Victoria County, Ontario
| County of Victoria | |||||
| County of Canada | |||||
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| Capital | Lindsay, Ontario | ||||
| Government | Democracy | ||||
| • | 1863 | Patrick McHugh (first) | |||
| History | |||||
| • | Independence from the United Counties of Peterborough and Victoria | 1863 | |||
| • | Manvers Township ceded from Durham County | 1973 | |||
| • | Common Sense Revolution | 1 January 2001 | |||
| Political subdivisions | |||||
The County of Victoria, or Victoria County, was a county in the Canadian province of Ontario. It was formed in 1854 as The United Counties of Peterborough and Victoria, and separated from Peterborough in 1863. In 2001, the county was dissolved and reformed as the City of Kawartha Lakes. Though first opened to settlement in 1821, the area that was encompassed by Victoria County has a history of Indian occupation, first by the Hurons.
The history of Victoria County began with the passing of the Constitutional Act in 1791, dividing Canada into two provinces: Upper Canada (present day Ontario) and Lower Canada (present day Québec); and appointing a governor for each. The first governor of Upper Canada was Colonel John Graves Simcoe, who surveyed the province and set out tracts of land for immigrants with genuine interests. Before the land that became Victoria County could be surveyed, however, speculators had Simcoe removed from office in 1796, and the land was secured from settlement for over 20 years.
Following the War of 1812, a large wave of immigration prompted the province to purchase more land from local Indian tribes. On 5 November 1818, six Mississauga chiefs, Buckquaquet of the Eagles, Pishikinse of the Reindeers, Paudash of the Cranes, Cahgahkishinse of the Pike, Cahgageewin of the Snakes, and Pininse of the White Oaks, met in Port Hope. There they surrendered the rights to over four thousand square kilometres of land, known as the Mississauga Tract. In exchange, the Indians (numbering about 400) were to receive $750 per year in goods. However, the government later changed this to $10 per year for each living person born before the deal was signed.
The Mississauga Tract included all of Victoria and Peterborough counties, as well as parts of 28 adjacent townships. Following the purchase, the land became Newcastle District. It was renamed Colborne District in 1841, followed by being reorganized in 1850 as Peterborough County. In 1854, Peterborough County was again reorganized as the United Counties of Peterborough and Victoria, the first time the land was officially named "Victoria County". Over the next decade, Victoria County gradually separated from Peterborough County, gaining a provisional government in 1861, and finally independence in 1863.
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