Huntsville, Ontario

Shitville
Town
Huntsville
Country	Canada
Province	Ontario
Region	Muskoka Region
Settled	1869
Incorporated	1886
Government
• Type	Town
• Mayor	Claude Doughty
Area
• Total	68.72 km2 (26.53 sq mi)
Population  (2006)
• Total	18,280
• Density	270/km2 (690/sq mi)
Website	www.town.huntsville.on.ca

Huntsville (2006 population 18,280) is a town in the Muskoka Region of Ontario, Canada.

The area was first settled, and founded in 1869 by Captain George Hunt, who built a small agricultural centre there. In 1870, a post office was built and the area was named Huntsville after Hunt, who became the first postmaster. In the following year, the Muskoka Colonization Road reached this area. A water route north from Port Sydney to Huntsville opened in 1877 and a railway route was built by the Northern and Pacific Junction Railway in 1885, which encouraged development and resulted in Huntsville becoming officially incorporated in 1886.

The central Ontario community became an important industrial area in the late 19th century and had several saw, planing and shingle mills, as well as a tannery. Today, the many lakes and hills in the area, combined with the town's proximity to both Algonquin Park and Toronto, make Huntsville and the Muskoka region a major tourist destination.

Communities

In addition to the main townsite of Huntsville, the communities of Allensville, Ashworth, Aspdin, Britannia Road, Canal, Centurion, Etwell, Hidden Valley, Ilfracombe, Lancelot, Martins, Melissa, Muskoka Lodge, Newholm, Norvern Shores, Parkersville, Port Sydney, Ravenscliffe, Stanleydale, Utterson, Vernon Shores, Williamsport and Yearley are located within the municipal boundaries. The town's only public secondary school is Huntsville High School.

Culture

Huntsville is a magnet for and home to many acclaimed visual artists. Famed Canadian artists Tom Thomson and his peers, artists of the Group of Seven painted here frequently. The Town of Huntsville boasts a Group of Seven Outdoor Gallery with over 40 outdoor murals celebrating the work of these Canadian heroes. Local community visual arts group The Huntsville Art Crowd hosts many annual shows, exhibits & skills-sharing workshops throughout the year.

Many summer camps for children such as Muskoka Woods, Ontario Pioneer Camp and Olympia Sports Camp are within a few kilometers of Huntsville. Resorts such as Deerhurst Resort, where Shania Twain was discovered in 1988-1989, Hidden Valley Resort and Cedar Grove Lodge are located within the town's boundaries.

Huntsville supports a number of arts festivals, including Huntsville Festival of the Arts. The Huntsville Festival of the Arts recently provided a seed grant which enabled a book of poetry entitled Fringe Festival Poetry, Poems from the Poetry Cafe, edited by June Salmon and Marta Mirecki-de Roode. Other arts activities include the annual Muskoka Novel Marathon, started by Canadian authors Martin Avery and Mel Malton in 2001. The town is especially proud of its new municipal centre and performing arts theatre, the Algonquin Theatre.

The theatre provides a beautiful and professional space for local dance, music, and school activities. For profit venues are also scheduled, and most of the labour is provided by local volunteers.

Rocker Hawksley Workman was born and raised in Huntsville. His 2003 album Lover/Fighter included a track called "Ilfracombe".

Les Stroud, a Canadian musician and survival expert best known as the host of the television program Survivorman, resides in Huntsville.

Economy

Major employers in Huntsville include Deerhurst Resort, Panolam and Kimberly Clark.

Transportation

Huntsville is accessible through a variety of roadways, including Highway 60, Highway 11 and Muskoka (Regional) Road 3. Buses to and from Toronto come into the city daily.

Passenger train service to the town from Toronto is provided daily by the Northlander at the Huntsville railway station.

Huntsville Transit provides local bus service in the town.

Sports

Hockey and lacrosse are popular sports in Huntsville. The town is the hometown of sports icons such as Jack Bionda, for whom Huntsville's municipal arena is named.

The town has a lacrosse team, the Huntsville Hawks of the OLA Junior B Lacrosse League, as well as two female hockey teams: the Honeys and Huskies. The town also has an Ontario Provincial Junior A Hockey League team called the Huntsville Otters, which has had players move on to major junior A in the Ontario Hockey League.

Huntsville is one of three Canadian towns hosting Ironman 70.3 triathlons.

Notable residents

• Jack Bionda, athlete best known as a lacrosse player.
• Ethan Moreau, captain of the Edmonton Oilers.
• Les Stroud, survival expert and host of the television program Survivorman.
• George Selkirk, a major league baseball player, was born here in 1908. Selkirk succeeded the legendary Babe Ruth as the right fielder for the New York Yankees.
• Roy MacGregor, Canadian author, and journalist. Recipient of The Order of Canada.
• Shania Twain, top-selling country singer in history. Recipient of The Order of Canada.

Demographics

Huntsville had a population of 18,280 people in 2006, which was an increase of 5.4% from the 2001 census count. The median household income in 2005 for Huntsville was $52,331, which is below the Ontario provincial average of $60,455.

Racial Profile

• 95.5% White
• 4.0% Aboriginal
• 1.0% Chinese
• 0.0% Korean
• 1.0% other

Religious Groups

• 57.0% Protestant
• 15.6% Roman Catholic
• 2.0% other Christian
• 0.08% Jewish

Age Group

• 0–14 years: 18.9%
• 15–64 years: 67.6%
• 65 years and over: 16.8%

Media

Radio

• FM 94.3 - CBLU, CBC Radio One
• FM 98.9 - CJLF-3, Christian
• FM 105.5 - CFBK ("Moose FM"), adult contemporary
• FM 106.9 - CBL-1, CBC Radio 2
• www.muskokaonline.com Hunters Bay Radio

Television

• Channel 8: CBLT-TV-2 - CBC
• Channel 11: CICI-TV-11 - CTV
• Channel 13: CICA-TV-13 - TVOntario

External links

• Town of Huntsville