SHELBURNE

Chronology:

Biographies:

Historical Sketch of the Village of Shelburne as taken from The Illustrated Historical Atlas of Grey County, dated 1880, p.10.

"Situated at almost the south-easterly extremity of the County of Grey, where the townships of Amaranth in Wellington County and Melancthon in Grey join their borders, and a few hundred rods west of the eastern border of the latter, the Village of Shelburne s composed of territory acquired partially from each of the townships named. It is on the main line of the T.G. & B. railroad, which provides it with all the modern advantages of communication with the outside worked, and to which, indeed, it is chiefly indebted for its present decidedly thrifty and progressive condition. Before the construction of this road, the Village of Shelburne closely resembled mercantile corporations which "exist only in contemplation of the mind;" but from the rural hamlet, without commercial attractions beyond such as are necessary to cater to the paramount needs of a rural community - consisting of a small store kept by Edward Berwick, a blacksmith and waggon shop, and the hotel of Wm. Jelly, the founder of the village - it has risen with the tide of progress which follows in the wake of railway construction to be one of the "spiciest" little towns within the County of Grey.

As before intimated, it formerly comprised portions of Amaranth and Melancthon Townships, the major portion of the village being then on the Wellington side of the county line. Having advanced sufficiently in the scale of commercial dignity, and possessing more than the number of inhabitants requisite in an incorporated village, the people of this flourishing locality determined to seek separate municipal organization, and accordingly the territory mentioned was incorporated under the General act provided for such contingencies, in 1878, and assumed its independent municipal existence the first of January following, as part and parcel of the county of Grey. The list of municipal officials under whose directions Shelburne assumed the dignities and responsibilities of village government, included the following, viz.: Wm. Jelly, reeve; John Macbeth, Geo. R. Hannah, Jas. C. Wheaton, and Ira Belfrey, Councillors; with F.G. Dunbar officiating as Clerk."

From page 42:

Belfry, Ira, chemist and druggist. Is of Canadian nativity, and settled in this county in 1873. Has occupied a seat in the Council.

Coleman, George, chemist and druggist. Came to this county in 1873. Is of Canadian birth.

Greenwood, T. & R.H., mill owners and operators. Have been in this county since 1877, and are Canadians born.

Jelly, William, M.P.P. Was born in Canada, 1835, and settled in Shelburne in 1862. Has been Reeve of the village since its incorporation, and at last general election was returned on the Conservative ticket to a seat in the ONtario Legislature for Dufferin.

Jennings, Thomas. Is of Irish nativity; born 1839. Settled in this county, 1862. Keeps a hotel.

Jeffrey, R.W., manufacturer. Has resided here since 1877. Born in this country in 1838.

Knapp, William A., conducts a livery business. Is a native Canadian ; born 1838. Settled in this county, 1876.

Mortimer, R.L. Was born in Mulmur township in 1852. Is now engaged in the profession of school teaching in Shelburne.

Norton, Thomas, M.D., physician and surgeon. Is a Coroner for the County of Grey. Born in Montreal, 1851. Settled in Grey County, 1865.

Rolsten, Henry J., M.D., physician and surgeon. Came to this county in 1877. Native Canadian; born 1849.

Bibliographies on the Town:

These items (*) are available through interlibrary loans from the National Library of Canada:

FORTHCOMING: As one is well aware of this many local history books are not indexed. Short of reading the book from cover to cover, many genealogists miss the gold that can be found in these treasures. Over the next couple of months, I will be providing a surname index list for each of these books listed below.

Rose, John. The History of Shelburne. Shelburne?, Ont.: s.n., 1972?

[Dufferin County GenWeb]

1999-2000 Amy Menary
Last updated: August 22, 1999