Centreton, Ontario

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Centreton is an unincorporated community in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is located in the Township of Alnwick/Haldimand, in Northumberland County. Centreton has a population of about 130 people, with little fluctuation in the past 100 years. During the 1800s the population was around 250 and during that time two saw mills were operated in the village, processing the virgin stands in the area. When the saw mills closed, the population declined. At one point the village contained 2 churches, 2 sawmills, a one room school house and a general store. At the present, only one of the churches is left (the other having burnt down long ago) and is used as the community hall and Centreton Public Library. The school house is now a private residence, and the saw mills have gone, although there is still some logging done in the Northumberland Forest north of the village. The Centreton General Store is presently open at the location of the original (which burnt in the early 1900s) and as well as Centreton Farm and Sport, which fixes tractors and sells snowmobiles.

Centreton has always been a farming community and there are still many farms operating in the area. In the past, the large majority of farms in the area grew tobacco, but after the market declined in the mid 1980s, the local farms switched to other crops and produce. There is a large hydroponic greenhouse growing tomatoes just west of the village as well as many farms growing corn, soya beans, and cereals.