Halton County, Ontario

Halton County is named after Major William Mathew Halton (1746–1823), a British Army officer, who was appointed in England in 1805 as Secretary to Upper Canada Lieutenant-Governor Sir Francis Gore and spent little time in Canada during his posting[1] (served two terms, 1806–1811 and 1815–1816).

[5][6] The lands that eventually formed part of Halton were acquired from the Mississauga Indians as follows: Along with Wentworth County, Halton County was created in 1816 as part of the Gore District,[12] consisting of the townships of Trafalgar, Nelson, Flamborough, and Beverley, together with certain blocks of land on the Grand River and reserved lands to the rear of the townships of Blenheim and Blandford.

[13] In 1821, the county was expanded through the addition of the townships of Esquesing, Erin, Nassagaweya, Eramosa, and Garafraxa, together with certain church land.

[16] Upon the passage of the Act of Union 1840, for electoral purposes Halton became two ridings for electing members to the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada:[17] When the East and West Ridings were renamed for their respective counties in 1845, the township of Erin continued to be part of Halton for electoral purposes.

[22] As settlement progressed, several urban areas developed and were organized into separate villages and towns: In 1861, the County population was about 22,794.

Thomas Ridout survey of 1821. The northern section shows Blocks 1–4, together with Crown reserves and clergy reserves , and certain townships to the east, all being north of Dundas Street , that became part of Halton.