Spidertown, Ontario
Encyclopedia
Spidertown was a small, agricultural supply and services based community in southwestern Ontario
, Canada
that existed in the last half of the 19th and the early 20th century. The site of the former hamlet
is located at the present intersection of Mount Carmel Drive, Blackbush Line and Salem Road, on the boundary between the current municipality
of North Middlesex
and the municipality of South Huron
. Little is currently known of Spidertown's founding, nor the origin of its name. The hamlet is described in one source as consisting, at one point in time, of "taverns on both corners" and "four homes". It is known, that in the latter 19th century a general store
was operated in the community by Alexander Todd, presumably the same individual who operated two other general stores during the period at Maguire
and Moray as well. A medical doctor
, T. L. Flaherty, maintained a practice in a corner house in the hamlet in the latter 19th century, but is known to have moved his office to Mount Carmel
, 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) to the east, before 1898. It is believed that Spidertown began to go into decline because of its inability to compete economically with the nearby hamlet of Mount Carmel. Spidertown is recorded as having disappeared by 1914.
Southwestern Ontario
Southwestern Ontario is a subregion of Southern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario, centred on the city of London. It extends north to south from the Bruce Peninsula on Lake Huron to the Lake Erie shoreline, and east to south-west roughly from Guelph to Windsor. The region had a population...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
that existed in the last half of the 19th and the early 20th century. The site of the former hamlet
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
is located at the present intersection of Mount Carmel Drive, Blackbush Line and Salem Road, on the boundary between the current municipality
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
of North Middlesex
North Middlesex, Ontario
North Middlesex is a municipality in Middlesex County, Ontario, Canada.The restructured municipality of North Middlesex was incorporated on January 1, 2001. This amalgamation joined five municipalities — the townships of East Williams, West Williams and McGillivray, the town of Parkhill and the...
and the municipality of South Huron
South Huron, Ontario
South Huron is a municipality in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in the southern part of Huron County. It was formed by amalgamation of the townships of Stephen and Usborne with the Town of Exeter in 2001, in an Ontario-wide municipal restructuring imposed by the provincial...
. Little is currently known of Spidertown's founding, nor the origin of its name. The hamlet is described in one source as consisting, at one point in time, of "taverns on both corners" and "four homes". It is known, that in the latter 19th century a general store
General store
A general store, general merchandise store, or village shop is a rural or small town store that carries a general line of merchandise. It carries a broad selection of merchandise, sometimes in a small space, where people from the town and surrounding rural areas come to purchase all their general...
was operated in the community by Alexander Todd, presumably the same individual who operated two other general stores during the period at Maguire
Maguire, Ontario
Maguire, Ontario was a small agricultural supply based community which formerly stood at what is today the intersection of Adare Drive and Maguire Road, in the municipality of North Middlesex, Ontario Canada, in former McGillivray Township...
and Moray as well. A medical doctor
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, T. L. Flaherty, maintained a practice in a corner house in the hamlet in the latter 19th century, but is known to have moved his office to Mount Carmel
Mount Carmel, Middlesex County, Ontario
Mount Carmel is a primarily residential hamletlocated in southwestern Ontario, Canada at the intersection of Mount Carmel Drive, Bronson Line and Lieury Road, on the boundary between the municipality of North Middlesex and the municipality of South Huron...
, 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) to the east, before 1898. It is believed that Spidertown began to go into decline because of its inability to compete economically with the nearby hamlet of Mount Carmel. Spidertown is recorded as having disappeared by 1914.
Sources
- Mack, Susan Muriel (1992). The History of Stephen Township. Corporation of The Township of Stephen, pg. 236
- McGillivray Township History Group (1992) McGillivray Remembers 1842-1992., pg.69
- Grainger, Jennifer (2002). Vanished Villages of Middlesex. Natural Heritage Books, Toronto. pg. 163, ISBN 1-896219-51-9