[2] In 1873, the same railway wanted to make Cornabus a stop on its route from Toronto to Owen Sound if it could find land on which to build a station.

A local landowner, Mark Armstrong, sold a parcel of land to the railway on the condition if the new station bore his name.

Markdale is home to several industries including Chapman's Ice Cream and Medike Leather Products.

There are several annual festivities, including the Rotary Club's Street Frolic in July, and the Agricultural Society's Markdale Fall Fair in late August.

The village was a charter member of the Central Ontario Hockey League and participated at the senior and junior levels under several nicknames, including Markdale Majors.