Cameron is an unincorporated village in the
City of Kawartha Lakes, in east-central
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. The village has a population of approximately 221 residents. Cameron is located at the junction of
Highway 35
The following highways are numbered 35:
The Karakoram Highway (Urdu language, Urdu: شاہراہ قراقرم, ''Śāhirāh-i Qarāquram''), also known as the KKH, National Highway 35 (Urdu language, Urdu: قومی شاہراہ ۳۵), N-35, and ...
, and Kawartha Lakes Road 34, 11 km north-west of
Lindsay.
History
Cameron, formerly part of
Fenelon Township
The Township of Fenelon was a municipality in present-day Kawartha Lakes, Ontario, Canada. The township was named after François de Salignac de la Mothe-Fénelon (missionary) (1641–79) who was a missionary in New France, establishing a missio ...
in
Victoria County, was a busy village in the 19th century with a blacksmith, grave stone manufacturer, hotel, school, telegraph office and post office. Today, the post office, general store, Fenelon Township Elementary School, and Cameron Community Church are all located within the hub of the community. Cameron's main attraction is recreational fishing. Particularly in the hamlet of Long Beach on Sturgeon Lake.
Cameron is believed to be the site where
Samuel de Champlain
Samuel de Champlain (; 13 August 1574#Fichier]For a detailed analysis of his baptismal record, see #Ritch, RitchThe baptism act does not contain information about the age of Samuel, neither his birth date nor his place of birth. – 25 December ...
fought a battle with
First Nations in Canada, First Nations Peoples in 1613. It has been known as Cameron Line and Cameron Settlement.
While some say Cameron was named for Duncan Cameron, an early settler,
others contend it was named for Chief Justice Sir
Matthew Crooks Cameron
Sir Matthew Crooks Cameron, (2 October 1822 – 25 June 1887) was a politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1867 to 1878. He represented the riding of Toronto East. He served ...
, MPP and provincial secretary and commissioner of Crown lands, who died in 1887.
Education
Public school
The construction of schools began in the 1840s. As the population grew, a variety of Section Schools (S.S.)were opened. Eventually S.S. 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, & 10 were closed and sold upon the opening of Fenelon Township Public School in 1967. Additions to the current school building over the years have included an extension on the primary wing, a library-resource centre. The school has utilized 4 portable classrooms for many years.
A detailed history of the Cameron school can be found in Jim McKechnie's 1980 M.S. Graduate Studies essay, "Cameron School". Further information on the history of Fenelon Township's schools can be found in "A History of Fenelon Township, 1987".
The original school house is now owned by Cameron Community Church and used for many community functions.
References
External links
Early Cameron Ontario Settlers
{{authority control
Communities in Kawartha Lakes
1876 establishments in Ontario