In addition to the town of Meaford itself, the municipality also includes the communities of Annan, Balaclava, Bognor, Centreville, Griersville, Leith, and Woodford.

In 1837, when this area was part of the St. Vincent Township, locals asked the government for a piece of land at the mouth of the Bighead River.

[3] The post office was renamed Meaford in 1865, after the birthplace of John Jervis, 1st Earl of St Vincent, for whom the township of St. Vincent is named; by then, the community was booming and had connection by steamship and roads with the railway at Collingwood.

[5] It was originally planned to extend further west to Owen Sound, but this ambition was never realized due to a number of factors, including rough terrain, financial limitations, and competition from the Toronto, Grey and Bruce Railway, which reached Owen Sound in 1873.

For more than one hundred years the townships of Ontario were municipal entities with an elected council and a reeve.

Ontario Highway 26 between Owen Sound and Collingwood crosses the river in the town of Meaford.

A local public transit service makes stops within urban Meaford but not in Sydenham or St Vincent.

CKNX-FM, originating from Wingham, Ontario to the south, has a low-power retransmitter on 104.9 FM to serve the municipality.

Rogers cable is available in the Town of Meaford while residents in the former St. Vincent and Sydenham have access only to Satellite TV.

On April 15, 2016 the Canadian Heraldic Authority[17] granted Meaford its coat of arms, flag and badge.