GUELPH, ONTARIO - Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

Information pertaining to land use, soil management and productivity should
then be obtained from Part IV.
Sewcomers to the area can use Part I of the report to discover the location
of markets and the distribution of roads and railways. Information on principal
farm products and types and sizes of farms can be found in PART IV of
the report.
Those interested in how the soils of the County were formed and their
relationship to the Great Soil Groups of the world should read the section on
Factors Affecting the Formation of Bruce County Soils. Chemical and physical
analyses are presented in Part V for those interested in the composition of
soils of the County.
Location and Area
PART I
GENERAL DESCRIPTlON OF THE AREA
Bruce County is located in Southwestern Ontario and is bordered on the
south by Huron County, on the east by Grey County and Georgian Bay, and
on the north and west by Lake Huron. .
According to the 1951 Census of the Dominion of Canada the total land
area is 1,056,OOO acres or 1,650 square miles. Of this, 793,741 acres or 75.2y0
is occupied farm land.
County Seat and Principal Towns
Walkerton, with a population of 2,679 persons (1941 Census) is the county
seat and is situated in the middle of one of the best agricultural districts in
Bruce County. From the earliest days of settlement the town has been an
important marketing centre, for located here are firms such as creameries, grist
mills and other businesses which provide a market for the farmer’s goods.
Kincardine, Port Elgin, and Southampton are situated on the Lake Huron
shore and provide excellent docking facilities for the many pleasure craft that
abound in those waters during the summer season. Each of the towns has
furniture factories which manufacture products that are well known throughout
Canada. The presence of creameries, grist mills, dairies, etc., in these towns
makes them ideal centres for the marketing of farm produce.
Wiarton (1,749) is best known as the gateway to the Bruce Peninsula
which is famed as a summer playground. The town itself is situated on Colpoy
Bay and has a fine natural harbour which is used chiefly by a fishing fleet and
various pleasure boats.
Villages such as Teeswater, Lucknow, Tara, Ripley, Paisley, Mildmay,
Tiverton and Lion’s Head are scattered t,hroughout the County, providing
markets for farm produce.
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