Kinmount

Old mill in Kinmount

Kinmount is a village with a population of approximately 500, located on the Burnt River in Ontario, Canada. The village is now part of the City of Trent Lakes, but was formerly part of the City of Kawartha Lakes. The village's hinterland covers large sections of both Haliburton and Peterborough counties for which it is a shopping and cultural centre. Prior to the formation of the City of Kawartha Lakes, Kinmount was the seat of Somerville Township.

Economy

The economy of Kinmount once relied on forestry but is now primarily based on tourism. The village is an important source of supplies for summer cottagers in the area and, consequently, becomes nearly dormant in winter. One of Kinmount's primary businesses and tourist draws is the Highland Cinemas — a first-run movie theatre with a movie poster and equipment museum.

The local post office, at 4078 County Rd 121, offers lock boxes and services one rural delivery route.

History

Kinmount was originally named Burnt River (a name now used by a nearby village), after the river which flows through the village. In 1859, it was renamed Kinmount by Mrs. Malcolm Bell, after Kinmount, Scotland.^[1]

Kinmount is notable for being one of the first sites of Icelandic settlement in Canada. Although the group moved to Manitoba after two years, their story is told and their presence commemorated by an Ontario Historical Plaque.^[2] A memorial paying tribute to the early settlers was erected there in September 2000. Over 500 people gathered for the dedication including the Foreign Minister of Iceland and the Deputy Prime Minister of Canada.

The Victoria Railway connected Kinmount with Lindsay and Haliburton. The line was absorbed by Canadian National Railways as the Haliburton subdivision. Passenger service ceased in 1960, freight service ended in 1978 and the line was abandoned in 1981.

Kinmount most recently gained national attention in the summer of 2004, when it became the first Ontario village to actively canvas a family physician to move to the community. The grass-roots campaign included leaflets, posters, and newspaper ads throughout the province.

Attractions

The Kinmount Fair is held annually on the Labour Day weekend.

See also

• List of communities in Ontario

References

External links

• Kinmount Memorial and History
• Official Kinmount website

Coordinates: 44°47′N 78°39′W / 44.783°N 78.650°W / 44.783; -78.650

City of Kawartha Lakes City seat: Lindsay Towns Lindsay Villages and unincorporated communities Ancona Point Argyle Avery Point Baddow Baker Trail Ballyduff Barclay Bellevue Bethany Bethel Bobcaygeon1 Bolsover Burnt River Burton Cambray Cameron Coboconk Dalrymple Dartmoor Daytonia Beach Dongola Downeyville Dunsford Emily Eldon Station Feir Mill Fenelon Falls Fowlers Corners Fleetwood Glenarm Greenhurst-Thurstonia Hartley Head Lake Janetville Kinmount1 Kirkfield Little Britain Long Beach Long Point Lorneville Manilla1 Manvers Mariposa Station Mariposa Norland Oakwood Omemee Pontypool Ragged Rapids Rokeby Rosedale Sadowa St. Mary's Sebright Sturgeon Point Uphill Valentia Verulam Park Victoria Road View Lake Woodville Former townships Bexley Carden Dalton Laxton, Digby and Longford Eldon Emily Fenelon Manvers Mariposa Ops Somerville Verulam Major lakes Trent River Shadow Lake Silver Lake Four Mile Lake Balsam Lake Cameron Lake Sturgeon Lake Lake Scugog Pigeon Lake Talbot River Canal Lake Mitchell Lake Talbot Lake Severn River Lake Dalrymple Cranberry Lake Head Lake Fishog Lake Topics List of roads Victoria County 1) This area lies on the border of an adjacent region, but is part of the Kawartha Lakes census.