The History of Brockville

Human inhabitation of the upper St. Lawrence River dates at least to the late Middle Woodland period by the Point Peninsula people. Iron oxide pictographs on rock faces have been documented on the Fulford property in Brockville and at Hillcrest west of Brockville. From around 1450 until sometime in the 1500s, the St. Lawrence Iroquoians established a cluster of palisaded agricultural villages in the vicinity of Brockville and Prescott, the Roebuck site being the best known. By 1751, the Oswegatchie people had occupied the north shore of the St. Lawrence between Toniato Creek (now known as Jones Creek, in Thousand Islands National Park) and the Long Sault. After negotiations with the British, they withdrew from the frontage on the north shore of the St. Lawrence in 1784, resettling at what is now Lisbon, New York. By 1830, the population of Brockville exceeded 1,000. This entitled it to be represented by its own elected member in the House of Assembly. Henry Jones, the village postmaster, was elected in October 1830 to the 11th Parliament of the Province. Brockville became Ontario's first incorporated self-governing town on January 28, 1832, two years before the town of Toronto. After the passing of the Brockville Police Act, passed by the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada, Brockville was granted the power to govern its own affairs, pass laws, and raise taxes. The first elections for the new Board of Police were held on April 2, 1832, when four male citizens were elected to the Police Board. These four, in turn, chose a fifth member, Daniel Jones, who became the first Police Board President (or Mayor) of Brockville. In March 1836, he became the first native Upper Canadian to receive a knighthood for services to the Crown. By 1846, the population was 2,111. This growth was accompanied by the construction of many buildings made of stone and brick. There was a County courthouse and Jail, six churches or chapels, and a steamboat pier for travel to and from Montreal and Kingston. Two newspapers were published, two bank agencies were established, and the post office received mail daily. Several court and government departments had offices here. The first industries consisted of one grist mill, four tanneries, two asheries and four wagon makers, in addition to tradespeople of various types. Later in the 19th century, the town developed as a local centre of industry, including shipbuilding, saddleries, tanneries, tinsmiths, a foundry, a brewery, and several hotels. By 1854, a patent medicine industry had sprung up in Brockville and Morristown, New York, across the Saint Lawrence River, featuring such products as Dr Morse's Indian Root Pills, Dr. McKenzie's Worm Tablets, and later, Dr. Williams' Pink Pills for Pale People. In 1855, Brockville was chosen as a divisional point of the new Grand Trunk Railway between Montreal and Toronto. This contributed to its growth, as it could offer jobs in railway maintenance and related fields. At the same time, the north–south line of the Brockville and Ottawa Railway was built to join the timber trade of the Ottawa Valley with the Saint Lawrence River ship route. A well-engineered tunnel for this railway was dug and blasted underneath the middle of Brockville. Completed in December 1860, the Brockville Tunnel was the first railway tunnel built in Canada. Brockville and many other towns in Canada West were targets of the threatened Fenian invasion after the American Civil War ended in 1865. In June 1866, the Irish-American Brotherhood of Fenians invaded Canada. They launched raids across the Niagara River into Canada West (Ontario) and from Vermont into Canada East (Quebec). Canadian Prime Minister John A. Macdonald called upon the volunteer militia companies in every town to protect Canada. The Brockville Infantry Company and the Brockville Rifle Company (now The Brockville Rifles) were mobilized. The unsuccessful Fenian Raids were a catalyst that contributed to the creation of the new confederated Canada in 1867. By 1869, Brockville had a population of 5000 and a passenger station on the Grand Trunk Railway. It was the County Town of the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville and a Port of Entry. Steamboats stopped in Brockville daily while plying among Montreal, Kingston, Toronto and Hamilton. The Brockville and Ottawa Railway connected Brockville with Smith's Falls, Perth, Almonte, Carleton Place and Sand Point. During the summer, a steam ferry plied every half-hour between Brockville and Morristown, New York. In 1962, Brockville was granted official status as a city. Its coat of arms featured a beehive surrounded by a golden chain and bears the motto Industria, Intelligentia, Prosperitas. This is an official heraldic design. Brockville is one of the few Canadian cities to have a recognized heraldic flag. <!--Expand - 20th century to present -->

Source: Wikipedia