Community Information
Whether you're buying a home, selling your home or relocating to St. Thomas and London area, click on the community links to find resources and tools that will help to guide your decision.
My Big Yellow School Bus - Click to find what School District my new home is in and will my children be bused to school?
Learn more about the community that you live in:
Click to view Things to do in St Thomas
Click to view Things to do in London
ST THOMAS
St Thomas is a city on the move. A thriving community with a population of over 36,000 strategically located, just minutes from the 401 corridor and halfway between Detroit on the west and Toronto and Buffalo on the east. Each is just a little more than 2 hours away.
Rich in History… St Thomas was named after Thomas Talbot who helped promote development of the region in the early 19th century and was incorporated as a city in 1881. Visitors are drawn to the dramatic statue of Jumbo the famed African elephant and star of Barnum & Baileys circus who died in a train accident in 1885. A total of 26 railways have passed through the city since 1856 and St Thomas is known as “The Railway Capital of Canada”. Today children are drawn to Thomas the Tank Engine who visits every summer.
Outdoor… Visit the Pinafore and Waterworks Parks for a afternoon, the Port Stanley beach on the north shore of Lake Erie, camping and conservation areas and many excellent golf courses are only minutes away.
Shopping… Downtown St Thomas is the cultural and civic heart of the city. There are a number of Big Box stores and the Elgin Mall features a Galaxy multiplex cinema.
Recreation and Leisure… St Thomas boosts an excellent choice of leisure and recreational facilities including the Douglas Tarry Sports Complex, the Timken Community Centre plus a modern Seniors Centre, YMCA and Curling Club.
Arts and Culture… There’s plenty to get involved with including the St Thomas Elgin Public Art Centre, the St Thomas Public Library, the Elgin Theatre Guild, the Elgin County Museum and Archives, the Elgin Military Museum, the Elgin County Railway Museum and the CASO Train Station.
Community Facilities… Residents depend on the excellent medical care at the St Thomas – Elgin Hospital, superb schools including Fanshawe College – Elgin Campus and we are only minutes away from the University of Western Ontario. Come for a visit to explore our city.
When you decide that St Thomas is the perfect place for your retirement or to raise your growing family please contact Earl Taylor at Coldwell Banker at Success Realty… I'm here to help!
For more information about St Thomas visit www.stthomas.ca.
Additional Resources:
Economic Development Corporation
St Thomas Downtown Development Board
LONDON
London is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, situated along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city has a population of approximately 366,000. London is located at the forks of the Thames River, approximately halfway between Toronto, Ontario and Detroit, Michigan. London and the Thames were named in 1793 by Lord Simcoe, who proposed the site for the capital of Upper Canada.
The first European settlement was between 1801 and 1804 by Peter Hagerman. The village was founded in 1826 and incorporated in 1855. Since then, London has grown to be the largest Southwestern Ontario municipality, and Canada’s 11th largest municipality, having annexed many of the smaller communities that surrounded it.
London is a regional centre of health care and education, being home to the University of Western Ontario, Fanshawe College, and several world class hospitals. The city hosts a number of musical and artistic exhibits and festivals, which contribute to its tourism industry, but its economic activity is centred on education, medical research, insurance, and information technology. London’s university and hospitals are among its top ten employers. It also has an international airport, train and bus station.
Additional Resources:
AYLMER
In October 1817, John Van Patter, an emigrant from New York State, obtained 80 hectares of land and became the first settler on the site of Aylmer. During the 1830’s a general store was opened and village lots sold.
Originally called Troy, in 1835 it was renamed Aylmer after Lord Aylmer, then Governor-in-Chief of British North America. By 1851 local enterprises included sawmills and flour-mills powered by water from Catfish Creek. Aided by easy access to Lake Erie, Aylmer became by the mid-1860s the marketing centre for a rich agricultural and timber producing area. Benefiting greatly from the construction of the 230 km Canada Air Line Railway from Glencoe to Fort Erie, Aylmer became an incorporated village in 1872.
Today, Aylmer still displays its farming heritage but is busy developing new technologies in the fully serviced business park with direct access to both Highway 401 and Highway 3. Adjacent to, and servicing the Business Park, is a Trillium Rail Service, a short track rail service offering connectivity to the major rail services in Canada and the United States. Companies like IGPC Ethanol Inc., that produces ethanol from local corn supplies, is now a well established business.
A Royal Canadian Air Force Training Facility, RCAF Station Aylmer was located just north of Aylmer in Malahide Township from 1941 to 1961. This station is now home to the Ontario Police College and The Aylmer Wildlife Management Area.
PORT STANLEY
The site of Port Stanley was part of an important early route from Lake Erie to other inland waterways for a succession of explorers and travellers of the 17th and 18th centuries, serving as an important landing point and camping spot.
Adrien Jolliet, brother of Louis Jolliet, landed at this location in 1669 during the first descent of the Great Lakes by Europeans. The site bounded by Bridge, Main and Colbourne Streets was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1923, and was marked with a cairn.
