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Wingham (2016 census population 2,934) is a community located in the municipality of North Huron, Ontario, Canada, which is located in Huron County. Wingham became part of North Huron in 2001 when the Ontario government imposed amalgamation on the former township of East Wawanosh, the village of Blyth, and the town of Wingham.

Wingham is located at the intersection of County Roads 4 and 86. Most of Wingham is located between County Road 86 to the south and the Maitland River to the north.

History

The original survey for Wingham was conducted in 1854, with 1,000 acres dedicated to the community north of what is now Highway 86 and Highway 4. The initial townsite was oriented around the Maitland River, with the assumption that its water power and transportation opportunities would make it the focal point for development. However, the commercial centre of the settlement gradually shifted to Josephine Street by the 1870s, especially after the arrival of the Wellington, Grey and Bruce Railway in 1872.

thumb|Map of the Village of Wingham, Township of Turnberry, Huron County, Ontario, Canada, H. Belden & Co., 1879

Indeed, when Wingham was incorporated as a village in 1874, its boundaries only included Upper Wingham, whose population at the time was 726; Lower Wingham, whose population was around 500, remained a part of the Township of Turnberry. The first railway to arrive was the Wellington, Grey and Bruce Railway (WG&B), by then a subsidiary of the Great Western Railway. The WG&B was initially known as the Canada North-West Railway (CNWR) With work finishing up in 1871 on the WG&B mainline running between Guelph and Southampton, permission was granted for a "Southern Extension" to Kincardine, branching off from the mainline at Palmerston. This branch line would ultimately be routed through Listowel, Brussels, Wingham, Lucknow, and Ripley on its way to Kincardine. This led to the construction of Wingham's first railway station in 1872.

The second railway to arrive in Wingham was the London, Huron and Bruce Railway (LH&B) in December 1875. The LH&B was the brainchild of the first reeve of Blyth, Patrick Kelly, who promoted it heavily. It was originally intended for Blyth to be the northern terminus; however, several communities to the north, including Wingham, offered considerable subsidies for an extension, In 1885, the CPR announced that a stagecoach service would connect Wingham with a point on the Teeswater line known as Glenannon (or Glenannan), where a small station was built. giving Wingham a direct CPR connection, along with its second railway station. cutting off Wingham's southern connection to London. CN passenger service to the town ended in 1973. and the CN line was abandoned in 1991,

Wingham has three radio stations: CKNX 920, CKNX-FM 101.7, and Classic Rock 94.5, all owned by Blackburn Radio. There is also a television station CKNX channel 8, owned by CTVglobemedia. It rebroadcasts the master signal of CFPL-TV from London, with the exception of local advertising. CKNX became a rebroadcaster of CFPL London on August 31, 2009.

On April 9, 2007, it was announced that Rogers Communications had filed with the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission to purchase all of the A-Channel stations, including CFPL, CKNX, CKX-TV, Access Alberta and several cable channels that were for sale by CHUM Limited in the wake of CTVglobemedia's acquisition of the CHUM group. CTV said it would not renew the licence for CKNX-TV in Wingham upon expiration at the end of August 2009. On May 1, 2009, Shaw Communications offered to buy the station for $1 from CTV (along with other underperforming stations in Brandon and Windsor), but scuttled the deal two months later. CKNX closed down as a separate station on August 31, 2009. Its transmitter remains in operation as an analogue rebroadcaster of CFPL-DT in London.

Wingham was also served by a CBC English TV station (Channel 45), which re-transmitted CBLT-TV Toronto via CBLN-TV London. This transmitter, along with CBC/Radio-Canada's other remaining analog transmitters, was shut down permanently on July 31, 2012, leaving over-the-air viewers in the area with no free CBC television service.

Education

Public education is managed by the Avon Maitland District School Board, which oversees the following schools:

  • F. E. Madill Secondary School is located in Wingham. Approximately 800 students from grades 7-12 attend; most are bused in from the surrounding area. Madill is known for its Basketball teams and its Track and Field team.
  • Maitland River Elementary School is located in Wingham beside F.E. Madill Secondary School. Approximately 400-500 students attend from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 6.

The former Wingham Public School educated thousands of children on John Street, but was closed in 2013.

Catholic education is managed by the Huron-Perth Catholic District School Board. It has one elementary school, Sacred Heart School, located in the town's east end.

Transportation

Wingham is located to the north of County Road 86 which connects to Kitchener-Waterloo to the east. The main thoroughfare is County Road 4, called Josephine Street within Wingham, which connects to London, Ontario to the south.

Wingham/Richard W. LeVan Aerodrome is a general aviation airport to the southeast of Wingham with fuel services and private hangars.

Wingham was served by scheduled bus service to London, Owen Sound, and Stratford until 2013, when provider Aboutown entered receivership.

Attractions

thumb|Founding plaque

The North Huron Museum provides an overview of the history of the Township of North Huron beginning in the Paleolithic era and continuing into modern times. North Wingham Museum

Notable people

thumb|The Alice Munro Public Library, named after Alice Munro

  • Dave Farrish - NHL hockey player and current assistant coach of the Colorado Avalanche
  • Honoré Jackson - A leader of the North-West Rebellion
  • Andrew Kaufman - Writer/film director, raised in Wingham
  • Bob McDonald - Science journalist; Officer of the Order of Canada, raised in Wingham
  • Alice Munro - 2013 Nobel Prize laureate for literature, born in Wingham, author of short stories set in fictional small towns akin to Wingham
  • George Agnew Reid - Artist, raised near Wingham.
  • Caroline Wellwood, nurse missionary in China, raised in Wingham
  • Doug Wood - Canadian record holder in pole vault, raised in Wingham

Politicians

  • William Aberhart - Premier of Alberta, 1935–1943. Taught public school in Wingham.
  • Murray Elston - Ontario MPP, 1981–1994. Born in Wingham.
  • George Johnston - Alberta MLA and Speaker, 1921–1936. Born in Wingham.
  • Robert Mooney - Manitoba MLA, 1922–1953. Born in Wingham.
  • George Spotton - MP, 1927–1935. Wingham businessman.
  • Robert Weir - MP, Minister of Agriculture, 1930-1935. Born in Wingham.

Notes

References