Salem | |
---|---|
Compact Rural Community | |
Coordinates: 43°41′36″N80°26′49″W / 43.69333°N 80.44694°W [1] | |
Country | Canada |
Province | Ontario |
County | Wellington County |
Township | Centre Wellington |
Elevation | 400 m (1,300 ft) |
Time zone | UTC-5 (EST) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
Forward sortation area | |
Area code(s) | 519, 226, 548 |
NTS Map | 040P09 |
GNBC Code | FDTDG |
Salem is a compact rural community and unincorporated place in the incorporated township of Centre Wellington, Wellington County, in southwestern Ontario, Canada. [1] [3] [4]
Salem was founded by Sem Wissler. Wissler purchased the land (in what was then Nichol Township) [5] : 175 for the settlement in 1844, with the first building being constructed in 1845. He was born in Clay Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania and participated in the Pennsylvania German migration to Waterloo County, Ontario which occurred in the early 19th century. Wissler, of German descent, married a relative of one of the Scottish settlers of nearby Bon Accord. He considered Irvine Creek to have potential and chose land near to it to settle. [6]
By the 1850s, a businessman named William Tamblyn was active, operating a lime kiln and constructing a number of buildings. He opened a brewery at Salem in 1857 or 1858, which was eventually taken over by Conrad Doerbecker in 1865. A German-born professional brewer, Doerbecker may have previously operated the brewery for Tamblyn. Doerbecker produced lighter, lager-style beers which competed with the English-style ales produced by the brewery in Elora. [7]
Doerbecker, who also owned a brick-making business, soon had a new brewery building constructed in 1867 out of brick. The brewing business in Salem went through significant changes over the next few decades, as Doerbecker at first sold his brewery to a former employee named Jacob Reuter in 1868, before opening a new brewery, known as the Irvine Brewery, in 1872. The two competed alongside the Dalby brewery in Elora. [7]
Doerbecker (and later his son, Mike) sought to expand to a regional market in Waterloo and Wellington counties, where they distributed with a fleet of wagons. However, by the 1890s, the brewing industry in Ontario was becoming heavily consolidated even as beer consumption increased. The Irvine Brewery was competing with Waterloo's Huether and Kuntz breweries, as well as the Sleeman Brewery in Guelph. However, financial problems drove it toward acquisition by the Kuntz brewing company in 1910, which shut it down and ended Salem's commercial brewing history, as well as ending its last major industry. [7]
The small village of Salem has since merged geographically with its much larger southeastern neighbour, the Historic Village of Elora, although longtime residents of the area still distinguish between the two as of the year 2023.
Local business area in Salem is mainly found along and near Woolwich Street (County Road) and County Road 7 including:
Salem has two bridges that over Irvine Creek:
Wellington County Road 7 and Wellington County Road 10 (Woolwich Street West and Geddes Street) are then main primary roads connecting Salem with other communities. Most of the roads in Salem are gravel other than the two aforementioned county roads. Within Salem there is one traffic light at Woolwich and Wellington County Road 7 with all other intersections controlled by stop signs.
Salem Public School is the only school situated in Salem and belongs to the Upper Grand District School Board. Secondary students need to travel to Fergus, Ontario to attend Centre Wellington District High School.
The old Salem School House at 93 Woolwich Street West (Woolwich Street and Wellington County Road 7) is now home to Strata Gallery. [8]
The nearest Catholic school (within the Wellington Catholic District School Board) is St. Mary's Catholic School in Elora Ontario. The closest Catholic high school is found in Guelph, Ontario.
Recreation facilities located within Salem are Centre Wellington Ball Hockey Club and Veteran's Park.
Most residents live along the areas along Irvine Creek and is known for its many historic stone houses. In recent years, Salem's size has grown due to an urban development on William Street, between Water Street and Victoria Street.
Guelph is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as The Royal City, it is roughly 22 km (14 mi) east of Kitchener and 70 km (43 mi) west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Highway 6, Highway 7 and Wellington County Road 124. It is the seat of Wellington County, but is politically independent of it.
Wellington County is a county located in Southwestern Ontario, Canada and is part of the Greater Golden Horseshoe. The county, made up of two towns and five townships, is predominantly rural in nature. However many of the residents in the southern part of the county commute to urban areas such as Guelph, Kitchener, Waterloo, Brampton, Mississauga, Toronto and Hamilton for employment. The northern part of the county is made up of mainly rural farming communities, except for a few larger towns such as Mount Forest and Arthur. According to the 2021 census, the population of the county was 241,026.
