Glengarry County
| Glengarry County | |
|---|---|
 Glengarry located within Ontario |
|
| Country | Canada |
| Province | Ontario |
Glengarry County, an area covering 288,688 acres (1,168 km2), is a county in the Canadian province of Ontario, and is historically known for its settlement of Highland Scots due to the Highland Clearances. Glengarry County now consists of the modern-day townships of North Glengarry and South Glengarry and it borders the Saint Lawrence River.
Glengarry was founded in 1784 by Scottish loyalists, mainly from Clan MacDonell, and other Highland Scottish emigrants from Mohawk Valley. Besides being founded as a settlement for Scottish United Empire Loyalists, the settlement was also set up as a destination for Scottish emigrants due to the recent Highland Clearances. Throughout the late 18th and the 19th century, other Highland emigrants settled into the community mostly to preserve their Scottish Highland Culture. The county was named after the Scottish Glen, where the MacDonnell family was based. The Glengarry Highland Games are an example of the county's historic culture, first being celebrated in 1948, and have been held annually since in the first week of August. These Games are one of the largest of their kind outside Scotland. The original territory of Glengarry also included Prescott County, which became a separate county in 1800.
Canadian Gaelic (i.e. Scottish Gaelic) used to be a common language in this region. Though the number of speakers has steadily decreased over the past years, those wanting to learn Gaelic form classes throughout Glengarry.
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