Waterloo Region is still home to the largest population of Old Order Mennonites in Canada, particularly in the areas around St Jacobs and Elmira.

Woolwich Township has its own municipal government consisting of five councillors and a mayor; the latter also serves on the Waterloo Region Council.

Originally Block three of Indian Lands, this area now comprises a large part of Woolwich Township.

[10] In 1807, Wallace sold the major portion of his tract to Mennonites from Pennsylvania, trustees for the German Company, many of whom would settle this area.

Their large log home served as an inn for travelers and he operated a stagecoach for carrying mail from 1835 to 1850.

[13] Starting in 1821, a part of Woolwich, to the east of the Grand River (Block 3), owned by James Crooks, attracted dozens of families from England and Scotland.

Previously, this area had few settlers, the most notable a Mr. Cox; the creek which enters the Grand River at what is now Winterbourne was named after him.

Immigrants from Scotland began settling the Cox Creek area in 1834, led by John Davidson.

Captain Henry Lanphier arrived in 1854 and soon built a sawmill and flour mill after damming Cox Creek.

By 1867, Winterbourne had a population of 160, three churches, a school, a post office, a general store, two mills, two hotels, two blacksmiths, a tailor, a shoemaker and a physician.

[17] A community by the name of Bristow's Corners was already in existence in 1839 when a post office was assigned there; it was renamed Elmira in 1853.

[12] Records about the entire township from 1846 indicate that the area was thinly settled although the land was excellent and there were large tracts of hardwood.

[18] Woolwich Township Council was organized in January 1850 with five councillors, of whom John N. Meyer was named as Reeve; James Dow was appointed as clerk and treasurer.

[19] A significant influx to the St. Jacobs area started afterwards, primarily consisting of additional Mennonites from Pennsylvania.

Each "functional unit" is based on a defined economic hub or activity, such as banking or postal services, milling, or a general store.

[32] During the 1960s, due to the poor disposal practices of chemical manufacturers, contamination seeped down to the aquifer in and around Elmira.

Major employers include Trylon TSF,[38] Sanyo Machine Works, Elmira Pet Products, Lanxess (formerly Chemtura and Uniroyal), Toyota Boshoku (formerly Trim Masters), Engineered Lifting Systems, and Southfield Windows & Doors.

Since the 1970s, tourism has become an increasingly important industry in Elmira and especially in St. Jacobs which has a very popular Farmers' Market and many quaint stores in its downtown area.

The residential communities include Elmira, St. Jacobs, Breslau, Conestogo, Heidelberg, Maryhill, North Woolwich, Bloomingdale, Weissenburg, West Montrose, Floradale, Winterbourne, and Zuber Corners.

The three largest areas offering a range of residential, industrial, commercial and recreational uses are in Elmira, St. Jacobs and Breslau; the latter adjoins Kitchener and is the fastest growing community in the township.

[50] Woolwich is home to the Region of Waterloo International Airport (YKF), which is south of Breslau to the east of the Grand River.

GO Transit and Via Rail operate regional and intercity services respectively, both along the Guelph Subdivision, but do not stop in the township.

[53] Highways Woolwich Township has eleven trails; much of the 45-kilometre (28 mi) long Kissing Bridge Trailway runs through this area.