Arkona, Ontario
Encyclopedia
Arkona is a community located in the municipality of Lambton Shores
in southwestern Ontario
near the Lambton
-Middlesex
county line, situated beside the Ausable River, on Former Kings Highway 79 (now Lambton County Road 79), Arkona is roughly half-way between Thedford
, and Watford.
The site of the village is at the base of the Wyoming Moraine which formed along the shores of ancient Lake Arkona during the retreat of the Wisconsin Glacier some 16,000 years ago. Rich deposits of fossils are revealed at nearby Hungry Hollow
. Evidence of early human habitation exists at the site of Paleo hunting camps which were found just a kilometer south of Arkona dating back some 11,000 years. Subsequent migrations of Archaic and Woodland
peoples moved into the area as the climate and vegetation changed. Evidence of this long-standing habitation is frequently discovered in the fields surrounding the current village.
The first known permanent settler of European background was Asa Townsend
and his wife Huldah Barstow who settled on the banks of the Ausable River to the east of present-day Arkona in 1821. Asa Townsend and his son were still in the vicinity as late as 1851. In 1833 the Townsends were joined by Henry Utter (1809-1898), who settled on a farm in the recently surveyed Warwick Township
, across the township line from Bosanquet
. Utter was subsequently joined by members of the Smith and Eastman families and a settlement gradually grew up that straddled the Warwick-Bosanquet Township line. (Utter married Harriet Smith (1816-1882) who was part of the extended Smith family). The Eastmans and one branch of the Smith family were the ancestors of Alexander Phimister Proctor
who was born in the village in 1860.
The village was surveyed in 1851 and known variously as Bosanquet Corners, Eastman Corners and Smithfield. In 1857 it was renamed 'Arkona
' after the rugged cape on the Baltic Island of Rugen
, a name suggested by resident cabinet maker Ephraim Brower and possibly by the incumbent postmaster Levi Schooley. The village continued to grow and develop so that by the 1870s, with hopes of attracting a railway, the community incorporated in June 1876. While its population surpassed 700, the failure to attract a railway led to a population decline and the loss of its first known newspaper, the East Lambton Advocate, which moved to the nearby railway village of Watford. (Hopes of securing a rail link continued to surface at least as late as 1911, when one resident wrote, "They are talking of a railroad for Arkona [which] they think is sure to come but [we] will see when it gets here."). Even without the railway, however, Arkona remained an important service centre for the surrounding rural farming district and boasted many important industries such as a basket factory, woolen mill, apple evaporator, and a series of mills. Various businesses continued to service the local area including numerous stores and other enterprises.
The advent of the automobile lessened local dependence on the village and its services, and led to gradual yet dramatic changes to Arkona's makeup, especially in the post-World War II era. Its school closed in 1973 and all village students then attended Bosanquet Township Central School. Since the 1880s, the village has maintained a population hovering around 500. Two mainstays have long been Arkona's Baptist Church (begun in 1840) and Arkona United Church, the successor to Arkona's Episcopal and Wesleyan Methodist Churches, both of which began in the 1850s (the Wesleyan Methodist Church building, started in 1862, remained the home of the United Church congregation until its closure in January 2008). Similarly the community is served by the Plymouth Brethren
chapel, Elim Hall. Despite the changes and loss of many local enterprises, the community still boasts a dental office, optometrists, a medical clinic, a grocery store, gas station, and several retail outlets. Various fruit orchards continue to attract many to the community for fresh fruit. Rock Glen Falls and Conservation Area, located just north of the village, continues to attract tourists to the area and was the site of the Rock Glen Power Company's generator and dam on the Ausable from 1907 to 1926. It was taken over by Ontario Hydro
and the dam was subsequently destroyed. Villagers celebrated the centennial of their community's incorporation in July 1976, with some two thousand people in attendance. A smaller celebration marked the 125 anniversary in 2001, although earlier that year the municipality had been amalgamated with Bosanquet Township (including the communities of Ipperwash and Port Franks, Ontario
), the Town of Forest
and Villages of Thedford and Grand Bend
to form the new entity of Lambton Shores.
