The Founding of Colborne
A store established here around 1819 by Joseph Keeler, a prominent local merchant and early settler, provided the nucleus around which the community of Colborne began. The settlement thrived as more businesses started. The arrival of the Grand Trunk Railway in 1856 spurred further growth and, three years later, Colborne was incorporated as a village.
Location:
In Victoria Park, opposite the municipal building, 1 Toronto Street, Colborne
Themes:
Communities, Industry and trade, Transportation systems and communications
Plaque text:
A store established here about 1819 by Joseph Abbott Keeler, a prominent early settler, provided the nucleus around which a small community began to develop. Within ten years a distillery and a blacksmith's shop had been erected. The settlement, named Colborne reputedly after Lieutenant Governor Sir John Colborne, soon emerged as a service centre for the surrounding region and, with the establishment of a harbour nearby for the shipment of lumber and grain, it prospered. By 1846, it contained a foundry, a pottery, six stores, three churches, a number of tradesmen and artisans and some 400 residents. The arrival of the Grand Trunk Railway in 1856 spurred further growth, and three years later Colborne, with a population of about 800, was incorporated as a village.
