Wellington, Ontario

Wellington is an unincorporated place and community in Prince Edward County in eastern Ontario, Canada. It has a population of 1,860 (2011 Census) and is estimated to grow by 2032 to double that figure.[3] The community is on the shore of both Lake Ontario and West Lake in the southwest of the county, and is a geographic hub for exploring much of Prince Edward County's wine region.[4]

Not to be confused with Wellington County, Ontario.
Wellington
Main street of Wellington
Flag
Wellington
Location in southern Ontario
Coordinates: 43°57′08″N 77°21′02″W[1]
CountryCanada
ProvinceOntario
CountyPrince Edward
Government
 • Mayor (of county)Robert Leighton Quaiff
 • MP, Prince Edward—HastingsDaryl Kramp
 • MPP, Prince Edward—HastingsTodd Smith
Area
 • Total6.99 km2 (2.70 sq mi)
Elevation78 m (256 ft)
Population
 (2011)
 • Total1,860
 • Density270/km2 (690/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern Time Zone)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (Eastern Time Zone)
Postal codes in Canada
K0K 3L0
Area code(s)613, 343
Websiteprince-edward-county.com/wellington/
Child at Play on Wellington Beach

The renowned Sandbanks Beach, the northernmost of Sandbanks Provincial Park's beaches, lands in the Village of Wellington, where it is called Wellington Rotary Beach. It is separated from the Sandbanks Provincial Park by a canal through the beach to Wellington Harbour.[5] Wellington Rotary Beach, completed in 2009, has a boat launch, boardwalk, picnic tables, sun shelter, washrooms, changerooms and an interpretive walkway.[6]

History

One of Prince Edward County's earliest residents, Daniel Reynolds, first came to the area in the 18th century and settled in Wellington where his house remains today along Main Street.[7] Reynolds was nicknamed Old Smoke by local First Nations, hence the community was first known as Smokeville. When a post office was established in the 1830s, the village was renamed Wellington after the Duke of Wellington.

Demographics
Canada census – Wellington, Ontario community profile
2011 2006
Population: 1860 (+2.9% from 2006) 1807 (% from 2001)
Land area: 6.99 km2 (2.70 sq mi) 6.99 km2 (2.70 sq mi)
Population density: 265.9/km2 (689/sq mi)
Median age: 62.2 (M: 62.1, F: 62.3)
Total private dwellings: 1008
Median household income:
References: 2011[8] 2006[9] earlier[10]

Arts and Culture

The Wellington Heritage Museum with exhibits on local history is located in the heart of the Village and was built in 1885 as a Quaker Meeting House. A key exhibit is the Douglas A. Crawford Canning Industry Collection, as more than 75 canning factories operated in Prince Edward County from 1882 to 1996.[11]

Attractions
Patio at the Drake Devonshire

The Wellington Farmers' Market is the largest open air market in the region and is open from Victoria Day to Labour Day.

The Toronto boutique hotelier The Drake Hotel opened a location in Wellington in the fall of 2014.[12]

Sports

The Wellington Dukes of the Ontario Junior Hockey League (Junior A) play at the Essroc Arena (capacity 1,600), part of the Wellington and District Community Centre.[13] The Prince Edward County Minor Baseball Association plays all its games in Wellington,[14] and the rep teams of the Quinte Royals Baseball Club (Midget and Minor Midget age group teams) play their homes games at the Wellington Field of Dreams.[15] There is also a skating club[16] and an equestrian centre[17] in the community.

Infrastructure

Transportation

The main road in the community is County Road 33 (formerly Ontario Highway 33), known as the Loyalist Parkway. The road goes northwest to Trenton (part of Quinte West) and east to Picton.

The Prince Edward County Railway from Picton to Trenton ran through the community. It was opened in 1879, was extended to form the Central Ontario Railway in 1882, became part of the Canadian National Railway in 1923, and operated until 1985. The route through the community today forms a rail trail portion of the Millennium Trail.

Recreation
  • The Wellington and District Community Centre, which houses the Essroc Arena, a walking track, a number of conference rooms, and a full service kitchen and cafeteria.
  • Three baseball diamonds and a tennis court.
  • A running track and a dual-purpose football/soccer playing field on the grounds of CML Snider School.
  • Wellington Harbour, a municipally run marina that opens onto Lake Ontario and West Lake.
  • The Millennium Trail, a 49 km multi-purpose recreational use trail passes right through the Village of Wellington.
  • Wellington Park, a waterfront park in the centre of the Village, which contains a popular, community-built playground, a pavilion, barbecue pits and picnic tables.
  • Golf course
  • Public Beach

Education

English language public elementary education from JK to Grade 8 is offered at C.M.L. Snider Public School in the Hastings & Prince Edward District School Board.[18] Students must travel to nearby schools in Belleville for separate school French Immersion education, or to Picton for French-language public elementary education. Both Belleville and Quinte West are about 25 minutes by car north of Wellington. Picton is about 20 minutes east of Wellington.

Secondary students travel to Prince Edward Collegiate in Picton for English language public secondary education, or to Bayside Secondary School in Quinte West for French Immersion public secondary education.

Media

Since 1992, the community has been served by the independent Wellington Times newspaper. The paper is available at over 50 retail locations across the County and has a circulation of approximately 4,000.[19]

References
  1. "Wellington". Geographical Names Data Base. Natural Resources Canada. Retrieved 2016-02-10.
  2. Taken from Google Earth. Accessed 2016-02-12.
  3. "Prince Edward County - Long term population, housing and employment forecast and capital needs assessment" (PDF). Watson & Associates Economists. 2013-01-14. p. 9. Retrieved 2016-02-17.
  4. "Prince Edward County Wineries Map". Prince Edward County Winegrowers Association. Retrieved 2016-02-17.
  5. http://www.wellingtonmarina.ca
  6. http://www.wellingtonrotary.ca/Stories/visit-wellington-rotary-beach
  7. "Daniel Reynolds House (c. 1799) – Wellington". Prince Edward County. Retrieved 2016-02-17.
  8. "2011 Community Profiles". 2011 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. July 5, 2013. Retrieved 2016-02-12.
  9. "2006 Community Profiles". 2006 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. March 30, 2011.
  10. "2001 Community Profiles". 2001 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. February 17, 2012.
  11. "Wellington Heritage Museum". Prince Edward County. Retrieved 2016-02-18.
  12. Dixon, Guy (2014-09-14). "The Drake Devonshire – a hip country outpost". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2016-02-18.
  13. "Arena". Wellington Dukes. Retrieved 2016-02-18.
  14. "About Us". Prince Edward County Minor Baseball Association. Retrieved 2016-02-18.
  15. http://quinteroyals.com/site
  16. "Prince Edward County Skating Club". Retrieved 2016-02-18.
  17. "Haderway Farms". Retrieved 2016-02-18.
  18. "C.M.L. Snider School". Hastings & Prince Edward District School Board. Retrieved 2016-02-18.
  19. "About". The Time. Retrieved 2016-02-12.
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