Lambton Shores, Ontario
Lambton Shores is a municipality with city status in the County of Lambton in Ontario, Canada, that is on the southern shores of Lake Huron. It was formed in 2001 when the Towns of Bosanquet and Forest, and the Villages of Thedford, Arkona, and Grand Bend were amalgamated.-Weather:Lambton Shores is...
in southwestern Ontario
Southwestern Ontario
Southwestern Ontario is a subregion of Southern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario, centred on the city of London. It extends north to south from the Bruce Peninsula on Lake Huron to the Lake Erie shoreline, and east to south-west roughly from Guelph to Windsor. The region had a population...
near the Lambton
Lambton County, Ontario
Lambton County is a census division of the Canadian province of Ontario. The county is located in Southwestern Ontario. It is bordered on the north by Lake Huron, which flows into the St. Clair River, the county's western border and part of the Canada-United States border. To the south is Lake...
-Middlesex
Middlesex County, Ontario
Middlesex County is a primarily rural county in Southwestern Ontario. 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...
county line, situated beside the Ausable River, on Former Kings Highway 79 (now Lambton County Road 79), Arkona is roughly half-way between Thedford
Thedford, Ontario
Thedford is a small community in northwestern Lambton County, Ontario Canada, situated 8 km south of Kings Highway 21, along Lambton CR 79 . The community began in the 1860's when farmer Nelson Southworth, a native of Vermont, agreed to donate land for the construction of a Grand Trunk Railway...
, and Watford.
The site of the village is at the base of the Wyoming Moraine which formed along the shores of ancient Lake Arkona during the retreat of the Wisconsin Glacier some 16,000 years ago. Rich deposits of fossils are revealed at nearby Hungry Hollow
Hungry Hollow
Hungry Hollow can refer to one of these places using it as a nickname :*Georgetown, Ontario*Arkona, Ontario*Granite City, Illinois, USA*Garrett County, Maryland, USA*Phillips County, Kansas, USA*Klamath County, Oregon, USA...
. Evidence of early human habitation exists at the site of Paleo hunting camps which were found just a kilometer south of Arkona dating back some 11,000 years. Subsequent migrations of Archaic and Woodland
Woodland period
The Woodland period of North American pre-Columbian cultures was from roughly 1000 BCE to 1000 CE in the eastern part of North America. The term "Woodland Period" was introduced in the 1930s as a generic header for prehistoric sites falling between the Archaic hunter-gatherers and the...
peoples moved into the area as the climate and vegetation changed. Evidence of this long-standing habitation is frequently discovered in the fields surrounding the current village.
The first known permanent settler of European background was Asa Townsend
Asa Townsend
Asa Townsend was an early settler in Westminster Township near what became the City of London, Ontario. His lands ultimately became incorporated in London's Springbank Park. By the 1820s he removed westward to settle on the bank of the Ausable River in what later became Bosanquet Township in...
and his wife Huldah Barstow who settled on the banks of the Ausable River to the east of present-day Arkona in 1821. Asa Townsend and his son were still in the vicinity as late as 1851. In 1833 the Townsends were joined by Henry Utter (1809-1898), who settled on a farm in the recently surveyed Warwick Township
Warwick Township
Warwick Township is the name of three places in Pennsylvania, USA:*Warwick Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania*Warwick Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania*Warwick Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania...
, across the township line from Bosanquet
Bosanquet, Ontario
Bosanquet is a former township of Lambton County in Ontario, Canada located northeast of Sarnia.-Geography and history:Home to Native Americans for thousands of years, the first Europeans settled on the lakeshore in the early 19th century. It would not be until later in the century when the Grand...
. Utter was subsequently joined by members of the Smith and Eastman families and a settlement gradually grew up that straddled the Warwick-Bosanquet Township line. (Utter married Harriet Smith (1816-1882) who was part of the extended Smith family). The Eastmans and one branch of the Smith family were the ancestors of Alexander Phimister Proctor
Alexander Phimister Proctor
Alexander Phimister Proctor was an American sculptor with the contemporary reputation as one of the nation's foremost animaliers.-Birth and early years:...
who was born in the village in 1860.
