In 1859, the Crown Lands Department in the Province of Canada[a] advertised a block of land for sale, comprising the townships of Dysart, Dudley, Harcourt, Gilford, Harburn, Bruton, Havelock, Eyre, Clyde, and Longford. The purpose was to promote rapid settlement of the newly created townships in the district through private enterprise.
Lengthy negotiations were carried on between the company, and the Department of Crown Lands concerning the selection of townships and the terms of sale. The department agreed to pay for the survey of the outlines of the townships, but the company had to pay for the survey within the townships and their subdivision into lots.
Although the company wanted to appoint Edward Madan Miles as the surveyor for these townships,[8] the Crown Lands Department preferred Brookes Wright Gossage,[8] who, with other surveyors under his direction, began work in the townships of Dysart and Longford. At first, Gossage was in partnership with John Stoughton Dennis and later with Vernon Bayley Wadsworth. As many as sixty or seventy men were employed on the project at one time, and large sums of money were required for wages and provisions. When the survey was completed it showed 403,125 acres (1,631 km2) in the ten townships of which 41,000 acres (166 km2) was deducted as being swamp, leaving 362,125 acres (1,465 km2) to be paid for at 50 cents per acre. Miles was later appointed to re-examine the surveys, and determined that the acreage fit for settlement was far below that estimated by Gossage,[8] but the latter's figures were accepted by the department. However, later settlers' experience proved the accuracy of Miles' report.[8]
Challenges
From the outset the company had difficulty in selling the lands. The distance of the townships from the settled parts of the province, the absence of good roads,[g] the rough nature of the country, the Civil War in the United States, the Fenian raids on the border, the Long Depression of 1873–1879, and rival attractions of Western Canada, all combined to discourage sales.
From 1863 to 1870, a large number of emigrants came to settle in the region. By 1871, the company had sold 16,650 acres (67 km2) to settlers and a number of town lots to various purchasers. Most of the company's profits were realized from the sale of timber. In 1872, the company built a road between the villages of Kennaway and Haliburton, and contributed to the cost of the connection of a telegraph line to Haliburton. In 1877, the company aided the construction of the Victoria Railway from Kinmount to Haliburton with the hopes of increasing settlement in the townships.
By 1883, the Province of Ontario had begun to open up neighbouring townships in Haliburton and Muskoka with offers of free land grants,[h] and the company found settlers were even more reluctant to purchase Company lands. The company was unable to cope with this competition. As a result, it was decided to offer for sale its complete holdings and undertakings in Canada. On April 11, 1883, the company appointed W.H. Lockhart Gordon[i] and James Moore Irwin[j] to be its commissioners of affairs in the area.[k][11]
Decline and dissolution
The company was involved in disputes with the Municipality of Dysart relating to valuations of its real and personal property, which led to a settlement in 1885 that was subsequently ratified by the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in 1887.[13]
The company initiated winding-up proceedings in 1888,[14] and was reincorporated by letters patent in Ontario as the Canadian Land and Immigration Company of Haliburton Limited in 1889. From 1890 to 1897 little activity took place. Sales of land and timber cutting rights had practically ceased. In 1895, Irwin declared bankruptcy and the bank (most likely the Canadian Bank of Commerce) took possession of his rights and interests in Haliburton, which included his shares in the new Company. In 1922, the company sold Bruton Township to the Hydro-Electric Power Commission of Ontario for $225,000,[15] and proceeds from the sale allowed the company to buy back from the bank the timber cutting rights previously licensed to Irwin. In 1933, the company sold Clyde Township back to the Province for $25,000.[16]
During the Great Depression, lumbering activities ceased once again, and financial difficulties resulted in liens being placed against the company's lands in Dysart.[17] However, as more roads were constructed, the region began to develop as a tourist and vacation area, and land sales began to increase. At the outbreak of World War II, lumbering activities intensified, and carried on into the post-war years. By the end of 1946, all of the land originally purchased by the company had been sold. The company wound up its affairs, surrendered its charter, and ceased to exist.
Canadians Canadian nationalism Canadian Armed Forces Canadian comics Canadian Americans Canadian Championship Canadian Army Canadian literature Canadian art Canadian English Canadian Music Week Canadian Tire The Canadian Encyclopedia Canadian Forces base Canadian nationality law Canadian peacekeeping Canadian Vickers Canadian Airlines Royal Canadian Navy Canadian wine Canadian dollar Canadian folklore Canadian Oxford Dictionary Canadian horse Canadian passport Canadian cuisine Canadian football 3rd Canadian Division Canadian Alliance Canadian Australians Canadian Comedy Awards Canadian Museum …
of History Honorary Canadian citizenship Canadian Space Agency Canadian Prairies Canadian whisky Canadian Pacific Railway Royal Canadian Mint Canadian Confederation Canadian Centennial Monarchy of Canada 5th Canadian Division Banknotes of the Canadian dollar Canadian Geographic 4th Canadian Division Canadian Military Engineers Canadian Gaelic List of Canadian flags Canadian Red Ensign Standard Canadian English Canadian North Canadian Cadet Organizations Canadian Council for Refugees Canadian Rangers Monarchy of Canada and the Canadian Armed Forces List of Canadian monarchs Royal Canadian Regiment French Canadians 1st Canadian Division Canadian Immigrant Egyptian Canadians Canadian Open (golf) List of Canadian films Canadian Chinese cuisine Canadian Bacon Canadian Mexicans Royal Canadian Dragoons Canadian Aeroplanes Canadian Airborne Regiment Ukrainian Canadian internment Bibliography of Canadian history French-Canadian Americans Royal Canadian Institute Canadian Business Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Healthcare in Canada Polish Canadians Royal Regiment of Canadian Artillery Canadian peers and baronets First Canadian Army Chinese Canadians Canadian Guards Foreign relations of Ca