Lincoln, Ontario
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Lincoln is a town on
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 (state), New York. The Canada–United Sta ...
in the Niagara Region,
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 town's administrative and commercial centre is in the community of
Beamsville Beamsville (Canada 2021 Census, 2021 Urban area estimated population 13,323) is a community that is part of the town of Lincoln, Ontario, Canada. It is located along the southern shore of Lake Ontario and lies within the fruit belt of the Niagar ...
.


Geography

Lincoln's location between the southern shore of
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 (state), New York. The Canada–United Sta ...
and the
Niagara Escarpment The Niagara Escarpment is an approximately discontinuous, arc-shaped but generally northward-facing escarpment, or cuesta, in Canada and the United States. The escarpment begins south of Lake Ontario and circumscribes the top of the Great Lake ...
provides for a moderate climate with mild winters. The area is known in Canada for its
orchards An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit- or nut-producing trees that are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of lar ...
,
vineyards A vineyard ( , ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines. Many vineyards exist for winemaking; others for the production of raisins, table grapes, and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is kno ...
,
wineries A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the cultivation and production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feat ...
and restaurants that feature local produce and wines. Fruit crops grown in Lincoln include
cherries A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit). Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet ''Prunus avium'' and the sour ''Prunus cerasus''. The name ...
,
peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and Agriculture, cultivated in China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and the glossy-skinned, non-fuzzy varieties called necta ...
es,
apple An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated ...
s and
pear Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in late summer into mid-autumn. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the Family (biology), family Rosaceae, bearing the Pome, po ...
s, and during the summer attract many tourists from all over Ontario, particularly
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
. Since November 2017, the town has been served by the "uLinc" bus network, which runs three routes.
GO Transit GO Transit is a regional public transit system serving the Greater Golden Horseshoe region of Ontario, Canada. With its hub at Union Station in Toronto, GO Transit's green-and-white trains and buses serve a population of more than seven mil ...
also serves the town.


Communities

The town comprises the communities of
Beamsville Beamsville (Canada 2021 Census, 2021 Urban area estimated population 13,323) is a community that is part of the town of Lincoln, Ontario, Canada. It is located along the southern shore of Lake Ontario and lies within the fruit belt of the Niagar ...
, Campden,
Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...
, Jordan Station, Rockway, Tintern,
Vineland ''Vineland'' is a 1990 novel by Thomas Pynchon, a postmodern fiction set in California, United States in 1984, the year of Ronald Reagan's reelection.Knabb 2002 Through flashbacks by its characters, who have lived during the '60s in their youth ...
and Vineland Station.


