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A Brief History of Orillia
Due to logging and rail links with Toronto and Georgian Bay, Orillia became a commercial centre and summer resort in the mid 1800's. Orillia was founded as a village in 1867 and incorporated as a town in 1875. Early history of the area includes visits from Samuel de Champlain nearly 400 years ago. The following century, fur traders and explorers travelled the area
extensively.
William Tudhope opened a blacksmith shop in 1864 at Andrew and Colborne Streets. By the end of the century, William's son, James, headed the Tudhope Carriage Company as part of a conglomerate of businesses.
In 1866, Thomas Mulcahy launched his mercantile career in dry goods with the opening of his California Store. Mulcahy and his sons were responsible for the construction of many of Orillia's dwellings and commercial buildings.
Andrew Tait was the President of the Huntsville Lumber Company. Tait was a major employer and said to be Orillia's first millionaire.Across Lake Couchiching, John Thomson opened his Longford saw milling operation in 1868, using Orillia as a shipping base.
By 1900, Orillia was one of the most bustling towns in Ontario. Many of the commercial and residential buildings erected and still standing used red brick trimmed with limestone quarried from Longford.The town boasted the best Opera House north of Toronto and industrial growth almost unparalleled in the province. With the expansion of the railways, thousands arrived each summer for picnics and holidaying at Couchiching Park.
Orillia was incorporated as a city in 1969. Today, Orillia is as popular a vacation spot as it was a century ago. Orillia remains an important stop on the Trent-Severn Waterway.The summer home of famed Canadian humorist Stephen Leacock is now a National Historic Site. Orillia is also known as the birthplace of Gordon Lightfoot. And the home of famed sculptress Elizabeth Wyn Wood is included on our Historic Walking Tour. Champlain's visits are commemorated by a bronze statue erected as a National Historic Site at Couchiching Beach Park.
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