Norway, Ontario
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Norway, Ontario was a small community in what is today the eastern part of Toronto, Canada. The community grew up in the 1840s at a stagecoach stop along Kingston Road, which was then the main route connecting Toronto to Kingston, Ontario and the main east west land route through the colony. The community was then at a distance of about 5 miles from the city, in a still largely wooded area.
There is no evidence of Norwegian settlement in the area. Rather the name likely comes from the Norway Pines that dominated the region, and whose harvesting was one of the main industries for the community. The most prominent landowner in the area was Charles Coxwell Small, who tried strenuously to have the town named Berkley, after his hometown in Britain, but the name Norway stuck.
The village of Norway has long since been fully engulfed by the city of Toronto. Its name does persist in a number of places, including Norway Avenue, St. John the Baptist Norway Anglican Church, and the attached St. John's Cemetery Norway.
