Kleinburg, Ontario

Kleinburg is an unincorporated village in the city of Vaughan, Ontario, Canada. It is home to the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, an art gallery with a focus on the Group of Seven, and the Kortright Centre for Conservation. In 2001, the village and its surrounding communities had a population of 4,595; the village itself has 282 dwellings, with a population of 952. Kleinburg comprises a narrow section of hilly landscape situated between two branches of the Humber River. The historic village is bounded by Highway 27 on the west and Stegman’s Mill Road to the east. Kleinburg has subsumed the nearby hamlet of Nashville, but it has not itself been fully subsumed into the main urban area of Vaughan.

Geography

The village is located between two branches of the Humber River, and features dense forests throughout its 1.05 km² of land area. Its northern and western peripheries are primarily agricultural.

History

The community began in 1848 when John Nicholas Klein (1825–1854), a German-Canadian settler built a flour mill along the Humber River's west branch in the valley in 1847. A settlement soon resulted at the bottom of the hill, originally named "Kleinsburg" (after John Klein, and "berg" being German for hilly country or hill). The village at the top of the hill was known as "Mount Vernon", but by 1890 both became known as Kleinburg (sometimes shown as Klineburg). The Howland family later took over the flour mill, and added a sawmill and store. Over time, more and more businesses sprung up to support the mills, notably the Howland's flour mill, which was the largest between Barrie and Toronto and attracted farmers for miles. A community developed in town, with hotels, merchant shops, schools and churches.

A plank road was built through Kleinburg in 1860 by the Vaughan Plank Road Company, running from Thistletown north through Woodbridge, Pine Grove, and Kleinburg to the King township border. The road had tollbooths (including one located in Kleinburg), and travelers were made to pay a toll for the upkeep. There was local opposition from farmers in later years, and the municipality took over in 1896, eliminating the tolls.

Due to the sprawling valleys and topography of the area, a railway station for Kleinburg had to be established outside of town on the Toronto, Grey & Bruce Railway line (present-day Canadian Pacific Railway) in 1870, to the west of town on the other side of the Humber River valley. This area became the community known as Nashville (after a local named Jonathan Scott and his wife who came from Nashville, Tennessee. A hotel, grain elevator, church, coal and lumber yard sprung up. A Nashville post office was established in 1881.

The first Kleinburg railway station was built by the TG&B in 1870, but a new station was built in 1907 by the Canadian Pacific due to line upgrades. Passenger service to the Kleinburg railway station ended in 1964, but the station was saved due to efforts by prominent Canadian and Kleinburg resident Pierre Berton for use by Scouts Canada. In 1976 it was moved into town for preservation, next to the Kleinburg Public School.

Highway 27 was built to the west of town along the Humber River valley in 1937-1938, diverting highway traffic from travelling through the town proper on Islington Avenue.

Suburban Growth

In the 1960's, some suburban residential areas began to develop at the south end of the small town.

In the early 2010's, development started on the new Nashville Heights (now called "New Kleinburg") area in Nashville, bordered by Nashville Road, Major Mackenzie, Huntington and the CPR railway line. The Highway 427 extension opened nearby in September 2021, ending at Major Mackenzie Drive.

Main Street

The historic commercial district of Kleinburg along Islington Avenue has many heritage buildings, as well as modern developments with mixed residential and commercial uses. Main street has local shops, restaurants, and national chains including Royal Bank. Its oldest extant building, built in 1867, is home of The Doctor's House restaurant. This area is part of the Kleinburg-Nashville Heritage Conservation District, which gives it some protection from redevelopment.

Local attractions include the McMichael Art Gallery, Kortright Centre, Humber River Trails, Bindertwine Park, Pierre Berton Heritage Centre, and Copper Creek Golf Course.

Politics

Kleinburg is not an incorporated entity; it has no political jurisdiction and no geopolitically-defined boundaries. Residents vote for a councillor in ward 1 of Vaughan City Council.

The community of Nashville, though distinct from Kleinburg, is considered part of Kleinburg. Residents of Nashville receive many of their services, such as postal and medical services, within Kleinburg.

