IMC-080
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File
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1932-1944
Part of Isolated manuscripts collection
Elements area
Taxonomy
Code
Scope note(s)
- The Town of Lindsay is located twenty-seven miles west of Peterborough, on the Scugog River in Ops Township. It is the county town of Victoria County. The Township of Ops was surveyed in 1825 by Colonel Duncan McDonell and Lots 20 and 21 in the 5th Concession were reserved for a town site. The same year settlers began to come to the region and by 1827, the Purdy's, an American family, built a dam on the Scugog River at the site of present-day Lindsay. The following year they built a sawmill and in 1830, a grist mill was constructed. A small village grew up around the mills and it was known as Purdy's Mills. In 1834, surveyor John Huston plotted the designated townsite into streets and lots. During the survey, one of Huston's assistants, Mr. Lindsay, was accidently shot in the leg and died of an infection. He was buried on the river bank and his name and death were recorded on the surveyor's plan. The name Lindsay remained as the name of the town by government approval. Lindsay grew steadily and developed into a lumbering and farming centre. With the arrival of the Lindsay/Port Hope Railway in 1857, the town saw a period of rapid development and industrial growth. On June 19 of the same year, Lindsay was formally incorporated as a town. In 1861, a fire swept through the town and most of Lindsay was detroyed with hundreds of people left homeless. It took many years for Lindsay to recover from this disaster. Today Lindsay is a well established town, situated within an agricultural community. Due to the town's close proximity to several lakes, Lindsay is often referred to as the
Source note(s)
- Taken from: Mika, Nick and Helma. "Places in Ontario." Belleville: Mika Publishing Company, 1981.