Maryhill is an unincorporated rural community in the township of

Woolwich Woolwich () is a town in South London, southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was mainta ...

Waterloo Region The Regional Municipality of Waterloo (Waterloo Region or Region of Waterloo) is a metropolitan area of Southern Ontario, Canada. It contains the cities of Cambridge, Kitchener and Waterloo (KWC or Tri-Cities), and the townships of North Dumfri ...

, Ontario, Canada. The population was 576 in 2016. Hopewell Creek flows through the settlement.

History

As European immigrants moved to the area in the early 1800s, the settlement was first called Rotenburg. Between 1827 and 1840, of the 48 settlers who arrived in Rotenburn, 36 were from

Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...

and 12 were from

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in southern Germany. In earlier times it was considered to be on both sides of the Upper Rhine, but since the Napoleonic Wars, it has been considered only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Ba ...

. A particularly large number arrived from

Soufflenheim Soufflenheim (; ), is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. It is known for its pottery, being known as the ''Cité des Potiers''. History The forested area of Northern Grand Est has seen the production o ...

, Alsace, between 1828 and 1860. By 1832, there were 69 families in Rotenburg, and a population of 307. The settlement was renamed New Germany, and German language newspapers sometimes referred to the settlement as ''Neu Deutschland''. In 1916, a historian wrote of the pioneer settlement: A school was erected in 1832, which served as a church on Sunday. It was the first Catholic church in the region. St. Boniface Roman Catholic Church was established near the school in 1834, named for

Saint Boniface Boniface, OSB (born Wynfreth; 675 –5 June 754) was an English Benedictines, Benedictine monk and leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of Francia during the eighth century. He organised significant foundations of ...

, the apostle of Germany. The current church was erected in 1877. In 1852, a two-room brick school was built. During the winter the school enrolled over 100 students. St. Boniface Hotel was erected in 1850, and for 70 years it was used as a stop for the stagecoach carrying mail and passengers between

Waterloo Waterloo most commonly refers to: * Battle of Waterloo, 1815 battle where Napoleon's French army was defeated by Anglo-allied and Prussian forces * Waterloo, Belgium Waterloo may also refer to: Other places Australia * Waterloo, New South Wale ...

and

Guelph Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as The Royal City, it is roughly east of Kitchener, Ontario, Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Ontario Highway 6, ...

. The early settlement had a blacksmith shop, brewery, cobbler, cooper, tailor, and three hotels. Between 1860 and 1865, New Germany was afflicted by smallpox with "especial severity", and many residents had badly marked faces throughout their lives. A post office was established in 1879. In 1941, Canada Post requested that New Germany change its name because mail arriving from overseas was being misdirected to

New Germany, Nova Scotia New Germany is a village in Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia, Canada. Located along the LaHave River and New Germany Lake, it is a main service centre connecting Bridgewater and Middleton via highway Trunk 10. New Germany is situated 25 kilome ...

. Canadian Post suggested the name "Gort", after a British commander, or "Wavell", after a British General in Egypt. The community instead selected Maryhill; "Mary" because of their historical Catholic faith, and "hill" because of a prominent hill in the settlement. File:Maryhill, Ontario.png, Aerial view of Maryhill File:St. Boniface Church - Maryhill, ON.jpg, St. Boniface Church in Maryhill File:St. Boniface School - Maryhill, ON.jpg, St. Boniface School in Maryhill File:Regional Road 25, Maryhill, Ontario.jpg, Arriving in Maryhill along Waterloo Regional Road 25

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 ...

, Maryhill had a population of 605 living in 207 of its 210 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 576. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.

Parks and recreation

Maryhill Heritage Park and Community Centre features a playground, ball diamond, group open space, multi-purpose court, soccer fields, outdoor ice rinks, and group picnic area.

References

{{authority control Communities in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo Designated places in Ontario Woolwich, Ontario

History

Demographics

Parks and recreation

See also

References