In 1832 Carel Lodewijk, Baron van Tuyll van Serooskerken, a Dutch nobleman, purchased large holdings in the Huron Tract including 388 acres here which he set aside for a settlement. During the next decade an extensive town plot was laid out, grist and sawmills were erected and a community was established. The settlement, named Bayfield after the nautical surveyor Henry Wolsey Bayfield, developed as a centre for the surrounding agricultural community. By 185l the hamlet contained a waggon and ploughmaking works, two blacksmiths shops, an ashery, a distillery, two tanneries, a brickyard and about 125 residents. The construction of a harbour during the 1870s spurred further growth, and in 1876, with a population of over 800, Bayfield was incorporated as a village.

Location

At 20 Bayfield Main Street North, Village of Bayfield

Themes

• Communities
• Industry and trade
• Transportation systems and communications