Loyalist, Ontario
Encyclopedia
Loyalist is a township
in central eastern Ontario
, Canada
on Lake Ontario
. It is in Lennox and Addington County
and consists of two parts: the mainland and Amherst Island
. It was named for the United Empire Loyalists
, who settled in the area after the American Revolution
.
, Bath and Odessa. Smaller communities include Asselstine, Bayview, Emerald, Ernestown, Links Mills, McIntyre, Millhaven, Morven, Nicholsons, Point, Stella, Storms Corners, Switzerville, Thorpe, Violet and Wilton. Since Loyalist Township is the only municipal level of government in the area, the boundaries of all the settlements are unofficial and matters of tradition.
Amherstview
is named for Amherst Island
, located directly to the south in Lake Ontario. When the community was first established in the 1950s, the spelling was generally "Amherst View". The community is the eastern end of the Loyalist Parkway, a stretch of Highway 33
that travels along Lake Ontario
, in an area in which many United Empire Loyalists
settled.
Amherstview is home to Fairfield House which is situated in Fairfield Park on the shore of Lake Ontario. Fairfield House was constructed in 1793 by the Fairfield family who were among the first Loyalists to settle the area. It served as the family home and a portion of the building was also used as a tavern for some time. The wood and limestone building is now a museum exhibiting period artifacts and furniture and offering guided tours.
Fairfield Park itself stretches along more than 600 m of Lake Ontario shoreline. The park is a popular picnicking area and is also well used by swimmers and scuba divers. Limestone shelf rock formations leading into the water simplify the launching and landing of kayaks and canoes although suitable facilities for larger watercraft do not exist. The park is home to many species of trees including red oak, poplar
, willow
, shagbark hickory
, ash, maple
, cedar, linden
, and spruce
. Extensive banks of lilac
provide flowers and fragrance in season and many of the larger trees in the park are fitted with strings of lights for display at Christmas.
Amherstview is also home to the Henderson Recreation Centre. The Centre houses a public library, a 25 m public swimming pool, and an arena and also includes an outdoor soccer field. The arena is the home rink for the Amherstview Jets
hockey team.
Bath was first settled by the United Empire Loyalists in 1784. Bath is one of the oldest communities in Ontario. Bath was first settled by discharged soldiers from Jessup's Rangers. The economic development of the community was enabled by a sheltered harbour and road connections with Kingston stimulated economic development. By mid-century Bath was a prosperous point of trade.
After the town had been divided up between the families of Hawley, Davy, Rose and Amey, it was John Davy who was first to lay down roads on his lot #10. By 1804 the whole village had been prepared for settlement and surveyed. The village was incorporated in 1859. Every year on July 1 there is a Canada Day
celebration featuring a parade and fair. The village was originally named Ernestown, but was renamed Bath in 1819 after the city in England. The town is the location of Millhaven Institution
.
Odessa, originally named Millcreek, was renamed by its postmaster to commemorate the British victory at Odessa in Ukraine during the Crimean War
. The village is home to Ernestown Secondary School
, which services about 650 students from Loyalist Township, Napanee and Stone Mills
. The highest point in the village is the water tower. Visible for several kilometers in all directions, the water tower has been outfitted as a wireless communications facility.
Stella and Emerald are located on Amherst Island. Stella is the major hamlet, where the ferry docks, and lends its name as the postal outlet name for the Island. Emerald is a collection of 4 houses and a church toward the west end of the Island. Amherst Island is located about 3 km offshore from the rest of Loyalist Township, and is serviced by an automobile and truck ferry from Millhaven. Amherst Island was farmed for generations by Irish tenants who rented from a Lord through his manager, and many residents are descendants of those early settlers. Today it has a small arts community, a number of volunteer civic groups, and a radio station, CJAI-FM, that add to the Island's special flavour.
.
have a recording studio located in Bath called The Bathouse Recording Studio
. The band's lead singer, Gordon Downie
, was born and raised in Amherstview and attended Amherstview Public School (AVPS).
A community radio station, CJAI-FM
, broadcasts from Stella. The township is otherwise served by media from Kingston
.
and Highway 33
.
Public transportation between Amherstview and Kingston is provided by Kingston Transit
.
A toll ferry operates between Millhaven (on the mainland) and Stella (on Amherst Island
). As of June, 2011 the toll is $9 for a return trip ticket on a standard car or light truck. There is a nominal charge for bicycles and motorcycles while walk-on passengers are free.
