Mongolia, Ontario
Encyclopedia
Mongolia is an historical community in Markham, Ontario
centred around 10th Line (Reesor Rd.) and Elgin Mills Rd. East, immediately south of the Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville. The hamlet lies completely within the expropriated federal Pickering Airport
lands and also within the proposed boundaries of a future national Rouge Park
.
, who acquired lot 265, conc. 9 in 1801 and lot 25, conc. 9 in 1803. Pennsylvania Dutch
(Mennonite
) families began to settle in the area in the 1820s. In 1824, a tavern licence was granted using the name California Corners.
During the Upper Canada Rebellion
, William Lyon Mackenzie
's troops apparently designated a large elm tree in Mongolia on Elgin Mills/ 18th Ave, between the conc. 9 and 10 as a rallying point. The Mackenzie's supporters raised a flag on the tree and drove a keg of spikes into the tree to prevent the opposition from cutting it down; the elm stood until 1973.
In 1865, David Nighswander (lot 25, conc. 10) requested a post office for the community, and chose the name "Mongolia" from a list of possible names after he was told the name "California" was already in use in Canada. The community had a general store, an inn (which burned down in 1870), a blacksmith shop, wagon-making shop, a cobbler shop, and a Temperance Hall. In the early years, school was held in the general store at the corners. In 1855, a wooden-frame school (S.S. #22) was built on the east side of the 10th Line on lot 26. In 1882, a new school was built on the west side of 10 Line on lot 26, and it remained in use until 1964. Beside the original schoolhouse was a Wesleyan Methodist church which existed for only short time; it was torn down and moved to conc. 9 in 1877.
When the rail lines to Stouffville and Claremont
by-passed Mongolia, the area reverted to farmland.
In March 1972, the federal government announced plans for a future international airport on the Pickering side of the York-Durham Line. The lands around Mongolia were expropriated for the Pickering Airport
. The last merchant in Mongolia closed his business on Dec. 31, 1974. Very few original families live in the area; most of the homes in Mongolia have been boarded or demolished. The land has been rented by the federal government to local farmers since expropriation.
that could also include the expropriated federal lands west of the York-Durham Line, including the land around Mongolia.
Markham, Ontario
Markham is a town in the Regional Municipality of York, located within the Greater Toronto Area of Southern Ontario, Canada. The population was 261,573 at the 2006 Canadian census...
centred around 10th Line (Reesor Rd.) and Elgin Mills Rd. East, immediately south of the Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville. The hamlet lies completely within the expropriated federal Pickering Airport
Pickering Airport
Pickering Airport is a proposed international airport for the Greater Toronto Area, to be located in the city of Pickering, Ontario, Canada, 50 kilometres north-east of downtown Toronto, and 65 kilometres east of Toronto Pearson International Airport...
lands and also within the proposed boundaries of a future national Rouge Park
Rouge Park
Rouge Park will become an urban national park located along the border of Toronto and Pickering, Ontario, Canada. It will be Canada's first national park within a municipality....
.
History
The first settler at Mongolia was Peter de Guerre (Degeer), 1772-1827, a French HuguenotHuguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
, who acquired lot 265, conc. 9 in 1801 and lot 25, conc. 9 in 1803. Pennsylvania Dutch
Pennsylvania Dutch
Pennsylvania Dutch refers to immigrants and their descendants from southwestern Germany and Switzerland who settled in Pennsylvania in the 17th and 18th centuries...
(Mennonite
Mennonite
The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations named after the Frisian Menno Simons , who, through his writings, articulated and thereby formalized the teachings of earlier Swiss founders...
) families began to settle in the area in the 1820s. In 1824, a tavern licence was granted using the name California Corners.
During the Upper Canada Rebellion
Upper Canada Rebellion
The Upper Canada Rebellion was, along with the Lower Canada Rebellion in Lower Canada, a rebellion against the British colonial government in 1837 and 1838. Collectively they are also known as the Rebellions of 1837.-Issues:...
, William Lyon Mackenzie
William Lyon Mackenzie
William Lyon Mackenzie was a Scottish born American and Canadian journalist, politician, and rebellion leader. He served as the first mayor of Toronto, Upper Canada and was an important leader during the 1837 Upper Canada Rebellion.-Background and early years in Scotland, 1795–1820:Mackenzie was...
's troops apparently designated a large elm tree in Mongolia on Elgin Mills/ 18th Ave, between the conc. 9 and 10 as a rallying point. The Mackenzie's supporters raised a flag on the tree and drove a keg of spikes into the tree to prevent the opposition from cutting it down; the elm stood until 1973.
In 1865, David Nighswander (lot 25, conc. 10) requested a post office for the community, and chose the name "Mongolia" from a list of possible names after he was told the name "California" was already in use in Canada. The community had a general store, an inn (which burned down in 1870), a blacksmith shop, wagon-making shop, a cobbler shop, and a Temperance Hall. In the early years, school was held in the general store at the corners. In 1855, a wooden-frame school (S.S. #22) was built on the east side of the 10th Line on lot 26. In 1882, a new school was built on the west side of 10 Line on lot 26, and it remained in use until 1964. Beside the original schoolhouse was a Wesleyan Methodist church which existed for only short time; it was torn down and moved to conc. 9 in 1877.
When the rail lines to Stouffville and Claremont
Claremont, Ontario
Claremont is a Southern Ontario community located in the north part of the City of Pickering, Ontario, Canada.It is one of many rural villages with suburban type housing mixed with older, historic buildings in the Greater Toronto Area. Brock Road, the main north-south Regional road in the area was...
by-passed Mongolia, the area reverted to farmland.
In March 1972, the federal government announced plans for a future international airport on the Pickering side of the York-Durham Line. The lands around Mongolia were expropriated for the Pickering Airport
Pickering Airport
Pickering Airport is a proposed international airport for the Greater Toronto Area, to be located in the city of Pickering, Ontario, Canada, 50 kilometres north-east of downtown Toronto, and 65 kilometres east of Toronto Pearson International Airport...
. The last merchant in Mongolia closed his business on Dec. 31, 1974. Very few original families live in the area; most of the homes in Mongolia have been boarded or demolished. The land has been rented by the federal government to local farmers since expropriation.
Future: Rouge National Park
In 2011 the federal government announced plans for a national Rouge ParkRouge Park
Rouge Park will become an urban national park located along the border of Toronto and Pickering, Ontario, Canada. It will be Canada's first national park within a municipality....
that could also include the expropriated federal lands west of the York-Durham Line, including the land around Mongolia.