The Home District was one of four districts of the

Province of Quebec Quebec is Canada's largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, New Brunswick to the southeast and a coastal border ...

created in 1788 in the western reaches of the

Montreal District Montreal District was colonial district in New France and British North America with its capital in Montreal. A descendant of the district exists today as the judicial district of Montreal. Western parts transferred to Upper Canada, later as ...

and detached in 1791 to create the new colony of

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada () was a Province, part of The Canadas, 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 Province of Queb ...

. It was abolished with the adoption of the county system in 1849.

Territorial evolution

Originally established as Nassau District in 1788, it was renamed as the "Home District" in 1792, The district was originally bounded to the east by a line running north–south from the mouth of the Trent River and to the west by a line running north–south "intersecting the extreme projection of Long Point into the

lake Erie Lake Erie ( ) is the fourth-largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and also has the shortest avera ...

." The northern boundaries were vague and overlapping Indian land. The district town was originally Newark, later

Niagara-on-the-Lake Niagara-on-the-Lake is a town in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the Niagara Peninsula at the point where the Niagara River meets Lake Ontario, across the river from New York (state), New York, United States. Niagara-on-the-Lake is in the R ...

. In 1798, the

Niagara District The Niagara District was a historic district in Upper Canada. Created in 1798 from the Home District, it existed until 1849. Historic evolution The District was formed by an Act of the Parliament of Upper Canada in 1798, and was described as con ...

was created from Lincoln County and

Haldimand County Haldimand County is a rural city-status single-tier municipality on the Niagara Peninsula in Southern Ontario, Canada, on the north shore of Lake Erie, and on the Grand River. Despite its name, it is no longer a county by definition, as all mu ...

, and the

London District London District (LONDIST) is the name given by the British Army to the area of operations encompassing the Greater London area. It was established in 1870 as ''Home District''. History In January 1876 a ‘Mobilization Scheme for the forces i ...

was formed from the counties of

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

and

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

, both of which were detached from the Home District. The remainder was organized as follows:

Reductions and abolition

The District was reduced in size in several steps over the coming years. The 1798 Act had provided that counties of

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city in north east England **County Durham, a ceremonial county which includes Durham *Durham, North Carolina, a city in North Carolina, United States Durham may also refer to: Places ...

and

Northumberland Northumberland ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England, on the Anglo-Scottish border, border with Scotland. It is bordered by the North Sea to the east, Tyne and Wear and County Durham to the south, Cumb ...

, upon a request by a majority of their townships, could be detached to form the

Newcastle District The Newcastle District was a historic district in Upper Canada which existed until 1849. It was formed in 1802 from the Home District, consisting of the counties of Durham and Northumberland. History The legislature had enacted in 1798 that "as s ...

. This occurred in 1802. In 1816, the following parts of the District were detached to form

Halton County Halton County is a former county in the Canadian province of Ontario, with an area of . It is also one of the oldest counties in Canada. History Halton County is named after Major William Mathew Halton (1746–1823), a British Army officer, ...

in the newly created Gore District: In 1837, Simcoe District was detached, consisting of

Simcoe County Simcoe County is a county and census division located in the central region of Ontario, Canada. The county is located north of the Greater Toronto Area, and forms the north western edge of the Golden Horseshoe. The county seat is located in Mi ...

. In 1849, the Home District was dissolved and replaced for municipal purposes by York County, which was reorganized later that year to form the United Counties of York,

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 ...

and

Peel Peel or Peeling may refer to: Places Australia * Peel (Western Australia) * Peel, New South Wales * Peel River (New South Wales) Canada * Peel Parish, New Brunswick * Peel, New Brunswick, an unincorporated community in Peel Parish * Pee ...

References

{{Districts of Upper Canada Districts of Upper Canada 1788 establishments in the Province of Quebec (1763–1791) 1849 disestablishments in Canada

Territorial evolution

Reductions and abolition

Further reading

References