:
Population trend:
Township (Canada)
The term township generally means the district or area associated with a town. However in some systems no town needs to be involved. The specific use of the term to describe political subdivisions has varied by country, usually to describe a local rural or semi-rural government within the county...
in central eastern Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
on Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south by the American state of New York. Ontario, Canada's most populous province, was named for the lake. In the Wyandot language, ontarío means...
. It is in Lennox and Addington County
Lennox and Addington County, Ontario
Lennox and Addington County, Ontario is a county and census division of the Canadian province of Ontario. The county seat is Greater Napanee. It is located in the subregion of Southern Ontario named Eastern Ontario.It includes the following municipalities:...
and consists of two parts: the mainland and Amherst Island
Amherst Island
Amherst Island is one of the Thousand Islands in Lake Ontario near Kingston, Ontario. The island is approximately 70 km² in size, measuring 16.5 km long and 7 km at its widest. It is part of Loyalist Township in Lennox and Addington County. The two main communities on the island are...
. It was named for the United Empire Loyalists
United Empire Loyalists
The name United Empire Loyalists is an honorific given after the fact to those American Loyalists who resettled in British North America and other British Colonies as an act of fealty to King George III after the British defeat in the American Revolutionary War and prior to the Treaty of Paris...
, who settled in the area after the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
.
Communities
The primary centres of settlement in Loyalist are AmherstviewAmherstview, Ontario
Amherstview is a community in Loyalist Township, Ontario.It is located on the north shore of Lake Ontario and has a population of approximately 10,000. It is adjacent to the city of Kingston, and considered part of the greater Kingston area. Amherstview is named for Amherst Island, located directly...
, Bath and Odessa. Smaller communities include Asselstine, Bayview, Emerald, Ernestown, Links Mills, McIntyre, Millhaven, Morven, Nicholsons, Point, Stella, Storms Corners, Switzerville, Thorpe, Violet and Wilton. Since Loyalist Township is the only municipal level of government in the area, the boundaries of all the settlements are unofficial and matters of tradition.
Amherstview
Amherstview, Ontario
Amherstview is a community in Loyalist Township, Ontario.It is located on the north shore of Lake Ontario and has a population of approximately 10,000. It is adjacent to the city of Kingston, and considered part of the greater Kingston area. Amherstview is named for Amherst Island, located directly...
is named for Amherst Island
Amherst Island
Amherst Island is one of the Thousand Islands in Lake Ontario near Kingston, Ontario. The island is approximately 70 km² in size, measuring 16.5 km long and 7 km at its widest. It is part of Loyalist Township in Lennox and Addington County. The two main communities on the island are...
, located directly to the south in Lake Ontario. When the community was first established in the 1950s, the spelling was generally "Amherst View". The community is the eastern end of the Loyalist Parkway, a stretch of Highway 33
Highway 33 (Ontario)
King's Highway 33, commonly referred to as Highway 33, is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. The route begins at Highway 62 in Bloomfield and travels east to the Collins Bay Road junction at Collins Bay in the city of Kingston, a distance of...
that travels along Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south by the American state of New York. Ontario, Canada's most populous province, was named for the lake. In the Wyandot language, ontarío means...
, in an area in which many United Empire Loyalists
United Empire Loyalists
The name United Empire Loyalists is an honorific given after the fact to those American Loyalists who resettled in British North America and other British Colonies as an act of fealty to King George III after the British defeat in the American Revolutionary War and prior to the Treaty of Paris...
settled.
Amherstview is home to Fairfield House which is situated in Fairfield Park on the shore of Lake Ontario. Fairfield House was constructed in 1793 by the Fairfield family who were among the first Loyalists to settle the area. It served as the family home and a portion of the building was also used as a tavern for some time. The wood and limestone building is now a museum exhibiting period artifacts and furniture and offering guided tours.
Fairfield Park itself stretches along more than 600 m of Lake Ontario shoreline. The park is a popular picnicking area and is also well used by swimmers and scuba divers. Limestone shelf rock formations leading into the water simplify the launching and landing of kayaks and canoes although suitable facilities for larger watercraft do not exist. The park is home to many species of trees including red oak, poplar
Poplar
Populus is a genus of 25–35 species of deciduous flowering plants in the family Salicaceae, native to most of the Northern Hemisphere. English names variously applied to different species include poplar , aspen, and cottonwood....
