Canadian American chiropractor who was the founder of chiropractic. Palmer was born in Pickering, Ontario, but emigrated to the United States in 1865. He was also an avid proponent ...

, the founder of

chiropractic Chiropractic is a form of alternative medicine concerned with the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of mechanical disorders of the musculoskeletal system, especially of the spine. It has esoteric origins and is based on several pseudosci ...

* Denis T. O'Connor, former Roman Catholic archbishop of Toronto *

Drake Caggiula Drake Caggiula (; born June 20, 1994) is a Canadian professional ice hockey left wing currently playing for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Ho ...

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

player *

Ernie Coombs Ernest "Ernie" Arthur Coombs, CM (November 26, 1927 – September 18, 2001) was a US-born Canadian children's entertainer who starred in the Canadian television series ''Mr. Dressup''. His career began as an assistant puppeteer to Fred Roger ...

, children's entertainer, better known as

Mr. Dressup ''Mr. Dressup'' is a Canadian children's television series, starring Ernie Coombs, a former understudy of Fred Rogers, in the title role. It originally ran on CBC from 1967 to 1996, soon becoming an iconic presence in Canadian media. Producti ...

Glenn Clark Glenn Clark (born December 1, 1969 in Pickering, Ontario) is the head coach of the Albany FireWolves (previously the New England Black Wolves) and the former head coach of the Toronto Rock of the National Lacrosse League. He was also a former N ...

, former

National Lacrosse League The National Lacrosse League (NLL) is a men's professional box lacrosse league in North America. The league is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The NLL currently has fifteen teams: ten in the United Stat ...

player and former head coach of the

Toronto Rock The Toronto Rock are a professional box lacrosse franchise based in Hamilton, Ontario, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the North Division of the National Lacrosse League (NLL). The team was the first Canadian franchise in the NLL. ...

Glenn Healy Glenn Healy (born August 23, 1962) is a Canadian former ice hockey goaltender who played for 15 years in the National Hockey League. Prior to that, he was a member of the Western Michigan University hockey team, and 1985 graduate of the school. H ...

, former NHL goalie, member of 1994 Stanley Cup Champion New York Rangers *

Ilona Duczynska ''Ilona'' is a Hungarian female given name, the traditional name of the Queen of the Fairies in Magyar folklore. Its etymology is uncertain. A common theory is that Ilona is cognate with the Greek given name ''Helen''. Diminutive forms include ...

, Polish-Hungarian communist revolutionary, active in Hungary, Austria, England and Canada *

Jaime Peters Jaime Bryant Piet Peters (born 4 May 1987) is a Canadian former professional soccer player who played as a right wing-back. He represented Canada at various levels. He was a member of the U20 team at the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup. Youth career ...

, professional soccer player who plays midfield for Ipswich Town in the United Kingdom *

Karl Polanyi Karl Paul Polanyi (; hu, Polányi Károly ; 25 October 1886 – 23 April 1964),''Encyclopædia Britannica'' (Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc. 2003) vol 9. p. 554 was an Austro-Hungarian economic anthropologist and politician, best known ...

, professor of economics at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

and author of '' The Great Transformation'' * Kristen Holden-Ried, actor *

Laura Creavalle Laura Cordelia Creavalle is a Guyanese-born Canadian/American professional female bodybuilder. Early life and education Laura Creavalle was born in 1959 in British Guiana. She migrated to Canada at the age of 13. She attended both Industrial Hig ...

, Guyanese-born Canadian/American professional bodybuilder *

Manafest Christopher Scott Greenwood (born July 19, 1979), known by his stage name Manafest, is a Canadian Christian rapper and rock artist from Pickering, Ontario, Canada. He has won multiple awards for the GMA Canada Covenant Awards, GMA Dove Awards, ...

, Christian rap rock musician *

Mark Holland Mark Holland (born October 16, 1974) is a Canadian politician who serves as the current leader of the Government in the House of Commons. In the 2004 federal election he was elected to the House of Commons of Canada as a candidate of the Liber ...

, politician *

Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Furay ...

, rock singer-songwriter, spent part of his early years in Pickering, living on Brock Road *

Nikkita Holder Nikkita Holder (born May 7, 1987 in East York, Ontario) is a Canadian track and field athlete of Barbadian people, Barbadian descent who specialises in the 100 metres hurdles. Holder won the bronze medal at the 2015 Pan American Games in her home ...

, Olympic track and field athlete *

Paul Peschisolido Paolo Pasquale Peschisolido (born 25 May 1971), commonly known as Paul Peschisolido, is a Canadian soccer manager and former player. Peschisolido was manager of English League Two club Burton Albion from May 2009 until March 2012. A forward, Pes ...

