Dunnville, Ontario

"Dunnville" redirects here. For the small towns in the United States, see Dunnville, Kentucky and Dunnville, Wisconsin.
Dunnville
Former Town
Town of Dunnville
Motto: Grand Living in a Great Town
Coordinates: 42°54′10″N 79°37′00″W / 42.90278°N 79.61667°W / 42.90278; -79.61667Coordinates: 42°54′10″N 79°37′00″W / 42.90278°N 79.61667°W / 42.90278; -79.61667
Country  Canada
Province  Ontario
Single-tier Municipality Haldimand
Incorporated as Village of Dunnville January 1st, 1860
Incorporated as Town of Dunnville 1900
Joined Haldimand County January 1st, 2001
Government
 • Mayor of Haldimand Ken Hewitt
 • Governing Body The Council of Corporation of Haldimand County
 • Ward 6 (Dunnville) Councillor Lorne Boyko
 • MP Diane Finley (Conservative)
 • MPP Toby Barrett (PC)
Area
 • Former Town 7.65 km2 (2.95 sq mi)
Elevation 183 m (600 ft)
Population (2011)
 • Former Town 5,789
 • Density 756.3/km2 (1,959/sq mi)
 • Metro 44,876
Demonym(s) Dunnvilian
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC−5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC−4)
Postal codes N1A
Area code(s) 905, 289, 365
Dunnville

Dunnville (Cayuga: Detgahneka:ˀgo:wah [1]) is an unincorporated community located near the mouth of the Grand River in Haldimand County, Ontario, Canada, near the historic Talbot Trail. It was formerly an incorporated town encompassing the surrounding area with a total population of 12,000.

History

General overview

Dunnville was the site of a Cayuga settlement called Detgahnegaha'gó:wah.[2]

The European settlement was originally built as the entrance to the Welland "feeder" canal and the town once boasted several water-powered mills and a once-bustling canal port. The feeder canal closed in the late 1880s and the last mill was destroyed and replaced with a condominium complex about ten years ago.

There is an impassable dam at Dunnville which regulates the level of the Grand River at Port Maitland which, in the 19th century, also helped regulate the level of the Welland Canal (from 1829 until 1887 when the (3rd) canal began to intake its water directly from lake Erie).

Dunnville was incorporated as a village in 1860 and then as a town in 1900. In 1974, the town amalgamated with the townships of Dunn, Canborough, Moulton and Sherbrooke when the Regional Municipality of Haldimand-Norfolk was formed. In 2001, Dunnville and all other municipalities within the region were dissolved and the region was divided into two single tier municipalities with city-status but called counties. What was the incorporated town of Dunnville now consists of Wards 5 and 6 in Haldimand County.

Census Population
1871 1,452
1881 1,808
1891 1,776
1901 2,105
1911 2,861
1921 3,224
1931 3,405
1941 4,028
1951 4,478
1961 5,181
1971 5,576
1981 11,353
1991 12,131
2001 5,686
2006 5,729
2011 5,789

Only a few kilometres from Lake Erie, Dunnville has many private vacation properties.

The Mud Cat of Dunnville

There are many events and natural attractions. In June the annual Mudcat Festival is held to celebrate one of the Grand River's most well-known inhabitants. The festival includes a parade, strongman contests, midway, and fireworks. Another popular event is the Dunnville Agricultural Fair, held in late August which includes heavy, light and miniature horse shows, sheep and goat shows.

Dunnville has tennis, golf, lawn bowling and swimming facilities and many Bed & Breakfasts and camp sites to stay in. Tuesday and Saturday are Farmers Market days.

The former World War II RCAF Training Base, the Dunnville Airport, offers a unique window on history with its massive hangars and runways. Previously used for recreational flying and skydiving, the runways now boast six large wind-turbine power generators.[3] The airport is also home to Haldimand County's newest museum, the No. 6 RCAF Dunnville Museum.

The Grand River and nearby Lake Erie offers aquatic activities including swimming, sailing, wind-surfing, canoeing and features prime locations for fishing.

Nearby are Byng Island Conservation Area, Rock Point Provincial Park, and Port Maitland's new pier. In the fall, Rock Point hosts thousands of Monarch butterflies heading south. Dunnville is also the site of one of the largest expanses of provincially significant wetlands in Ontario; bird watching and nature photography are practised there.

Smuckers Foods of Canada Co., which operates the Bick's Pickle Plant (Dunnville's largest factory), provides employment for a small percentage of the town's population, mainly students. In 2001 Bick's head office facility in Scarborough, Ontario was shut down and operations were transferred to the Dunnville location. The Bick's facility in Dunnville closed at the end of November 2011.

This community is the easternmost city that belongs to the Green Energy Hub of Southern Ontario.

2009 Grand River flood

On February 13, 2009 the Grand River flooded when the river ice thawed, damaging Cayuga and Dunnville.[4] On February 14, 2009, the CCGC Griffon proceeded up the river to help clear ice.

Notable residents

Amenities

Schools

Service clubs

Optimist Club, Dunnville, ON

References

  1. ↑ "Cayuga: Our Oral Legacy - Home. Cayuga Digital Dictionary". Retrieved 2012-05-27.
  2. ↑ Carrie Dick. Personal correspondence. Op. cit. GeoNative. "Iroquois: Mohawk, Cayuga, Wyandot". 1 Jan 1999. Accessed 20 Apr 2012.
  3. ↑ Wind Turbines Close Flight Operations at Historical Dunnville Airport
  4. ↑ Cathy Pelletier (2010-02-10). "The Flood --One Year Later". Dunnville Chronicle. Archived from the original on 2010-02-21. It was Friday the 13th, 2009 when the Grand River awakened from its winter hibernation and began to unleash an unprovoked assault upon its neighbours. Melting snow and the accumulation of waters flowing into the 300-km length of the Grand suddenly, and without warning, spelled disaster for Cayuga and Dunnville. A repeated cycle of ice jams and releases caused the crest of the water to rise and fall, spilling over the banks at various locations. Very early in the morning, the water began its considerable, rapid ascent in Cayuga, and emergency personnel embarked upon what would become a very long, intensive rescue effort.
  5. ↑ Poitras, Cameron. "Pete DeBoer fired by Devils". CBC Sports. The Associated Press. Retrieved 16 May 2015.

External links

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