, willow
Willow
Willows, sallows, and osiers form the genus Salix, around 400 species of deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere...
, shagbark hickory
Shagbark Hickory
Carya ovata, the Shagbark Hickory, is a common hickory in the eastern United States and southeast Canada. It is a large deciduous tree, growing up to 27 m tall, and will live up to 200 years. Mature Shagbarks are easy to recognize because, as their name implies, they have shaggy bark...
, ash, maple
Maple
Acer is a genus of trees or shrubs commonly known as maple.Maples are variously classified in a family of their own, the Aceraceae, or together with the Hippocastanaceae included in the family Sapindaceae. Modern classifications, including the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group system, favour inclusion in...
, cedar, linden
Tilia
Tilia is a genus of about 30 species of trees native throughout most of the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The greatest species diversity is found in Asia, and the genus also occurs in Europe and eastern North America, but not western North America...
, and spruce
Spruce
A spruce is a tree of the genus Picea , a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the Family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal regions of the earth. Spruces are large trees, from tall when mature, and can be distinguished by their whorled branches and conical...
. Extensive banks of lilac
Lilac
Syringa is a genus of about 20–25 species of flowering woody plants in the olive family , native to woodland and scrub from southeastern Europe to eastern Asia, and widely and commonly cultivated in temperate areas elsewhere....
provide flowers and fragrance in season and many of the larger trees in the park are fitted with strings of lights for display at Christmas.
Amherstview is also home to the Henderson Recreation Centre. The Centre houses a public library, a 25 m public swimming pool, and an arena and also includes an outdoor soccer field. The arena is the home rink for the Amherstview Jets
Amherstview Jets
The Amherstview Jets are a Canadian Junior ice hockey team based in Amherstview, Ontario, Canada. They play in the Empire B Junior C Hockey League of the Ontario Hockey Association.-History:...
hockey team.
Bath was first settled by the United Empire Loyalists in 1784. Bath is one of the oldest communities in Ontario. Bath was first settled by discharged soldiers from Jessup's Rangers. The economic development of the community was enabled by a sheltered harbour and road connections with Kingston stimulated economic development. By mid-century Bath was a prosperous point of trade.
After the town had been divided up between the families of Hawley, Davy, Rose and Amey, it was John Davy who was first to lay down roads on his lot #10. By 1804 the whole village had been prepared for settlement and surveyed. The village was incorporated in 1859. Every year on July 1 there is a Canada Day
Canada Day
Canada Day , formerly Dominion Day , is the national day of Canada, a federal statutory holiday celebrating the anniversary of the July 1, 1867, enactment of the British North America Act , which united three British colonies into a single country, called Canada, within the British Empire...
celebration featuring a parade and fair. The village was originally named Ernestown, but was renamed Bath in 1819 after the city in England. The town is the location of Millhaven Institution
Millhaven Institution
Millhaven Institution is a maximum security prison located in Bath, Ontario. Approximately 400 inmates are incarcerated at Millhaven. Opened in 1971, Millhaven was originally built to replace the area's other maximum security prison . A riot at Kingston Penitentiary forced Millhaven to open...
.
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
. The village is home to Ernestown Secondary School
Ernestown Secondary School
Ernestown Secondary School or ESS is a Canadian public, comprehensive school located in Odessa, Ontario, Canada. The school services about 650 students from Loyalist Township, Napanee and Stone Mills, Ontario. The town is in the eastern Ontario county of Lennox and Addington approximately 24...
, which services about 650 students from Loyalist Township, Napanee and Stone Mills
Stone Mills, Ontario
Stone Mills is a township located east of Greater Napanee in Lennox and Addington County, Ontario. According to the 2006 Canadian Census, the township has a population of 7,568.-Communities:...
. The highest point in the village is the water tower. Visible for several kilometers in all directions, the water tower has been outfitted as a wireless communications facility.
Stella and Emerald are located on Amherst Island. Stella is the major hamlet, where the ferry docks, and lends its name as the postal outlet name for the Island. Emerald is a collection of 4 houses and a church toward the west end of the Island. Amherst Island is located about 3 km offshore from the rest of Loyalist Township, and is serviced by an automobile and truck ferry from Millhaven. Amherst Island was farmed for generations by Irish tenants who rented from a Lord through his manager, and many residents are descendants of those early settlers. Today it has a small arts community, a number of volunteer civic groups, and a radio station, CJAI-FM, that add to the Island's special flavour.
