Beaverton, Ontario

Beaverton is a community in Brock Township in the Regional Municipality of Durham, Ontario, Canada.

Originally part of Thorah Township in Ontario County, Beaverton was first settled in 1822. The settlement was located on Lake Simcoe at the mouth of the Beaver River. It was called Calder's Mills (after an early miller), Mill Town and Milton until it was renamed Beaverton when the post office was opened in 1835. In 1884, Beaverton separated from the Township and was incorporated as a Village.

As part of the creation of Durham Region in 1974, Beaverton was amalgamated with Thorah Township, the original Brock Township and the Villages of Cannington and Sunderland to create the newly expanded Township of Brock.

Today, Beaverton is the largest community in Brock, with a population of approximately 5500 people. There are three elementary schools in Beaverton and area, as well as an arena, curling club, public library, small harbour and yacht club. The local economy is based on the provision of services to the surrounding area, supplemented by some manufacturing. Tourism also plays a role; the Trent-Severn Waterway connects with Lake Simcoe a few kilometres north of Beaverton and the area attracts cottagers from other regions of the Province.

Beaverton is the home of The Strand Theatre, Canada's oldest movie theatre. http://www.phsc.ca/Kinetoscope.html

The local post office services the town with lock boxes and rural routes.

Notable People

* NHLers Basil McRae and Chris McRae.
* Editorial cartoonist Duncan Macpherson.