A settlement named Kettle Creek was founded here in 1812 by Lieutenant-Colonel John Bostwick. Around 1824, it was renamed Port Stanley after Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby, who had visited nearby Port Talbot. Lord Stanley later became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the father of Frederick Stanley, 16th Earl of Derby, Governor General of Canada, ice hockey enthusiast and donor of the first Stanley Cup in 1893.
ELGIN COUNTY
Elgin County is a county of the Canadian province of Ontario with a population of approximately 49,000. The county seat is St. Thomas, which is separated from the county but within its geographic boundary. Elgin County is known as the Keystone Township due the lateral length which takes in over 100 kilometres along the north shore of Lake Erie and includes many quaint and unique ports for both pleasure boating, recreational and commercial fishing.
Originally Elgin County was once part of Suffolk County. Elgin County was organized as a separate county in 1851 and named after Lord Elgin, governor-general of Canada.
Elgin County is divided into 7 townships, each with their own municipally elected Mayors and councilors. The Mayors of each township hold a seat on the County Council.
West Elgin: The township was originally known as Aldborough Townsip. It was first settled in 1804. In the early days it had a forest of oak, chestnut and black walnut. Rodney and West Lorne are the largest villages in the township.
Bayham Township: Organized in 1810 and became part of Elgin County in 1851. It was named from Bayham Abbey in Kent, England. Port Burwell, Vienna and Straffordville are the largest villages in the township.
Dutton / Dunwich: The township was originally known as Dunwich Township. It was first settled in 1803. During the War of 1812 only twelve families lived in the township. In 1817 a company of Selkirk’s Highlander settled in the Township. The Township is named after a town in Suffolk, England.
Malahide Township: It was first settled in 1810, and was named for Malahide Castle in Ireland, the former home of Thomas Talbot, patriot of the region. Aylmer, Springfield and Port Bruce are the largest villages in the township.
South Dorchester Township: This township is now part of Malahide township. Although surveyed in 1798, it was not settled until 1826. This township was part of Middlesex County until 1851.
Southwold Township: Opened for settlement in 1797, however the first colonist arrived in 1809. It was named for an English town in Suffolk. Fingal and Shedden are the largest villages in the township.
Municipality of Central Elgin: This township was originally known as Yarmouth Township. It was surveyed in 1792 and settled in 1810. Port Stanley, Sparta and Belmont are the largest villages in the township.
Additional Resources:
MIDDLESEX COUNTY
Middlesex County is a primarily rural county in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Landlocked, the county is bordered by Huron and Perth counties on the north, Oxford County on the east, Elgin County on the south, and Chatham-Kent and Lambton County on the west.
The seat is the city of London, although the city is politically independent from the county. The Middlesex census division, which consists of the county together with the City of London and three Native reserves, making it Canada’s 16th largest. Part of the county is also included in the London census metropolitan area.
Middlesex County is composed of 8 incorporated municipalities:
Township of Adelaide Metcalfe
Communities: Adelaide, Crathie, Dejong, Kerwood, Keyser, Mullifarry, Napier, Napperton, Springfield, Walkers and Wrightmans Corners.
Township of Lucan Biddulph
Communities: Biddulph, Clandeboye, Granton, Lucan.
Municipality of Middlesex Centre
Communities: Arva, Ballymote, Birr, Bryanston, Coldstream, Delaware, Denfield, Duncrief, Elginfield, Ettrick, Ilderton, Ivan, Kilworth, Komoka, Littlewood, Lobo, Lobo Siding, Maple Grove, Melrose, Poplar Hill, Sharon, Southgate, Southwold, Telfer and Vanneck.
Village of Newbury
Municipality of North Middlesex
Communities:Ailsa Craig, Beechwood, Bornish, Bowood, Brinsley, Carlisle, Corbett, Greenway, Hungry Hollow, Lieury, Moray, Mount Carmel, Nairn, Parkhill, Sable, Springbank, Sylvan and West McGillivray.
Municipality of Southwest Middlesex
Communities: Appin, Ekfrid, Glencoe, Lewis Corners, Macksville, Mayfair, Newbury Station, North Appin Station, North Ekfrid, North Glencoe Station, Riverside, Strathburn, Tate Corners, Wardsville and Woodgreen.
Township of Strathroy-Caradoc
Communities: Cairngorm, Campbellvale, Caradoc, Christina, Falconbridge, Glen Oak, Longwood, Melbourne, Mount Brydges, Muncey and Strathroy.
Municipality of Thames Centre
Communities: Avon, Belton, Cherry Grove, Crampton, Cobble Hill, Derwent, Devizes, Dorchester, Evelyn, Fanshawe Lake, Friendly Corners, Gladstone, Harrietsville, Kelly Station, Mossley, Nilestown, Oliver, Plover Mills, Putnam, Salmonville, Silvermoon, Thorndale, Three Bridges and Wellburn.