The village was surveyed in 1851 and known variously as Bosanquet Corners, Eastman Corners and Smithfield. In 1857 it was renamed 'Arkona
Cape Arkona
Cape Arkona is a cape on the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Cape Arkona is the tip of the Wittow peninsula, just a few kilometres north of the Jasmund National Park....
' after the rugged cape on the Baltic Island of Rugen
Rügen
Rügen is Germany's largest island. Located in the Baltic Sea, it is part of the Vorpommern-Rügen district of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.- Geography :Rügen is located off the north-eastern coast of Germany in the Baltic Sea...
, a name suggested by resident cabinet maker Ephraim Brower and possibly by the incumbent postmaster Levi Schooley. The village continued to grow and develop so that by the 1870s, with hopes of attracting a railway, the community incorporated in June 1876. While its population surpassed 700, the failure to attract a railway led to a population decline and the loss of its first known newspaper, the East Lambton Advocate, which moved to the nearby railway village of Watford. (Hopes of securing a rail link continued to surface at least as late as 1911, when one resident wrote, "They are talking of a railroad for Arkona [which] they think is sure to come but [we] will see when it gets here."). Even without the railway, however, Arkona remained an important service centre for the surrounding rural farming district and boasted many important industries such as a basket factory, woolen mill, apple evaporator, and a series of mills. Various businesses continued to service the local area including numerous stores and other enterprises.
The advent of the automobile lessened local dependence on the village and its services, and led to gradual yet dramatic changes to Arkona's makeup, especially in the post-World War II era. Its school closed in 1973 and all village students then attended Bosanquet Township Central School. Since the 1880s, the village has maintained a population hovering around 500. Two mainstays have long been Arkona's Baptist Church (begun in 1840) and Arkona United Church, the successor to Arkona's Episcopal and Wesleyan Methodist Churches, both of which began in the 1850s (the Wesleyan Methodist Church building, started in 1862, remained the home of the United Church congregation until its closure in January 2008). Similarly the community is served by the Plymouth Brethren
Plymouth Brethren
The Plymouth Brethren is a conservative, Evangelical Christian movement, whose history can be traced to Dublin, Ireland, in the late 1820s. Although the group is notable for not taking any official "church name" to itself, and not having an official clergy or liturgy, the title "The Brethren," is...
chapel, Elim Hall. Despite the changes and loss of many local enterprises, the community still boasts a dental office, optometrists, a medical clinic, a grocery store, gas station, and several retail outlets. Various fruit orchards continue to attract many to the community for fresh fruit. Rock Glen Falls and Conservation Area, located just north of the village, continues to attract tourists to the area and was the site of the Rock Glen Power Company's generator and dam on the Ausable from 1907 to 1926. It was taken over by Ontario Hydro
Ontario Hydro
Ontario Hydro was the official name from 1974 of the Hydro-Electric Power Commission of Ontario which was established in 1906 by the provincial Power Commission Act to build transmission lines to supply municipal utilities with electricity generated by private companies already operating at Niagara...
and the dam was subsequently destroyed. Villagers celebrated the centennial of their community's incorporation in July 1976, with some two thousand people in attendance. A smaller celebration marked the 125 anniversary in 2001, although earlier that year the municipality had been amalgamated with Bosanquet Township (including the communities of Ipperwash and Port Franks, Ontario
Port Franks, Ontario
Port Franks is a small Southern Ontario community in the municipality of Lambton Shores, Lambton County in southwestern Ontario, Canada. It is located along Kings Highway 21 near Pinery Provincial Park, about north of Thedford, Ontario...
), the Town of Forest
Forest, Lambton County, Ontario
Forest is a small town located near Sarnia, Ontario in Canada. It is very close to the shore of Lake Huron and is part of the municipality of Lambton Shores and the county of Lambton.- Population :...
and Villages of Thedford and Grand Bend
Grand Bend, Ontario
Grand Bend, often referred to as simply "The Bend" or "GB," is a Southern Ontario community located on the shores of Lake Huron and a part of the municipality of Lambton Shores in the county of Lambton.Grand Bend is home to a variety of stores and eateries...
to form the new entity of Lambton Shores.