Education

Most non-Catholic students were once bused to nearby King City Secondary School in King City. Since the opening of Emily Carr Secondary School, busing was eliminated, forcing students to walk far to get to the school as not even public busing services the area. There are not enough students for Kleinburg's own secondary school. In 2008, the oldest and most historical school, Kleinburg Public Elementary school, was demolished and a new public elementary school by the same name was built and opened in September 2009. There are 5 schools in Kleinburg:
*Kleinburg Christian Academy (Private Elementary)
*Kleinburg Public Elementary School (Public Elementary)
*Ecole La Fontaine (French Public Elementary School)
*Montessori School of Kleinburg (Private School)
*The Hill Academy (Private Secondary for student-athletes)- moved to Caledon
*Pope Francis Catholic School (Public Catholic School)

Parks and Recreation

Kleinburg is home to several parks, all of which are operated by the city of Vaughan's Parks and Forestry Operations. The largest is Bindertwine Park, east of town in the valley of the Humber River's East Branch. Trails branch out south for the William Granger Greenway - Humber Trail, that runs along the Humber River south into Boyd North, Boyd Conservation Area and Woodbridge. The Kortright Centre for Conservation is located off the East Humber River to the southwest in Vaughan.

Culture

Binder Twine was a festival held annually that attracts 25,000 people on average. This tradition began in 1890 by Charles Shaw Jr. who distributed binder twine to local farmers. Kleinburg also has a Christmas tree lighting celebration where the community comes together to donate to ''The Red Bow Campaign'' and the ''KARA Holiday Food Drive'' while waiting for the lighting of the tree in front of the Kline house. There is also ''Canada Day in Kleinburg'' and Cartunes in Kleinburg events which allow the community to celebrate the history of the village. It ceased being held as of April 2020.

In Film

Kleinburg is home to the Cinespace Film Studios (formerly Toronto International Film Studios), a centre for television and motion picture production. The TV show '' The Forest Rangers'' was filmed here from 1963 to 1965. A reunion was held at the studios in June, 2013 with Gordon Pinsent and nine junior rangers in attendance.

Other films shot at the studio between 1960 and 1990 include: '' The Fox'', '' The First Time'', '' Recommendation for Mercy'', ''Shoot'', ''Welcome to Blood City'', '' Death Weekend'', ''The Shape of Things to Come'', ''Rituals'', ''Riel'', ''Fish Hawk'', '' The Amateur'', ''Sesame Street Presents Follow That Bird'', '' The Fly'' and ''Love at Stake''. Television shows filmed here include: '' Hudson's Bay'', ''Hatch's Mill'', ''The Adventures of Timothy Pilgrim'', ''Search and Rescue'', ''Matt and Jenny'', ''The Great Detective'' and ''The Littlest Hobo''.

Downtown Kleinburg and the farmland surrounding it featured significantly in the 1st season of the 1971 television series, ''Dr. Simon Locke''.

In 2006, the movie '' The Sentinel'' was filmed at the McMichael Art Gallery. In the movie, all of the Camp David scenes, both indoor and outdoor, were filmed on the grounds of the McMichael Art Gallery, most notably the scene on the "Wedding Hill" where they filmed the president's helicopter taking off and being shot down by a missile (the explosion was added in after using special effects).

In 2015, Cinespace moved out of the studios they had been renting. The Vaughan Sports Centre, a private company, has repurposed them as baseball training facilities.

Notable residents

Kleinburg was home to Canadian author Pierre Berton for nearly 50 years until his death in 2004, and to his friend and business associate John G. McClelland, co-founder of McClelland & Stewart. Kleinburg was also the home of former prime minister Lester B. Pearson. Stephen Lecce, an Ontario MPP and minister of various portfolios first elected in 2018, lived in Kleinburg at the time of his service as a provincial politician.

References

External links

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{{Coord, 43, 50, 13, N, 79, 37, 32, W, display=title

Neighbourhoods in Vaughan
Populated places established in 1848