Selwyn, Ontario
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Selwyn is 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 ...
in central-eastern
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 ...
, located in
Peterborough County Peterborough County is located in Southern Ontario, Canada. The county seat is Peterborough, which is independent of the county. The southern section of the county is mix of agriculture, urban and lakefront properties. The northern section of th ...
. Formerly known as Smith-Ennismore-Lakefield, the township passed a by-law changing its name to Selwyn in 2012."Smith-Ennismore-Lakefield Township to be renamed Selwyn Township"
''
Peterborough Examiner ''The Peterborough Examiner'' is a newspaper that services Peterborough, Ontario and area. The paper started circulation in 1847, and is currently owned by Torstar and operated by its Metroland division. Between 1942 and 1955, it was edited by Can ...
'', December 12, 2012.
The change became official on January 15, 2013.


History

On January 1, 1998, Ennismore and Smith Townships were merged to form the Township of Smith-Ennismore. On January 1, 2001, a Minister's Order created the township in its current form by amalgamating the formerly independent Village of Lakefield with the Township of Smith-Ennismore and part of
Douro–Dummer Douro-Dummer is a township in central-eastern Ontario, Canada, in Peterborough County along the Trent-Severn Waterway. It was formed on January 1, 1998, through the amalgamation of Douro and Dummer Townships. The township is the site of drumlin ...
Township. On December 11, 2012 the township council voted to select a new name after
Canada Post Canada Post Corporation (french: Société canadienne des postes), trading as Canada Post (french: Postes Canada), is a Crown corporation that functions as the primary postal operator in Canada. Originally known as Royal Mail Canada (the opera ...
notified many residents that addresses would have to be changed to reflect the municipality due to a phasing out of its
rural route Rural delivery service refers to services for the delivery of mail to rural areas. In many countries, rural mail delivery follows different rules and practices from that in urban areas. For example, in some areas rural delivery may require homeow ...
system. By a vote of 3 to 2, the township council voted to adopt the new name of Selwyn.


Geography

The township comprises the communities of: Bridgenorth, Chemong Heights, Chemong Park, Connaught Shore, Deer Bay, Emerald Isle, Ennismore, Fife's Bay, Flood's Landing, Fowlers Corners, Gannon Beach, Gannon Village, Kawartha Park, Kimberley Park, Lakefield, Selwyn, Selwyn Shores, Stewart Heights, Tera View Heights, Tindle Bay, Victoria Springs, Village Meadows, Windward Sands, Woodland Acres, Young's Cove, Young's Point and Youngstown. The township is 67 percent rural including small villages and hamlets, along with the urban areas of Lakefield, Bridgenorth - Chemong Park, and Woodland Acres (part of the urban area of Peterborough). Farms have been established on most of the flat areas, which are intermixed between the rolling hills and lakes. The Trent-Severn Waterway passes through the township.


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 ...
, Selwyn 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. Mother tongue: * English as first language: 92.4% * French as first language: 1.3% * English and French as first language: 0% * Other as first language: 6.3%


Economy

The region is in the heart of Ontario's eastern
cottage country Cottage country is a common name in Ontario, New Brunswick, and other regions of Canada for areas that are popular locations for recreational properties such as cottages and summer homes. Cottage country is often socially, culturally, economicall ...
, where urban residents (mostly from the Toronto region) have cottages on many of the small lakes. Many of the retail and services offered in the region cater to this seasonal market. Small scale farms are a large industry, and dairy and meat production are some of the notable goods.


Government

In the 2010 municipal election, Mary Smith won the position of reeve (now mayor) from former reeve Ron Millen by 1,355 votes. Former federal Member of Parliament Andy Mitchell succeeded Smith as deputy reeve.


Education

Near the village is
Lakefield College School Lakefield College School (sometimes called LCS, The Grove or simply Lakefield) is a private day and boarding school located north of the village of Lakefield, Ontario. It was the first Canadian member of Round Square, an international affiliati ...
which Prince Andrew, Duke of York attended in 1977. The campus was the filming location for the 1977 Canadian film '' Age of Innocence''/''Ragtime Summer''. In the village itself is the Lakefield District Public School, which opened in 2018 after the
Ridpath Junior Public School Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board (known as English-language Public District School Board No. 14 prior to 1999) is a public, secular, English language school board headquartered in Peterborough, Ontario. It is the amalgamation of the fo ...
, named after James William Ridpath, publisher in the late 19th century and early 20th century of the Lakefield News, local businessman, sportsman and dignitary, was closed. LDPS took over the building formerly used for the now closed Lakefield District Secondary School. St. Paul's Catholic School, which is situated very close to the high school, is the area parochial school.


In fiction

In Paul Nicholas Mason's novel ''Battered Soles'' (2005), Lakefield is the site of a pilgrimage, begun in July 1997, which sees thousands of pilgrims from all over the world walk from Peterborough along the Rotary Greenway Trail to St. John's Anglican Church in the village. The focus of the pilgrimage is a life-sized statue of a blue-skinned Jesus in the basement of the church. Mason's second novel, ''The Red Dress'' (2008), is also set in Lakefield, although this time the community is thinly-disguised as Greenfield.