Puslinch is a township in south-central Ontario, Canada, in Wellington County, surrounding the south end of Guelph. The main source of production is agricultural, spring water bottling and mining. Aggregate mining has been dominant throughout the county. About half of the township is forested, and a conservation area lies to the southwest. Near the western edge of the township, just outside Cambridge, Ontario, is Puslinch Lake, the largest kettle lake in North America. It is part of the Guelph census metropolitan area.
Elmira is the largest community in the township of Woolwich, Ontario, Canada. It is 15 kilometres (9 mi) north of the city of Waterloo near the Regional Municipality of Waterloo's northern border with Wellington County. The community was listed in the 2016 Canadian census as having a population of 10,161.
Elora is a community in the township of Centre Wellington, Wellington County, Ontario, Canada. It is well known for its 19th-century limestone architecture and the geographically significant Elora Gorge.
The Township of Woolwich is a rural township in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, considered as a municipality. The Township is located in the northeast part of Waterloo Region and is made up of 10 small communities, with Elmira, Ontario the largest and St. Jacobs, Ontario the second largest. The population at the time of the 2021 Census was 26,999, up from the 2016 population of 25,006. Waterloo Region is still home to the largest population of Old Order Mennonites in Canada, particularly in the areas around St Jacobs and Elmira. They are often seen on the local roads using their traditional horse and buggy transportation; many also use horses to pull the implements in their farm fields.
Waterloo County was a county in Canada West in the United Province of Canada from 1853 until 1867, then in the Canadian province of Ontario from 1867 until 1973. It was the direct predecessor of the Regional Municipality of Waterloo.
Centre Wellington is a township in south-central Ontario, Canada, located in Wellington County. The primary communities are Elora and Fergus. The area is agricultural but also includes industries such as manufacturing. In the Canada 2016 Census, the population was stated as 28,191.
West Montrose is an unincorporated rural community in Woolwich Township in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. As of the 2016 census, the population of the community was 257.
Fergus is the largest community in Centre Wellington, a township within Wellington County in Ontario, Canada. It lies on the Grand River about 18 km NNW of Guelph. The population of this community at the time of the 2016 Census was 20,767, but the community is growing as new homes are being built for sale.
Zuber Corners is an unincorporated rural community in Woolwich Township, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.
King's Highway 6, commonly referred to as Highway 6, is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. It crosses a distance of 480 km (300 mi) between Port Dover, on the northern shore of Lake Erie, and Espanola, on the northern shore of Lake Huron, before ending at the Trans-Canada Highway (Highway 17) in McKerrow.
Wellington South was a Canadian federal electoral district represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1867 to 1968. It was located in the province of Ontario. It was created by the British North America Act of 1867 as the "South Riding of the county of Wellington". The County of Wellington was divided into three ridings: the North, South and Centre Ridings".
Wellington—Grey—Dufferin—Simcoe was a federal electoral district represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1988 to 1997. It was located in the province of Ontario. This riding was created in 1987 from parts of Bruce—Grey, Grey—Simcoe and Wellington—Dufferin—Simcoe ridings.
Waterloo—Wellington was a federal electoral district represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1997 to 2003. It continued to be a provincial electoral district represented in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario until the 2007 provincial election.
Maryhill is an unincorporated rural community in the township of Woolwich, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada. The population was 576 in 2016.
The Wellington Catholic District School Board is a school board in Ontario, Canada, serving the students of the City of Guelph and Wellington County. There are 4 high schools and 18 elementary schools serving roughly 8000 students.
Wellington Brewery is a brewery in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1985 and was one of the first North American breweries to revive the ancient technique of brewing cask-conditioned cask ale. Phil Gosling was the founder. By 2011, the volume of sales required the company to expand its brewing capacity. Two new 150HL tanks were installed. In January 2013, four more tanks were installed to keep up with demand for Wellington products. In 2015, the company's facility was expanded with a 12,000-square-foot addition, including a 40-hectolitre brew house and new packaging line. At that time, the company employed a staff of 45. The company also has a distribution warehouse in Toronto.
Irvine Creek is a creek in the municipality of Centre Wellington, Wellington County in southwestern Ontario, Canada. It is in the Great Lakes Basin and is a right tributary of the Grand River.
The Wellington, Grey and Bruce Railway (WG&BR) was a railway in Ontario, Canada. It ran roughly northwest from Guelph to the port town of Southampton on Lake Huron, a distance of 101 miles (163 km). It also had a 66-mile (106 km) branch line splitting off at Palmerston and running roughly westward to Kincardine, another port town. A branch running south from Southampton was built during the construction of the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station in the 1970s.