History

Lincoln's earliest known inhabitants was the
Neutral Confederacy The Neutral Confederacy (also Neutral Nation, Neutral people, or ) was a tribal confederation of Iroquoian peoples. Its heartland was in the floodplain of the Grand River in what is now Ontario, Canada. At its height, its wider territory extend ...
, also called the Attawandaron. Archaeologists from the
Royal Ontario Museum The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) is a museum of art, world culture and natural history in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the largest museums in North America and the largest in Canada. It attracts more than one million visitors every year ...
found evidence of a Neutral encampment with a long house about two kilometers east of Beamsville, on Cave Springs Farm. Until vandals destroyed them about 30 years ago, there were a number of Indigenous faces carved in stone high on the Escarpment wall nearby. The Neutrals were decimated by the
Iroquois The Iroquois ( ), also known as the Five Nations, and later as the Six Nations from 1722 onwards; alternatively referred to by the Endonym and exonym, endonym Haudenosaunee ( ; ) are an Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Ind ...
in 1653. When the first European settlers arrived in 1777, there were only a few semi-migrant native people living in the caves near
Beamsville Beamsville (Canada 2021 Census, 2021 Urban area estimated population 13,323) is a community that is part of the town of Lincoln, Ontario, Canada. It is located along the southern shore of Lake Ontario and lies within the fruit belt of the Niagar ...
. The earliest European settlers were ex-
Butler's Rangers Butler's Rangers (1777–1784) was a Loyalist provincial military unit of the American Revolutionary War, raised by American loyalist John Butler. Most members of the regiment were Loyalists from upstate New York and northeastern Pennsylvania. T ...
who had fought on the side of Britain in the
American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...
.
United Empire Loyalist United Empire Loyalist (UEL; or simply Loyalist) is an honorific title which was first given by the 1st Lord Dorchester, the governor of Quebec and governor general of the Canadas, to American Loyalists who resettled in British North Ameri ...
Jacob Beam began what is now the town of Beamsville in 1788. Both of his homes the original one located on The Thirty (creek) and the one near downtown Beamsville are still intact today. Senator
William Gibson William Ford Gibson (born March 17, 1948) is an American-Canadian speculative fiction writer and essayist widely credited with pioneering the science fiction subgenre known as cyberpunk. Beginning his writing career in the late 1970s, his ear ...
is another key figure in the history of Beamsville. His mansion is now the Girls' Dorm at Great Lakes Christian College. Beamsville was also home to the annual Lincoln County Agricultural Fair, usually held on or around the first weekend of September. This fair was very well known fair throughout the area, and attracted thousands of people every year since its inception in 1857. The Fair is no longer held in Beamsville since the grounds were sold to become a housing development. In 1898, hockey player
William Fairbrother William Fairbrother was a Canadian ice hockey player who is credited with inventing the ice hockey net in the 1890s. During the 1880s, Fairbrother played for Beamsville, Ontario's Men's Hockey team. At first, two poles or two rocks served as goal ...
, in the town of Beamsville, was the first to make use of a hockey net. The town was also home to the first Japanese-Canadian home for the aged in 1967.
Mennonites Mennonites are a group of Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian communities tracing their roots to the epoch of the Radical Reformation. The name ''Mennonites'' is derived from the cleric Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland, part of ...
(
Pennsylvania Dutch The Pennsylvania Dutch (), also referred to as Pennsylvania Germans, are an ethnic group in Pennsylvania in the United States, Ontario in Canada, and other regions of both nations. They largely originate from the Palatinate (region), Palatina ...
) walking north from the United States in 1799 founded the villages of
Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...
and
Vineland ''Vineland'' is a 1990 novel by Thomas Pynchon, a postmodern fiction set in California, United States in 1984, the year of Ronald Reagan's reelection.Knabb 2002 Through flashbacks by its characters, who have lived during the '60s in their youth ...
. An Ontario Historical Plaque was erected at the Jordan Museum by the province to commemorate the first Mennonite Settlement's role in Ontario's heritage. The First Mennonite Church in Vineland, adjacent to the cemetery at the corner of Regional Road 81 (former Highway 8) and Martin Road, organized in 1801, is the oldest
Mennonite Mennonites are a group of Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian communities tracing their roots to the epoch of the Radical Reformation. The name ''Mennonites'' is derived from the cleric Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland, part of ...
congregation in Canada. Good hunting and fishing as well as excellent soil and waterways attracted these early settlers. Agriculture flourished, and tanneries, grist mills, saw mills and woollen mills sprang up in Glen Elgin (now known as Ball's Falls), Tintern, St. Mary's, called Jordan after 1840, Rockway, The Thirty (now vanished) and Beamsville. With a large natural harbour at the mouth of Twenty Creek, Jordan and Jordan Station became busy shipping centres for the export of logs for masts, tan bark, hides, ashes used in industrial centres for the manufacture of soap, as well as grain, flour, fruit and fruit products. A small ship building industry existed for a time on the banks of the Twenty. Today, Lincoln is a leading area for tender fruit production and grape growing. Its wines are achieving international recognition and winning awards for quality. "Greenhouse Friendly" Lincoln also has the largest concentration of greenhouse operators in Canada. In its earliest days what is now Lincoln was regarded, and governed, as an extension of the province of Quebec, but in 1791 the Canada Bill placed it in English Upper Canada. Colonel
John Graves Simcoe Lieutenant-General (United Kingdom), Lieutenant-General John Graves Simcoe (25 February 1752 – 26 October 1806) was a British army officer, politician and colonial administrator who served as the lieutenant governor of Upper Canada from 1791 u ...
, first Lieutenant Governor 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 ...
, divided the province into 19 counties. He named Lincoln County after its English counterpart, and each of its 12 townships, including Clinton and Louth, after towns in Lincolnshire, England. The first township councils, formed in 1793, had no legislative authority. In response to the
Rebellion of 1837 Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...
, the 1849 Municipal Act gave local councils much more power to deal with local matters. The Town of Lincoln came into existence on January 1, 1970, a municipal corporation created by the Legislature of Ontario through the amalgamation of the Town of Beamsville, the Township of Clinton, and approximately half the Township of Louth. Through a vote of citizens, "Lincoln" was chosen to be its name.


