The cities of Barrie and Orillia are geographically within Simcoe County, but are both politically independent single-tier municipalities.

However, North Simcoe hosts two GO Transit train stations that provide daily commuter rail service to Toronto.

The cities of Barrie and Orillia are geographically within North Simcoe, but both are politically independent single-tier municipalities.

The Huron capital, Ossossané, was at one time the largest aboriginal settlement in all of North America outside Mexico.

[citation needed] The County, named by Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada John Graves Simcoe in honour of his father Captain John Simcoe,[citation needed] was established as part of the Home District in 1798 by the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada.

[2] Its initial territory was described as follows: ...Matchedash, Gloucester, or Penetanguishene, together with Prince William Henry's Island,[3] and all the land lying between the Midland District and a line produced due north from a certain fixed boundary (at the distance of about fifty miles north-west from the outlet of Burlington Bay) till it intersects the northern limits of the Province... At its beginning, the County existed only for purposes of military enlistment.

These acts named the townships that the County would encompass and authorized the levying of taxes for the purpose of constructing a jail and court house.

On January 11, 1843, the jail and court house having been duly erected, the Governor General proclaimed the County of Simcoe to be a separate and distinct District.

[8] Between 1845 and 1851, there had been a campaign to have the part of West Gwillimbury south of the Holland River annexed to York County.

As an "upper tier" municipality, the County of Simcoe is responsible for municipal services which include social housing, land ambulance and emergency planning, environmental services (solid waste management), a County road system, Ontario Works, children's services, homes for the aged, a library co-operative, museum, archives, County forest management, tourism, a Geographic Information System (computer mapping) and land use policy planning.

The economy of Simcoe County is diverse and includes a full range of businesses from agricultural, industrial and high-tech sectors.

The county is also home to other institutions including Casino Rama, Georgian College, Canadian Forces Base Borden, a campus of Lakehead University and the Ontario Provincial Police Headquarters.

Agri-business is a diverse, multi-faceted industry and farmland in the region is among the best in all of Canada, including a section of the Holland Marsh in Bradford.

Tourism is a vital industry in Simcoe County, providing a diversity of jobs and economic impact in a variety of sectors including accommodation, restaurants, destinations, events and retail.

Via Rail's Canadian Toronto-Vancouver transcontinental passenger train makes request stops at the Washago railway station in Severn.

[34] Some of the County's larger urban centres have local public transit operations, which consist of bus services.

Intercity bus services serving Simcoe County include GO Transit (Route 68), and Ontario Northland.