Leeds County

Leeds County is a historic county in the Canadian province of Ontario. The county was first surveyed in 1792 as one of the nineteen counties created by Sir John Graves Simcoe in preparation for the United Empire Loyalists to settle here.[1] The county took its name from Francis Osborne, 5th Duke of Leeds;[1] the "Leeds" of the Dukedom referred to Leeds in West Yorkshire, England and not for Leeds, Kent, England. In 1850, Leeds County merged with Grenville County to create the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville. This county was home to several townships as well as the city of Brockville.

Original townships

The county was originally home to eleven townships, which have since amalgamated into five larger townships: Rideau Lakes, Leeds and the Thousand Islands, Elizabethtown-Kitley, Athens and Front of Yonge Townships. The original townships were as follows:

  • Bastard Township (now part of Rideau Lakes)
  • Elizabethtown Township (now part of Elizabethtown-Kitley)
  • Escott Township (Front of Escott now part of Leeds and the Thousand Islands, Rear of Escott now part of Athens)
  • Kitley Township (now part of Elizabethtown-Kitley)
  • Lansdowne Township (now part of Leeds and the Thousand Islands)
  • Leeds Township (now part of Leeds and the Thousand Islands)
  • North Crosby Township (now part of Rideau Lakes)
  • South Burgess Township (now part of Rideau Lakes)
  • South Crosby Township (now part of Rideau Lakes)
  • South Elmsley Township (now part of Rideau Lakes)
  • Yonge Township (Front of Yonge still exists, Rear of Yonge now part of Athens)

Municipal restructuring
  • 1998:
    • The townships of Bastard, North Crosby, South Burgess, South Crosby and South Elmsley amalgamated to become Rideau Lakes Township.
    • The townships of Lansdowne, Leeds, and most of Escott (the southern portion) amalgamated to become Leeds and the Thousand Islands Township.
  • 2001:
    • The townships of Elizabethtown and Kitley amalgamated to become Elizabethtown-Kitley Township.
    • The northern portions of Escott and Yonge Townships amalgamated to become Athens Township.
    • The southern portion of Yonge Township became Front of Yonge Township.

See also

References
  1. "Leeds & Grenville GenWeb, Ontario". sites.rootsweb.com.


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