Brussels, Ontario
Brussels is a community in Huron County, Ontario, Canada, located within the municipality of Huron East. It was originally called Ainleyville. The name was changed in 1872 when a branch line of the Grand Trunk Railway from Guelph came through the town. Brussels has seen the population grow over the years, in 1954, the population was 827.
Formerly an incorporated village in its own right, Brussels had a population of 1,143 in the Canada 2001 Census.[1] It was amalgamated into the municipality of Huron East on January 1, 2001.
The Ronald Streamer, a piece of firefight equipment, was made in Brussels.[2] Brussels is 16 miles north of Seaforth and 5 miles north of Walton. Brussels was created as the village of Ainleyville in 1855, founded by William Ainlay (difference in spelling is due to clerical error).
Back in the late 19th century Brussels had a post office, a flour mill, a grist mill, a sawmill, a hair salon, and a fanning mill.
Built with a Carnegie grant of $7000, the Brussels Public Library opened on January 14, 1910. It is one of only six in Ontario to have a corner entrance, a feature deemed extravagant by James Bertram, Carnegie's private secretary who ran the grant program. It was renovated in 2014.
Notable people
- Harry Dean Ainlay, former mayor of Edmonton, Alberta
- Janet Cardiff, artist
- Frances Beatrice Taylor, poet, journalist
References
- Canada 2001 Census Community Profiles: Brussels, Ontario. Statistics Canada.
- "Apparatus". The Firefighters Museum, Winnipeg. Retrieved 2007-07-07.
- The Settlement Of Huron County by James Scott.
External links