238 Frances |
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Ontario Tourism Region : Southwestern
Description From Owner:
- Pop. 358. In Southwold T., Elgin C., on C. Rds. 16 & 20, 14 km SW of St. Thomas.
- The community is the oldest village in Southwold T. and was named by Col. Thomas Talbot after Fingal's Cave in the Hebrides in the Western Isles of Scotland.
- (The Hebrides Overture by Mendelssohn is also known as Fingal's Cave.) The fIrst settler was Titus CowIe, who sold his land to Levi Fowler in the 1820s. In the 1830s Fowler laid out some village lots and opened a general store.
- He went into partnership with Amasa Wood who, because of his habits of rising early and speaking loudly, was nicknamed the 'Town Bell.'
- A town hall was built in 1852, and Levi Fowler was the frrst reeve. There was so much quarrelling at council meetings that the community was nicknamed the 'Devil's Half Acre.'
- In 1889 a smallpox epidemic wiped out half the population of 1,000. Nearby St. Thomas was then growing rapidly, attracting industry and settlers, and Fingal never recovered.
- Just outside Fingal is a unique double-walled aboriginal earthwork showing no trace of European influence. The fort's origin and history remain a mystery.
Address of this page: http://www.ruralroutes.com/fingal