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For more information on boundary changes and name changes in present day Ontario, please go to my History & Timeline pages

Canada West was divided into twenty districts, which are then subdivided into counties, ridings and townships. The districts varied greatly in size, with the Western District containing 29 townships and the Prince Edward District containing 6.

As large districts were settled, and populations grew, smaller districts were formed from one large one. Colborne District was formed from Newcastle District; Simcoe District was formed from Home District and Huron District was formed from London District.

Townships also varied in size, with some as large as 90,000 acres and others as small as 20,000. Most townships were laid out in square blocks but some were not - and their divisions are beyond description. The townships are divided into concessions, generally running east to west, and north to south. However when a river ran through a township, the lots were laid out to face the river, no matter what direction that was. Concessions were generally divided into lots of 200 acres each, and half lots of 100 acres each.

Almost half the surveyed lands of Upper Canada were purchased after 1818 from native tribes.

1846 Districts

BATHURST DISTRICT Population in 1842: 21,672 Lanark County Bathurst Township Becckwith Township Dalhousie Township Darling Township Drummond Township North Elmsley Township North Burgess Township Levant Township Lanark Township Montague Township Ramsay Township North Sherbrooke Township South Sherborrke Township Renfrew County Admaston Township Blithefield Township Bagot Township Bromley Township Horton Township Macnab Township Pakenham Township pembroke Township Ross Township Stafford Township Westmeath Township BROCK DISTRICT Settled mainly by settlers from Great Britain and Ireland Population in 1842: 16,271 Oxford County Blandford Township Blenheim Township Burford Township Dereham Township Nissouri Township North Oxford Township East Oxford Township West Oxford Township Oakland Township Sandwich Township East Zorra Township West Zorra Township COLBORNE DISTRICT Population in 1842: 13,706 Peterborough County Asphodel Township Belmont Township Burleigh Township Bexley Township Dummer Township Douro Township Ennismore Township Emily Township Edlon Township Fenelon Township Harvey Township Methuen Township Mariposa Township Otonabee Township Ops Township Smith Township Somerville Township Verulam Township North Monaghan Township DALHOUSIE DISTRICT Population in 1842: 19,612 Carleton County Fitzroy Township Goulbourn Township North Gower Township Gloucester Township Huntley Township March Township Marlborough Township Nepean Township Osgoode Township Torbolton Township EASTERN DISTRICT Population in 1842: 29,893 Stormount Co. Cornwall Township Finch Township Osnabruck Township Roxborough Township town of Cornwall Dundas Co. Mountain Township Matilda Township Winchester Township Williamsburg Township Glengarry Counties Charlottenburgh Township Kenyon Township Lochiel Township Lancaster Township GORE DISTRICT Population in 1841: 31,507 Wentworth Co. Ancaster Township Brantford Township Binbrooke Township Barton Township Glandford Township Onandaga Township Saltfleet Township Tuscarora Township Seneca Township Oneida Township town of Hamilton Halton Counties Beverley Townships Esquesing Townships East Flamborough Townships West Flamborough Townships Nassagaweya Townships Nelson Townships Trafalgar Townships Dumfries Townships Erin Townships HOME DISTRICT Population in 1799: 224 Population in 1842: 58,853 City of Toronto York County York Co. consists of 4 Ridings: North: Brock Township North Gwillimbury Township East Gwillimbury Township Georgina Township Mars Township Reach Township Rama Township Scott Township Thorah Township Uxbridge Township Whitchurch Township South Riding: Etobicoke Township King Township Vaughan Township York Township East Riding: Markham Township Pickering Township Scarborough Township Whitby Township West Riding: Albion Township Caledon Township Chinguacousy Township Toronto Gore Toronto Township HURON DISTRICT Population in 1845: 13,500 Huron Co. Ashfield Township Bidulph Township Blanchard Township Colborne Township Downie Township Ellice Township South Easthope Township North Easthope Township Fullarton Township Gopderich Township Hibbert Township Hay Township Hullet Township Logan Township McKillip Township McGillivray Township Stephen Township Stanley Township Tuckersmith Township Usborne Township Wawanosh Township JOHNSTOWN DISTRICT Population in 1842: 36,768 Leeds Co. Bastard Township South Burgess Township North Crosby Township South Crosby Township South Elmsley Township Elizabethtown Township Kitley Township Lansdowne Township Leeds Township Yonge Township Grenville Co. Augusta Township Edwardsburgh Township South Gower Township Oxford Township Wolford Township LONDON DISTRICT It previously included the present district of Huron Oldest town: St. Thomas, settled 1816 Population in 1842: 31,350 Middleswex Co. Adelaide Township Aldborough Township Bayham Township Carradoc Township Delaware Township Dorchester Township Dunwich Township Ekfrid Township Lobo Township London Township Metcalfe Township Mosa Township Malahide Township Southwold Township Westminster Township Williams Township Yarmouth Township Town of London