In film

* Lakefield and Lakefield College School were used as the location for the 1977 Canadian film ''Age of Innocence'' (aka ''Ragtime Summer'') starring
David Warner David or Dave Warner may refer to: Sports * Dave Warner (strongman) (born 1969), Northern Ireland strongman competitor * David Bruce Warner (born 1970), South African alpine skier * David Warner (cricketer) (born 1986), Australian cricketer Oth ...
,
Honor Blackman Honor Blackman (22 August 1925 – 5 April 2020) was an English actress, known for the roles of Cathy Gale in '' The Avengers''Aaker, Everett (2006). ''Encyclopedia of Early Television Crime Fighters''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 58. (1962 ...
and
Trudy Young Trudy is a diminutive of Gertrude. Notable people with the name include: People * Trudy Adams (born 1964), American actress * Trudy Anderson (born 1959), New Zealand cricketer * Trudy Bellinger, British music video director * Trudy Benson ( ...
. One memorable scene was shot at the location of the old Lakefield train station on Stanley St. The first four letters were removed on the ''Lakefield'' sign and replaced with the name ''Rockfield''. * In the winter of 2010
Verizon Verizon Communications Inc., commonly known as Verizon, is an American multinational telecommunications conglomerate and a corporate component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The company is headquartered at 1095 Avenue of the Americas ...
made a commercial at Lakefield's ''Ontario Speed Skating Oval'' outdoor
speed skating Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors racing, race each other in travelling a certain distance on Ice skate, skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marath ...
rink. * ''Unheralded'' (2011), a
National Film Board The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary fi ...
documentary directed by Aaron Hancox, is about the ''Lakefield Herald''. It focuses on this
community paper Community paper is a term used by publishers, advertisers and readers to describe a range of publications that share a common service to their local community and commerce. Their predominant medium being newsprint, often free and published at regul ...
's journalists as they cover newsworthy events taking place in and around the town.


Notable people

*
Charles Arkoll Boulton Charles Arkoll Boulton (April 17, 1841 – May 15, 1899) is noted for his role in the Red River and North-West Rebellions. Biography He was born in Cobourg, Canada West in 1841, the great-grandson of D'Arcy Boulton, and educated at Upp ...
, former councillor and reeve, left Ontario and later became Senator for
Marquette, Manitoba Marquette is an unincorporated community in the Rural Municipality of Woodlands in the Interlake Region of Manitoba, Canada. It is located approximately 46 kilometres (29 miles) northwest of Winnipeg. History The post office opened in 1871 as B ...
*
Sebastian Bach Sebastian Philip Bierk (born April 3, 1968), known professionally as Sebastian Bach, is a Canadian-American singer who achieved mainstream success as the frontman of the hard rock band Skid Row from 1987 to 1996. He has acted on Broadway and ha ...
, rock singer, notable for being the lead singer of the band Skid Row * Ronnie "The Hawk" Hawkins, American-born Canadian country musician *
Margaret Laurence Jean Margaret Laurence (née Wemyss; July 18, 1926 – January 5, 1987) was a Canadian novelist and short story writer, and is one of the major figures in Canadian literature. She was also a founder of the Writers' Trust of Canada, a non-pr ...
, novelist * Leahy Family, band * Susanna Moodie, pioneer, writer and newspaper editor * Paul Nicholas Mason, writer * Paul Reddick, blues-rock artist, songwriter, and harp player * Bruce Ridpath, professional ice hockey player who played on the 1911 Stanley Cup champion
Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a membe ...
* Catharine Parr Traill, English-born pioneer, writer, naturalist (sister of Susanna Moodie) * Mike Fisher, professional hockey player for the Nashville Predators, grew up in Bridgenorth *
Paul Soles Paul Robert Soles (August 11, 1930 – May 26, 2021) was a Canadian actor and television personality. He led the voice cast in such series as ''The Marvel Super Heroes'' (1966), voiced the title character in '' Spider-Man'' (1967), and portray ...
, voice actor famous for being the voice of Hermey in Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer and Spider-man in the 1960’s * Thomas Toth, Canadian runner. * Tyler Ardron, Canadian international rugby player, Super Rugby player (
Waikato Chiefs The Chiefs (formerly known as the Waikato Chiefs and officially called the Gallagher Chiefs for sponsorship reasons) are a New Zealand professional rugby union team based in Hamilton, Waikato. The team competes in the Super Rugby competition ...
), ITM Cup player (
Bay of Plenty The Bay of Plenty ( mi, Te Moana-a-Toi) is a region of New Zealand, situated around a bight of the same name in the northern coast of the North Island. The bight stretches 260 km from the Coromandel Peninsula in the west to Cape Runawa ...
) * Trevor Jones, Canadian Rower


See also

* List of townships in Ontario


References


External links

* {{Authority control Lower-tier municipalities in Ontario Municipalities in Peterborough County Township municipalities in Ontario