The opening, in 1871, of a station on the main line of the Wellington, Grey and Bruce Railway, soon to be completed from Guelph to Southampton, provided the nucleus around which a community developed. The station was built on land purchased from Thomas McDowell who, in 1854, had become the first settler on the site of Palmerston. In 1872, McDowell and William Thompson who owned adjoining land began selling town lots and, by 1873, the community had 150 inhabitants. In 1874, a branch line to Listowel was completed and a post office called Palmerston, reportedly after Lord Palmerston, the celebrated English statesman, was opened. The population rapidly increased to some 1,400 and by a Provincial Act of December 21, 1874, Palmerston was incorporated as a town.

Location

In the park at the corner of William and Bell streets, Palmerston

Themes

• Communities
• Transportation systems and communications