MIDLAND DISTRICT Population in 1842: 38,770 Frontenac Co. Bedford Township Barrie Township Clarendon Township Hinchinbrooke Township Kingston Township Kennebec Township Loughborough Township Oiden Township Oso Township Portland Township Pittsburgh Township Howe Island Palmerston Storrington Wolfe Island Town of Kingston Lennox Co. Adolphustown Township Fredericksburgh Township Richmond Township Addington Co. Amherst Island Township Camden Township Ernestown Township Kaladar Township Sheffield Township Anglesea Township NEWCASTLE DISTRICT Population in 1842: 32,033 Northumberland Co. Alnwick Township Cramabe Township Hamilton Township Haldimand Township South Monaghan Township Murray Township Percy Township Seymoure Township Durham Co. Clarke Township Cavan Township Cartwright Township Darlington Township Hope Township Manvers Township NIAGARA DISTRICT Settled by U.E.L. Population in 1841: 31,549 Lincoln Co. Caistor Township Clinton Township Gainsborough Township Grantham Township Grimsby Township Louth Township Niagara Township Town of Niagara Welland Co. Bertie Township Crowland Township Humberstone Township Pelham Township Stamford Township Thorold Township Wainfleet Township Willoughby Township Haldimand Co. *except* townships of Seneca, Oneida, Rainham & Walpole Canboro Township Cayuga Township Dunn Township Moulton Township Sherbrooke Township OTTAWA DISTRICT Population in 1842: 7944 Prescott Co. Alfred Township Caledonia Township East hawkesbury Township West Hawkesbury Township Longueil Township Plantagenet Township Russell Co. Clarence Township Cumberland Township Cambridge Township Russell Township PRINCE EDWARD DISTRICT Smallest district in province, and is nearly surrounded by Lake Ontario and Bay of Quinte. It was originally settled by U.E.L. Population in 1842: estimated at 16,000 Prince Edward Co. Athol Township Ameliasburgh Township Hallowell Township Hillier Township Marysburgh Township Sophiasburgh Township SIMCOE DISTRICT This district was part of the Home District until 1843 Population in 1842: 12,592 Simcoe Co. Adjala Township Artemesia Township Collingwood Township Essa Township Flos Township West Gwillimbury Township Innisfil Township Medonte Township Matchadash Township Mulmur Township Mono Township Nottawasaga Township Ospry Township Oro Township Orillia Township St. Vincent Township Sunnidale Township Tay Township Tiny Township Tecumseth Township Tossorontio Township Euphrasia Township Vespra Township VICTORIA DISTRICT Population in 1842: 15,842 Hastings Co. Elizevir Township Grimathorpe Township Hungerford Township Huntingdon Township Lake Township Marmora Township Madoc Township Rawdon Township Sydney Township Tudor Township Thurlow Township Tyendenaga Township WELLINGTON DISTRICT Population in 1841: 13,851 Waterloo Co. Arthur Township Aramanth Township Bentinck Township Derby Township Eramosa Township Egremont Township Guelph Township Glenelg Township Garafraxa Township Holland Township Luther Township Mornington Township Minto Township Maryborough Township Melancthon Township Nichol Township Normanby Township Peel Township Proton Township Puslinch Township Sydenham Township Sullivan Township Waterloo Township Wilmot Township Woolwich Township Wellesly Township Dumfries Township Erin Township WESTERN DISTRICT Most South westerly district in province. Population in 1844; 27,619 Essex Co. Anderdon Township Colchester Township Gosfield Township Maidstone Township Mersea Township Malden Township Rochester Township Sandwhich Township Kent Co. Bosanquet Township Brooke Township Camden Township Chatham Township Dawn Township East Dover Township West Dover Township Enniskillen Township Harwich Township Howard Township Moore Township Orford Township Plympton Township Raleigh Township Romney Township Sarnia Township Sombra Township East Tilbury Township Warwick Township Zorra Township