Mitchell, Ontario
Coordinates: 43°28′11″N 81°11′57″W / 43.4696°N 81.199028°W
Mitchell is a community in the municipality of West Perth, part of Perth County, Ontario, Canada. It is located at the intersection of Highways 8 and 23, 20 km northwest of Stratford, and 60 km north of London. Mitchell is no longer a separate entity. On January 1, 1998, the town amalgamated with the neighbouring Townships of Logan, Fullarton, and Hibbert to form the new Municipality of West Perth. As of 2016, the former town of Mitchell has a population of 4,573 in a land area of 4.81 square kilometres; it has 1,827 occupied private dwellings.
According to a historic plaque erected by the Province, the Canada Company laid out a town plot (Mitchell) on the Huron Road in 1836. In 1837 a log building was built by William Hicks along Huron Road; this was the first settlement in the area. A sawmill was built in 1842, and in 1845, stores and other mills opened. By 1851 the population had reached 150. Mitchell was incorporated as a Village in 1857, after the railway reached the area. Mitchell became a Town in 1874, with a population of 2000. The first mayor was Thomas Matheson. A waterworks system was built in 1889; roadways and sidewalks were paved. Electricity arrived in 1889. By 1901, the population had grown to 2,200. In 1918, a large new elementary school was necessary. A high school was built soon after.
The town's major employers include Parmalat Canada (the former Stacey Brothers creamery), a producer of dairy products, and Cooper Standard Automotive, the Canadian centre for the company's automotive parts research and development program. Mitchell is an agricultural service centre, surrounded by high-quality farmland. Great Lakes Specialty Meats, a pork producer, has expanded significantly with assistance from Agriculture and Agrifood Canada. In 2011, Mitchell's average per person income was $40,688.
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