, professional soccer player who played in England as a striker and was the Manager of

Burton Albion F.C. Burton Albion Football Club is a professional association football club in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club moved its home groun ...

Perdita Felicien Perdita Felicien (born August 29, 1980) is a Canadian retired hurdler. Felicien is the 2003 World champion in the 100 metres hurdles and 2004 World indoor champion in the 60 metres hurdles. She also won silver medals at the 2007 World Champions ...

, Olympic track and field athlete *

Sarah Slean Sarah Hope Slean (born June 21, 1977) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, composer and musician. She has released eleven albums to date (including EPs and live albums). She is also a poet, visual artist, and occasional actress. Career Major recordi ...

, singer *

Sean Avery Sean Christopher Avery (born April 10, 1980) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. During his career in the National Hockey League (NHL), he played left wing for the Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings, New York Rangers and Dalla ...

, former

forward *

Shawn Mendes Shawn Peter Raul Mendes (; born August 8, 1998) is a Canadian pop singer. He gained a following in 2013, when he posted song covers on the video sharing platform Vine. The following year, he caught the attention of artist manager Andrew Gert ...

, singer and songwriter *

Shelley-Ann Brown Shelley-Ann Camille Brown (born March 15, 1980) is a former Canadian bobsledder who has competed since 2006. She was born in Scarborough, Ontario to Jamaican immigrant parents, and also raised in nearby Pickering, Ontario. Brown was recruited to ...

, Olympic silver-medalist *

Sheri Kershaw Sheri Kershaw (born Sheri Pogmore in 1953) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. From 1983 to 2003 she was married to Nik Kershaw. She toured extensively with him and sang backing vocals on his early albums, achieving a No. 3 singles hit with his son ...

, Canadian musician, singer and songwriter * Spider Jones, former professional boxer, media/radio personality, currently with

CFRB CFRB (1010 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is owned by Bell Media and carries a News/Talk radio format. Its studios and offices are in the Entertainment District at 250 Richmond Street West. CFRB is a clea ...

radio * Tony Sharpe, Olympic bronze medalist in the 4 x 100 metre relay at the 1984 Summer Olympics *

Tyler Stewart Tyler Joseph Stewart (born September 21, 1967) is the drummer for the Canadian music group Barenaked Ladies. Role in Barenaked Ladies Stewart met Steven Page, Ed Robertson, and Jim Creeggan at the Waterloo Busker Carnival in Waterloo, Ontario, C ...

Barenaked Ladies Barenaked Ladies is a Canadian rock band formed in 1988 in Scarborough, Ontario. The band developed a following in Canada, with their self-titled 1991 cassette becoming the first independent release to be certified gold in Canada. They reach ...

drummer/singer *

Yannick Carter Yannick Carter (born February 2, 1984) is a former professional Canadian football linebacker. He was drafted in the third round of the 2007 CFL Draft by the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Carter also played 4 seasons with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. He pla ...

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

linebacker and special teamer for the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Tim Hortons Fiel ...

In popular culture

Film

* The 1957 CBC/Hollywood production of the classic television show ''

Hawkeye and the Last of the Mohicans ''The Last of the Mohicans'', later retitled ''Hawkeye and the Last of the Mohicans'' is a 1957 historical drama television series made for syndication by ITC Entertainment and Normandie Productions. It ran for one season of 39 half-hour monochro ...

'' was filmed in Pickering. A farm at the corner of Valley Farm Rd. and 3rd Concession, owned by Arthur Gottlieb, was the setting for the 25-episode series. * The 1979 film ''

The Black Stallion The Black Stallion, known as the Black or Shêtân, is the title character from author Walter Farley's bestselling series about the Arab stallion and his young owner, Alec Ramsay. The series chronicles the story of a Sheikh's prized stallion a ...

'' was shot at a farm on Sideline 34 in north Pickering near Altona. * The Canadian television show ''

Paradise Falls ''Paradise Falls'' is a weekly soap opera television series which aired nationally on the Showcase channel in Canada, starting in 2001. It was filmed in the summer cottage community of Muskoka, Ontario. Like many major soap operas, sex is a dom ...

'' first season was filmed in the village of Whitevale, as was

David Cronenberg David Paul Cronenberg (born March 15, 1943) is a Canadian film director, screenwriter, and actor. He is one of the principal originators of what is commonly known as the body horror genre, with his films exploring visceral bodily transformation ...

's film '' The Dead Zone''. * The 1994 comedy ''

The Ref ''The Ref'' (''Hostile Hostages'' in some countries) is a 1994 American black comedy film directed by Ted Demme, starring Denis Leary, Judy Davis, Kevin Spacey and Glynis Johns. Plot On Christmas Eve in an affluent Connecticut hamlet, Lloyd and ...

