- History of Markham, Ontario
When Upper and
Lower Canada were established in1791 , ColonelJohn Graves Simcoe was appointed the first Lieutenant-Governor ofUpper Canada . Simcoe named the Township ofMarkham, Ontario , north of the Town of York (now Toronto), after his friend William Markham, theArchbishop of York .Markham Township was originally surveyed in 1793-94, but not until
1801 was the township divided into 10 concession roads (now named streets with various designations) running north and south, with six sideroads running east/west (now numbered avenues or named streets).Here are just some of the concession and sideroads from the survey:
List of concession and sideroads in Markham, Ontario Eventually, the boundaries of Markham occupied the area, as follows:
* NORTH: Whitchurch Town Line (Between 19th Avenue and Stouffville Side Road)
* SOUTH: Scarborough Town Line (Steeles Avenue )
* EAST: Pickering Town Line
* WEST: Vaughan Town Line (Yonge Street )The boundaries of present day Markham are as follows:
Beginning at the southeastern corner, the boundary stretches northward along the York-Durham Line until approximately one half concession between 19th Avenue and Stouffville Side Road.
The boundary continues westward until it reaches highway 404, where it runs in a southerly direction until intersecting Regional Road Seven, (formerly King's Highway 7.) From this point it stretches westward following Langstaff Road until Yonge Street, and travels south until Steeles Avenue East.
The Southern border straddles the centre line of Steeles Avenue East until it reaches the town's southeastern corner at the York-Durham Line. All boundaries and concessions are straight lines at slightly more than a right angle to each other, forming a geographical area roughly in the shape of two connected parallelograms.
In 1794,
William Berczy led 75 German families fromNew York State to Markham Township, an area know as German Mills today. Each family was granted 200 acres (0.8 km²). Because of hardships, many returned to York and Niagara and the area became a ghost town. In 1797, because of the revolution in France in1789 , many nobility fled the country and set off for Canada to take advantage of free land grants in Upper Canada. They were totally unprepared for survival under such crude conditions and most of them returned to their homeland.From
1803 to1812 , the largest group of settlers were Pennsylvania Germans, most of whom wereMennonites . These highly skilled craftsmen and knowledgeable farmers had the best chance for survival because they had already survived harsh conditions in Pennsylvania. From1830 on, many Irish, Scottish and English emigrated to Upper Canada to escape the famine and overpopulation of their homeland.Markham's early years blended the rigours of homesteading with the development of agriculture-based industries. The many rivers and streams in the Township soon supported water-powered saw and grist mills and, later, woollen mills. With improved transportation routes, such as
Yonge Street and the growing population, urbanization increased. By1857 most of the Township had been cleared of timber and was under cultivation. Villages like Thornhill, Unionville and Markham greatly expanded and new, specialized industries such as wagon works, tanneries, farm implement and furniture factories sprang up.In
1871 , theToronto and Nipissing Railway Company, with stations in Unionville and Markham, officially opened its line from Scarborough to Uxbridge. Initially, the railway brought renewed prosperity and rapid development. Farmers and millers had a more convenient means of transporting their products to Toronto. Other merchants had easier access to supplies and business boomed.The first form of structured municipal government occurred in
1850 when the Township of Markham was created. On November 20,1872 , the Warden of York County signed the By-law of Incorporation, which provided for the election of a Council for the Village of Markham. The Village of Markham grew to a population of 1100 by1891 .The increased communication with Toronto brought on by the railway and further enhanced by the development of the telegraph, the telephone and the automobile, ultimately led to the demise of the villages in the Township after the turn of the century. Local industries were simply unable to compete with the larger manufacturers and suppliers of Toronto, and Markham soon reverted to a quiet, rural community.
Post War Growth
From
1945 onward, the face of Markham began to change rapidly. It was no longer a community whose inhabitants worked mainly within the area. It evolved into a fast-growingsuburb , where the majority of its residents commuted into Toronto. As a result, rural Markham disappeared in the face of tremendous urban growth.By
1969 , the Township of Markham consisted of several villages, including Markham, Unionville, and parts of Thornhill. In1971 , the Regional Municipality of York was established by the Government of Ontario. Northern portions of Markham Township were annexed to the municipalities of Richmond Hill and Whitchurch-Stouffville, while the balance of Markham Township was incorporated in the Town of Markham and the present town boundaries set.Modern Growth
In
1976 , Markham's population was approximately 56,000. Since that time, the population has more than quadrupled. Explosive growth in new subdivisions has led to a jump in population since the 1980s. Much of Markham's farm land has disappeared, now found well north of 16th Avenue. Concerns from environmentalist and concerns with the future of theOak Ridges Moraine will impact the extent of growth of the northern portion of Markham.At present Markham comprises several distinct communities: Markham Village, Cornell, Unionville, Wismer Commons, Milliken and Thornhill. Since the 1980s the town has been recognized as a
suburb of Toronto, though it has an independent economy. Many high-tech industries have located in Markham for the relative abundance of land, low tax rates and good transportation routes.ATI Technologies ,IBM Canada,Apple Computer Canada,Motorola Canada and many other well-known companies have chosen Markham as their home in Canada. Hence, the town has beenbrand ing itself as Canada's "High-Tech Capital".External links
* [http://www.markham.ca/mpl/history/index.htm The Story of Markham]
* [http://www.markham.ca/Markham/Heritage/History.htm A History of the Town of Markham]
* [http://www.markham.ca/Markham/Heritage/LACAC.htm Heritage Conservation Districts in Markham]
* [http://markhamvillage-postcardviews.blogspot.com/ Markham Village - Postcard Views]
* [http://www.markham.ca/mpl/Hot%20Topics/ht_heritage_week.htm Heritage Week - Markham Village]
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