Hastings County

For other uses, see Hastings (disambiguation).
Hastings County
County (upper-tier)
County of Hastings

Coat of arms
Motto: Communities With Opportunities

Hastings County
Coordinates: 44°45′N 77°35′W / 44.750°N 77.583°W / 44.750; -77.583Coordinates: 44°45′N 77°35′W / 44.750°N 77.583°W / 44.750; -77.583
Country  Canada
Province  Ontario
County seat Belleville
Municipalities
Area[1]
 • Land 5,291.05 km2 (2,042.89 sq mi)
Population (2011)[1]
 • Total 39,888
 • Density 7.5/km2 (19/sq mi)
Time zone EST (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
Website www.hastingscounty.com
The northern portion of Hastings County is characterized by the rugged landscape of the Madawaska Highlands.

Hastings County is located in the province of Ontario, Canada. It is The Cheese Capital of Canada.[2] Geographically, it is located on the border of Eastern Ontario and Central Ontario. Hastings County is the second largest county in Ontario. The county seat is Belleville, which is independent of Hastings County.

Subdivisions

The 14 municipalities within the county are:

The Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory is within the Hastings census division but is independent of the county. The cities of Belleville and Quinte West are separated municipalities, falling within the boundaries of the county and included in the Hastings census division, but not under the administration of the county government.

History

The first boundaries of Hastings County were established 1792 by Lieutenant-Governor John Graves Simcoe. The southern boundary was the Bay of Quinte, the eastern boundary was Lennox County and the western boundary ran from the Trent River to the Ottawa River, in a triangular shape. The County consisted of Sidney, Thurlow, Rawdon, Huntingdon and Hungerford townships as well as the Mohawk Tract. The area was named for Francis Rawdon-Hastings.

Three new townships; Elzevir, Madoc and Marmora were created in 1821 and on Monday, October 1, 1821 the first Hastings County fair was held in Belleville . The largest prize paid was to Captain Daniel Ostrom of Sydney at $20 and Ruliff Purdy of Sidney received the most prizes totaling $106.50.

While in this time agriculture was the most important industry in Hastings County, by 1822 (when the Marmora Iron Works was approaching its peak production) mining was playing an increasingly more important role in the area's economy.

Prominent citizens of Hastings County and Ameliasburgh Township unsuccessfully petitioned the provincial government for district status during 1817, 1818, 1823 and 1825. After Prince Edward County successfully achieved its own government in 1831, Hastings County continued to send petitions throughout the 30s before finally achieving the status of a separate district in March 1837. Belleville was named the county's District Town.

From 1839 until 1849, Hastings County was renamed Victoria District after Queen Victoria. By 1841 the district had access to local courts but no local government was in place. On February 8, 1842 the Victoria District's first council met under warden William Hutton. During much of this time roads and bridges were the most important issues the council dealt with.

Edward Fidlar became the first warden of Hastings County with their first meeting on January 28, 1850. By this time the Hastings County Council was also interested in education and the building of the railroad.

On October 27, 1856 the first railroad train arrived in Belleville and by 1864 around 100 people were employed by the railroad.

In August 1866, discovery of gold at Eldorado, near Madoc, caused great excitement throughout Hastings County as people flooded to the area from all over North America. The railroads and 170 miles (270 km) of good gravel roads opened these areas to settlement by 1880.

In 1889 the Belleville Waterworks was created as a private company, which was then bought by the city of Belleville in 1889. In 1911, Hastings County was the first in the province to appoint a reforestation committee, which was instrumental in passing laws around county forests. Postal service began in the area in 1913.[3]

Demographics

The figures below are for the Hastings census division, which combines Hastings County, Belleville and Quinte West, along with the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory.

Historic populations:[5]

Transportation

The county is served by Highway 401 in the south, Highway 7, a leg of the Trans-Canada Highway, in the central region, Highways 62 and 37 travelling north to south, Highway 28 travelling east to west in the northern region, and Highway 127 travelling north from Maynooth, also in the northern region.

County Council

Hastings County offices in downtown Belleville.

Warden: Rick Phillips
Town of Bancroft: Bernice Jenckins
Hastings Highlands: Vivian Bloom
Township of Carlow/Mayo: Bonnie Adams
Municipality of Centre Hastings: Owen Ketcheson
Town of Deseronto: Norm Clark
Township of Faraday: Carl Tinney
Township of Limerick: David Golem
Township of Madoc: Bob Sager
Municipality of Marmora & Lake: Terry Clemens
Township of Stirling/Rawdon: Rodney Cooney
Municipality of Tweed: Jo-Anne Albert
Township of Tudor & Cashel: Wanda Donaldson
Township of Tyendinaga: Rick Phillips
Township of Wollaston: Dan McCaw

Education

Currently Hastings & Prince Edward District School Board operates public schools.

Previously Hastings County Board of Education operated public schools.

Emergency Services

There are 5 EMS stations in Hastings County with Hastings-Quinte EMS HQ located in Belleville, Ontario.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Hastings County census profile". 2011 Census of Population. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 2012-03-15.
  2. ↑ [Canada Trade-marks database]http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/app/cipo/trademarks/search/viewTrademark.do;jsessionid=0000CzSOb6qLbZXZVnZSGlkkb0T:1247nfca5?language=eng&fileNumber=0907592&extension=0&startingDocumentIndexOnPage=1
  3. ↑ Historic Hastings by Gerald E. Boyce
  4. ↑ "2006 Community Profiles". Canada 2006 Census. Statistics Canada. March 30, 2011. Retrieved 2012-03-15.
  5. 1 2 "2001 Community Profiles". Canada 2001 Census. Statistics Canada. February 17, 2012. Retrieved 2012-03-15.

Further reading

External links

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