'', with

Denis Leary Denis Colin Leary (born August 18, 1957) is an American actor and comedian. A native of Massachusetts, Leary first came to prominence as a stand-up comedian, especially through appearances on MTV (including the comedic song "Asshole (song), Assh ...

and

Kevin Spacey Kevin Spacey Fowler (born July 26, 1959) is an American actor. He began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s, obtaining supporting roles before gaining a leading man status in film and television. Spacey has received various accolades ...

, was filmed in part at Port Pickering Marina, on Frenchman's Bay. * The 1995 family/adventure film ''

Salt Water Moose ''Salt Water Moose'' is a 1996 Canadian family film directed by Stuart Margolin. Filmed in Toronto and in Nova Scotia, it stars Timothy Dalton, Lolita Davidovich, Johnny Morina, and Katharine Isabelle. Plot The plot revolves around two kids who ...

'', starring

Timothy Dalton Timothy Leonard Dalton Leggett (; born 21 March 1946) is a British actor. Beginning his career on stage, he made his film debut as Philip II of France in the 1968 historical drama ''The Lion in Winter''. He gained international prominence as ...

and

Lolita Davidovitch Lolita Davidovich ( sr-Latn, Lolita Davidović, italic=unset; born July 15, 1961) is a Canadian-born film and television actress, best known for portraying Blaze Starr in the 1989 film ''Blaze (1989 film), Blaze'', for which she received a Chicag ...

, was filmed in and around Frenchman's Bay. * The 1998 comedy/action film ''

The Big Hit ''The Big Hit'' is a 1998 American action comedy film directed by Hong Kong filmmaker Che-Kirk Wong, and stars Mark Wahlberg, Lou Diamond Phillips, Christina Applegate, Bokeem Woodbine, Antonio Sabàto Jr., China Chow, Avery Brooks, Lainie Kazan, ...

'', with

Mark Wahlberg Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg (born June 5, 1971), former stage name Marky Mark, is an American actor, businessman, and former rapper. He has received multiple accolades, including a BAFTA Award, and nominations for two Academy Awards, three ...

Lou Diamond Phillips Louis Diamond Phillips ( born Upchurch; February 17, 1962) is a Filipino-American actor and film director. His breakthrough came when he starred as Ritchie Valens in the biographical drama film '' La Bamba'' (1987). For ''Stand and Deliver'' (198 ...

, Avery Brooks, Christina Applegate and

Elliott Gould Elliott Gould (; né Goldstein; born August 29, 1938) is an American actor. He began acting in Hollywood films during the 1960s. Elliott's breakthrough role was in the ''Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice'' (1969), for which he received a nomination f ...

, was partly filmed in Pickering near Petticoat Creek. * The 2003 two-part mini-series ''

Lives of the Saints A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian hagiographies might ...

'', based on

Nino Ricci Nino Pio Ricci (born 1959) is a Canadian novelist who lives in Toronto, Ontario.Nino Ricci's
...

's award-winning trilogy co-starring

Sophia Loren Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (; born 20 September 1934), known professionally as Sophia Loren ( , ), is an Italian actress. She was named by the American Film Institute as one of the greatest female stars of Classical Hollywood ci ...

, filmed scenes on a farm just north of Pickering. * Pickering Museum Village has been used as a setting in ''

Road to Avonlea ''Road to Avonlea'' is a Canadian television series first broadcast in Canada between January 7, 1990, and March 31, 1996, as part of the ''CBC Family Hour'' anthology series, and in the United States starting on March 5, 1990. It was created b ...

'', ''

Little Men ''Little Men,'' or ''Life at Plumfield with Jo's Boys,'' is a children's novel by American author Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888), which was first published in 1871 by Roberts Brothers. The book reprises characters from her 1868–69 two-volume ...

'', and the films ''

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 ...

'' and '' Lantern Hill''. * The final scene in ''Boondock Saints 2: All Saints' Day'' was filmed in Pickering.

TV

* A television adaptation of ''

Jack Reacher Jack Reacher is the protagonist of a series of crime thriller novels by British author Lee Child. In the stories, Jack Reacher was a major in the US Army's military police. Having left the Army at age 36, Reacher roams the United States, t ...

'' was partially filmed in North Pickering

Literature

*Wood, William Robertson (1911). ''Past years in Pickering: Sketches of the History of the Community''. Retrieved at the website "Our Roots – Nos Racines", University of Calgary/Université Laval.

Notes

References

External links

* {{Coord, 43.8354, N, 79.0890, W, type:city_region:CA-ON, display=title Cities in Ontario Lower-tier municipalities in Ontario Populated places on Lake Ontario in Canada Populated places established in 1791 1791 establishments in Canada