Schools
Primary and secondary education is provided at a number of schools operated by either the Limestone District School Board or the Algonquin and Lakeshore Catholic District School Board. The nearest post-secondary education (community college and university) is in the adjacent city of KingstonKingston, Ontario
Kingston, Ontario is a Canadian city located in Eastern Ontario where the St. Lawrence River flows out of Lake Ontario. Originally a First Nations settlement called "Katarowki," , growing European exploration in the 17th Century made it an important trading post...
.
Culture
The Tragically HipThe Tragically Hip
The Tragically Hip, often referred to simply as The Hip, is a Canadian rock band from Kingston, Ontario, consisting of Gordon Downie , Paul Langlois , Rob Baker , Gord Sinclair and Johnny Fay . Since their formation in 1983 they have released 12 studio albums, two live albums, and 46 singles...
have a recording studio located in Bath called The Bathouse Recording Studio
The Bathouse Recording Studio
The Bathouse Recording Studio is a recording studio located in Bath, Ontario, Canada. It is owned and operated by the Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip. Many influential albums have been recorded by artists such as The Tragically Hip, Sam Roberts, Bruce Cockburn, Hugh Dillon Redemption Choir,...
. The band's lead singer, Gordon Downie
Gordon Downie
Gordon Edgar Downie is a Canadian rock musician, writer and occasional actor. He is the lead singer and lyricist for the Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip. He has released three solo albums, Coke Machine Glow in 2001, Battle of the Nudes in 2003; and The Grand Bounce in 2010...
, was born and raised in Amherstview and attended Amherstview Public School (AVPS).
A community radio station, CJAI-FM
CJAI-FM
CJAI-FM, known on air as Amherst Island Public Radio, is a radio station in Stella, Ontario, Canada. Broadcasting at 92.1 FM, the station airs a community radio format serving the Amherst Island region.-History:...
, broadcasts from Stella. The township is otherwise served by media from Kingston
Kingston, Ontario
Kingston, Ontario is a Canadian city located in Eastern Ontario where the St. Lawrence River flows out of Lake Ontario. Originally a First Nations settlement called "Katarowki," , growing European exploration in the 17th Century made it an important trading post...
.
Transportation
The township is served by provincial Highway 401Highway 401 (Ontario)
King's Highway 401, also known by its official name as the Macdonald–Cartier Freeway and colloquially as the four-oh-one, is a 400-Series Highway in the Canadian province of Ontario stretching from Windsor to the Quebec border...
and Highway 33
Highway 33 (Ontario)
King's Highway 33, commonly referred to as Highway 33, is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. The route begins at Highway 62 in Bloomfield and travels east to the Collins Bay Road junction at Collins Bay in the city of Kingston, a distance of...
.
Public transportation between Amherstview and Kingston is provided by Kingston Transit
Kingston Transit
Kingston Transit operates the transit service in Kingston, Ontario, Canada as well as to the neighbouring community of Amherstview, in Loyalist Township....
.
A toll ferry operates between Millhaven (on the mainland) and Stella (on Amherst Island
Amherst Island
Amherst Island is one of the Thousand Islands in Lake Ontario near Kingston, Ontario. The island is approximately 70 km² in size, measuring 16.5 km long and 7 km at its widest. It is part of Loyalist Township in Lennox and Addington County. The two main communities on the island are...
). As of June, 2011 the toll is $9 for a return trip ticket on a standard car or light truck. There is a nominal charge for bicycles and motorcycles while walk-on passengers are free.
Demographics
According to the Canada 2006 CensusCanada 2006 Census
The Canada 2006 Census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population. Census day was May 16, 2006. The next census following will be the 2011 Census. Canada's total population enumerated by the 2006 census was 31,612,897...
:
- Population: 15,062
- % Change (2001–2006): 3.2
- Area (km².): 340.02
- Density (persons per km².): 44.3
- Private dwellings occupied by usual residents: 5566 (total dwellings: 5814)
- Mother tongue:
- English as first language: 94.5 %
- French as first language: 2.1 %
- English and French as first language: 0.1 %
- Other as first language: 3.3 %
Population trend:
- Population in 2006: 15,062
- Population in 2001: 14,590
- Population in 1996:
- Amherst Island (township): 399
- Bath (village): 1,389
- Ernestown (township): 12,763
- Population in 1991:
- Amherst Island (township): 401
- Bath (village): 1,257
- Ernestown (township): 12,229