People

The town is home to numerous Dutch and
United Empire Loyalist United Empire Loyalist (UEL; or simply Loyalist) is an honorific title which was first given by the 1st Lord Dorchester, the governor of Quebec and governor general of the Canadas, to American Loyalists who resettled in British North Ameri ...
families, as evidenced by the large number of
Dutch Reformed The Dutch Reformed Church (, , abbreviated NHK ) was the largest Christian denomination in the Netherlands from the onset of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century until 1930. It was the traditional denomination of the Dutch royal fami ...
and
Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...
churches in the area. Other ethnic groups include Italians - one family which founded the Commisso's Food Markets supermarket chain - Germans, East Asians, and Indians. Katherine "Kay" McKeever, also known as the "Owl Lady of Canada," spent over forty years saving, rehabilitating, and breeding owls in Lincoln. In 1965, McKeever rescued her first owl, leading to her lifelong passion of rescuing and understanding
owls Owls are birds from the Order (biology), order Strigiformes (), which includes over 200 species of mostly Solitary animal, solitary and Nocturnal animal, nocturnal birds of prey typified by an upright stance, a large, broad head, binocular vis ...
. In the 1970s, Mckeever and her husband Larry founded The Owl Rehabilitation and Research Foundation, an Ontario non-profit corporation dedicated to helping injured owls. In 1994, the Foundation was re-incorporated as a Canadian non-profit corporation and renamed The Owl Foundation. The Foundation's facility, located in Vineland, has 26 acres of property and can host up to fifty owls. The facility usually handles between 100 and 150 injured owls each year. McKeever is recognized as one of the world's foremost experts in owl behavior. She has written and published a number of books, has two honorary doctorates, is a member of the
Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...
, and has received numerous wildlife and volunteer awards.
William Fairbrother William Fairbrother was a Canadian ice hockey player who is credited with inventing the ice hockey net in the 1890s. During the 1880s, Fairbrother played for Beamsville, Ontario's Men's Hockey team. At first, two poles or two rocks served as goal ...
, the inventor of the hockey net, lived in Lincoln. Bill Berg, formerly a hockey player for the
Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. The Maple Leafs compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the A ...
, and now an
NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...
broadcaster, was born, and continues to make his home in Beamsville.
Paul Laus Paul Laus (born September 26, 1970) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National Hockey League for the Florida Panthers. Laus was the last original member of the Panthers. Career Born in Beamsville, Ontario ...
, a former
Florida Panthers The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Panthers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team initially played it ...
bruiser defenceman, and
Ryan Christie Ryan Christie (born 22 February 1995) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder or winger for Premier League club Bournemouth and the Scotland national team. Christie began his career with Inverness Caledonian Thistle b ...
, who played seven games with the
Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. The Stars compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The Stars ...
and
Calgary Flames The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary. The Flames compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The ...
are also Beamsville natives. Another Beamsville native of note, Tonya Verbeek, earned an Olympic silver medal in women's wrestling at the
2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...
in Athens, Greece. At the
2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...
in Beijing, China, Tonya Verbeek excelled once again by winning the bronze medal in women's freestyle wrestling, 55 kg class. John Chayka who was a former
NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...
General Manager for the
Arizona Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are an inactive professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. They competed in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division (1996–1998, 2021–2024) and ...
was raised in Jordan Station. The band Rush practised in Beamsville in their earlier days. Drummer
Neil Peart Neil Ellwood Peart ( ; September 12, 1952 – January 7, 2020) was a Canadian and American musician, known as the drummer, percussionist, and primary lyricist of the rock band Rush (band), Rush. He was known to fans by the nickname "the Profe ...
was raised in nearby
Port Dalhousie Port Dalhousie is a community in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. Known for its waterfront appeal, it is home to the Royal Canadian Henley Regatta and is historically significant as the terminus for the first three (19th century) routes of th ...
.


Industry

The region is in the heart of
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 ...
's wine country and contributes greatly to the wine industry in the
Niagara Peninsula The Niagara Peninsula is an area of land lying between the southwestern shore of Lake Ontario and the northeastern shore of Lake Erie, in Ontario, Canada. Technically an isthmus rather than a peninsula, it stretches from the Niagara River in the ...
. Many
wineries A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the cultivation and production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feat ...
from the area have taken home top awards, including Grape King at the Niagara Grape & Wine Festival, as well as international awards. Wineries in Lincoln include Malivoire, London Born Wines, Mike Weir Winery, Thomas and Vaughan, Thirty Bench, Angel's Gate, Peninsula Ridge, Cave Spring Cellars, Daniel Lenko Winery, Hidden Bench, Magnotta, Mountain Road Winery, Legends Estates, Crown Bench, Megalomaniac, Featherstone, Tawse, Vineland Estates, Honsberger Estate and Corner Stone.


Climate


Demographics

In the
2021 Census of Population The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sli ...
conducted by
Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; ), 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 culture. It is headquartered in ...
, Lincoln 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.


Culture

The Lincoln Public Library has branches in Beamsville and Vineland. The Fleming Branch in Beamsville, founded in 1852, had been located in the old Clinton-Louth town hall built in the mid-19th century. The upper floor of the building has been used by
Freemasons Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...
for over a century. In June 2014, the Fleming Branch was relocated to the new community complex at 5020 Serena Drive. The Moses F. Rittenhouse Branch is located in Vineland. Vineland is host to a large craft fair that takes place over a period of four days on
Canadian Thanksgiving Thanksgiving () or Thanksgiving Day (), is an annual Canadian holiday held on the second Monday in October. Outside the country, it may be referred to as Canadian Thanksgiving to distinguish it from the American holiday of the same name and ...
weekend. Craft stalls are set up on the main street, Victoria Avenue, and at the Ball's Falls Conservation Area. This festival also extends into the ball park in Jordan.


See also

*
List of townships in Ontario This is a list of township (Canada), townships in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. Townships are listed by List of census divisions of Ontario, census division. Northern Ontario Northeastern Ontario Algoma D ...


References


External links

* * {{authority control Towns in Ontario Lower-tier municipalities in Ontario Municipalities in the Regional Municipality of Niagara Populated places established in 1788 1788 establishments in the British Empire