Mount Albert, Ontario
| Mount Albert | |
|---|---|
| Unincorporated community | |
| Coordinates: 44°8′3″N 79°18′21″W / 44.13417°N 79.30583°W | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | Ontario |
| Regional municipality | York |
| Town | East Gwillimbury |
| Time zone | EST (UTC-5) |
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| Forward sortation area | L0G |
| Area code(s) | 905 and 289 |
| NTS Map | 031D03 |
| GNBC Code | FCEZX |
Mount Albert is an exurban community located within the Town of East Gwillimbury and is part of northern York Region. It is located about 65 km N of Toronto, about 15 km S of Sutton, W SW of Beaverton and N of Markham. Mount Albert is accessible by Highway 404.
The population is currently about 22,000. Housing developments are slowly continuing in the north east and south west quadrants. The downtown area is centred at Centre Street and Main Street. The town itself is bordered on the west by Highway 48, which connects Markham and Beaverton and on the east by Durham Regional road 31, which serves as a regional border between York Region and Durham Region. The Mount Albert Creek passes through Mount Albert. The outlying area is forested mainly by private woodlots and some regionally owned and maintained pine forests while farmlands are found throughout the area. The major industry is farming (livestock, feed, and potatoes).
The establishment of what is now Mount Albert began in the early 19th century, when land in the area was granted by the Crown to friends of the Family Compact, the governing council of Upper Canada. In 1821, Samuel and Rufus Birchard, Quakers from Vermont, bought parcels of land, and by 1850, a village had developed. Originally the settlement was called Birchardville. The name was later changed to Mount Albert, named after then Prince Albert, Prince of Wales (later Edward VII) son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, in honour of his visit to Upper Canada in 1860. Industries were primarily agricultural, with grist, flour, woollen and lumber mills located along the Mount Albert Creek. The first known store was built in 1850 to supply dry goods to the villagers and surrounding farmers. The main north-south road in the village, Centre Street, was built along the path of an Algonquin Indian trail.
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