Heritage

Quinte West has a rich historical past. From Samuel de Champlain's first visit to our future town to the amalgamation of four municipalities in 1998 that led to what is now one large city, Quinte West has many stories to tell, all of which have shaped this unique community.

Many of the families living in Quinte West today can trace their families back to the United Empire Loyalists. The Quinte Bay area was considered desirable for settlement as early as 1773 when the Governor General of the Canadian Colonies, Sir Guy Carleton, asked Governor Haldimand of Quebec to inquire if the Mississauga Indians would make a treaty to sell the land.

In October 1783 an 'Agreement to Purchase' was finally made with the signing of the Gunshot Treaty and surveying began. At the time, there were many people living in the United States who had remained loyal to England and trekked north to what is now Canada. The British ordered that a list of these people under the designation of United Empire Loyalists be made. Among these were ex-military personnel, ex-slaves, and aboriginals loyal to the Crown.

Settlements were established surrounding the Quinte Bay on lands promised to them by the Crown. Nearly £4 million was divided among the Loyalists in addition to large grants of land in the new country varying in size from 200 to 5,000 acres. The money was used for tools, farm equipment, seed to sow, and food and clothing.

The townships were named after family members of King George III and were called 'Royal Townships'. By 1787, the 8th (Sidney), 9th (Thurlow), and 10th (Richmond) townships completed the circle around the Bay.

The area remained part of Quebec until the Constitutional Act of 1791, which divided the country into Upper Canada and Lower Canada, gave it the British Law System, a Legislative Assembly, and its first Lieutenant-Governor, Lord John Graves Simcoe. There were 19 townships in Upper Canada (now Ontario).