Ayr, Ontario
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The village of Ayr, Ontario, Canada is a settlement located within the Township of North Dumfries in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo in Southwestern Ontario. Ayr is located south of Kitchener, Ontario and west of Cambridge, Ontario.
In 1824, Abel Mudge (son of Elijah Mudge Sr) constructed a sawmill and flour mill at the junction of Cedar Creek and the Nith River (building at 14 Northumberland St., Ayr, Ontario). This was the first of three distinct settlements, Jedburgh in the east (Main St.), Nithvale in the west (Piper St.) and Mudge's Mill in the centre (Stanley /Northumberland Streets) in what is today the Village of Ayr.
Jedburgh began in 1832 when John Hall, a young immigrant from Jedburgh, Scotland, purchased a 75 acre parcel of land that included the area now flooded by Jedburgh Dam. By 1850 Hall had developed several industries, including a flour mill, saw mill and distillery with water power provided by the damming of Cedar Creek. At the same time a smaller settlement, Nithvale, was founded to the west of Mudge's Mill where a small saw mill opened along the Nith River, it's claim on history being that in 1837 it was a meeting and drilling place for MacKenzie's followers just prior to the Upper Canada Rebellion.
In 1840, following keen rivalry among the three settlements, the name "Ayr" appeared for the first time when Robert Wyllie established a post office. The name was likely due to the large number of former Ayrshire, Scotland immigrants who were drawn to Canada by promises of inexpensive, fertile land, made by the major landholder of the district, William Dickson.
In 1846-47 Daniel Manley's mill was built, William Baker's store was established and John Watson's foundry constructed with Watson's Dam its power reservoir. These three key businesses played large roles in Ayr's early success as did the coming of the Credit Valley Railway in 1879. In 1850 Ayr's first library was established and James Somerville began the first Ayr newspaper in 1854.
The John Watson Manufacturing Company, started in 1848 as the Ayr Machinery Works, quickly gained a reputation as an aggressive and innovative agricultural implements manufacturer. In the early 1880's, the company built an impressive four storey building that was, at that time, the largest agricultural works in Canada. When the factory was built, Watson's was at the pinnacle of its success, winning awards for its products all around the world. In 1920, a fire destroyed the factory and never truly recovered from this disaster. The present two-storey factory was rebuilt from the remains of the original facility and although they carried on a successful business, it never compared to its former self.
The Village of Ayr was incorporated in 1884 at which time John Watson was appointed reeve. On January 1st, 1973, Ayr was amalgamated with the North Dumfries Township, Regional Municipality of Waterloo.
Major highways in the area include Highway 401. Ayr was originally an agricultural centre and maintains several businesses related to agriculture in the present. The community is rapidly expanding as sub-divisions are added to provide housing for people working in Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge.
Ayr has a hockey arena, a local newspaper (The Ayr News) that is owned by the Schmidt family, a veterinary clinic (Ayr Animal Hospital), a CIBC bank branch, a Little Short Stop convenience store, as well as a variety of small businesses. The town is home to three elementary schools. Ayr Public School was the original school, and in recent years, St. Brigid Catholic School and Cedar Creek Public School have been added to service the town's growing population. The town does not have a secondary school, so students attend Southwood Secondary School or Monsignor Doyle Catholic Secondary School in Cambridge. While the town is growing rapidly, there is still no bus service in Ayr to/from the larger cities.
Since 2001 Ayr has hosted the Fresh Ayr Festival[1], an annual family celebration set in the heart of the Village of Ayr. This is a community-supported event held each year on the third Saturday of June. The Fresh Ayr Festival focuses on the diverse Village of Ayr, showcasing great local entertainment and art.
Ayr is home to the Ayr Centennials, a junior hockey team that plays in the Southern Ontario Junior Hockey League.
[edit] TV and Movies
Sketches of Our Town, a half-hour Canadian documentary series from the mid 80s, featured Ayr in one of their episodes.
The 2003 movie Cold Creek Manor, starring Dennis Quaid, Sharon Stone, Stephen Dorff and Juliette Lewis, was filmed in Ayr, as were some scene's in 2003's How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days. Blood & Guts, a Paul Lynch film from 1978 had scenes shot in the tavern in Ayr.*(IMDb.com)
