Minden Hills

Minden Hills is a township in and the county seat of Haliburton County, Ontario, Canada. It is an amalgam of the townships of Snowdon, Lutterworth, Anson, Hindon and Minden. It is usually referred to as Minden, after its largest community.

Minden Hills, Ontario, Canada
Township of Minden Hills
Municipal office
Minden Hills
Coordinates: 44°56′N 78°44′W
Country Canada
Province Ontario
CountyHaliburton
Settled1850s
FormedJanuary 1, 2001
Government
  TypeTownship
  MayorBrent Devolin [1]
  Deputy MayorLisa Schell [1]
  Prov. ridingHaliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock
  Federal ridingHaliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock
Area
  Land878.27 km2 (339.10 sq mi)
Population
 (2016)[2]
  Total6,088
Time zoneUTC-5 (EST)
  Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
Postal Code
K0M
Area code(s)705
Websitewww.mindenhills.ca
Minden

The township was formed on January 1, 2001, by combining the townships of Lutterworth, Snowdon, Anson, Hindon and Minden.

Local government

The town's council includes a mayor, deputy mayor, councillor at large and three councillors elected on the basis of one per ward, who are elected to join the mayor at meetings of Haliburton County Council. The members of council elected in 2018 are:[3]

Mayor: Brent Devolin

Deputy Mayor: Lisa Schell

Councillors:

  • At Large: Ron Nesbitt
  • Ward 1: Jennifer Hughey
  • Ward 2: Pam Sayne
  • Ward 3: Jean Neville

Communities

The primary residential and commercial centre of the township is Minden, located just off Highway 35 (44°55′34″N 78°43′33″W).

The township also includes the smaller communities of Blairhampton, Brady Lake, Buller, Carnarvon, Deep Bay, Dutch Line, Gelert, Hindon Hill (abandoned community), Howland, Ingoldsby, Irondale, Kilcoo Harbour, Lochlin, Lutterworth, Miners Bay, and Moore Falls.

Minden

Minden, named after a town in the North Rhine–Westphalia federal state in Germany, was first surveyed in 1858. Before that, the settlement was called Gull River.[4][5] Settlers were first drawn to the region (via the Bobcaygeon Road, an original colonization road), because of its timber resources. The town lies on the banks of the Gull River and during the 19th and 20th centuries, loggers used the river to move timber to sawmills downstream.

Since the 1940s the town has become an increasingly popular summer destination given its close proximity to larger cities in southern Ontario. The population grows dramatically during the summer months as a result of tourism. The Minden Times and The Highlander are the local newspapers, and the local post office on Water St. serves residents with lock boxes and three rural routes.

The Minden Hills Cultural Centre is home to the Agnes Jamieson Gallery, named after Dr. Agnes Jamieson, the first female coroner in Ontario. The Gallery houses the largest known collection of André Lapine's work. Both Lapine and Jamieson lived in Minden during part of their lives. The Cultural Centre is also home to the Minden Hills Museum, which includes seven heritage buildings, including a school, a blacksmith shop and a church. R.D. Lawrence Place, an interactive learning centre celebrating Canadian author Ron Lawrence, is also located here.

2013 flood

The Gull River flooded in April 2013, leading to a state of emergency declaration on April 20.[6] By May 3, officials were predicting another two weeks of abnormally high water levels in the Trent-Severn Waterway system. The excess water that was held back in the reservoir lakes north of Minden was being slowly released and moved through the village so as not to cause increased damage. The use of the reservoir lakes north of Minden to collect water was necessary to avert a threat to the essential utilities of water, hydro and sewage treatment. However, it extended the flood damage area north throughout the entire Gull River Watershed. Many of the properties on those lakes were damaged.[7]

Residents of the area were evacuated from their homes on short notice and remained out until mid-May.[8] Claims by residents to the Ontario Disaster Relief Assistance Program totaled 1.8 million dollars by November 2013, in addition to an estimated 2.2 million dollars in insured claims. The township spent $370,000 on flood related costs.[9]

2017 flood

Residents of Minden Hills were once again affected after only four years since the massive flood in 2013. Watershed flooding was at its max capacity in the reservoir lakes of the Trent Severn Waterway only to be hit with 129 millimeters of rain in late April increasing flood levels.[10][11] A state of emergency was put into place on May 6, 2017 for the town of Minden Hills.[10] The Gull River through Minden recorded 5 centimeters lower than the record 2013 flood.[10] A new automated sandbag machine was purchased earlier in March, helping with handling sandbags at a much faster rate for flood relief. Close to 40,000 sandbags being filled by the end of the weekend.[11] Provincial aid was provided after Reeve Brent Devolin had been in contact with Premier Kathleen Wynne.[12] The Ontario Disaster Relief Assistance Program offered reimbursement for homeowners affected.[13]

2015 Pan Am Games

Minden Wild Water Preserve was a venue of the 2015 Pan Am Games hosting canoe events.

Demographics

Canada census – Minden Hills community profile
2016 2011 2006
Population: 6,088 (+7.7% from 2011) 5,655 (+1.8% from 2006) 5,556 (+4.6% from 2001)
Land area: 878.27 km2 (339.10 sq mi) 878.17 km2 (339.06 sq mi) 847.76 km2 (327.32 sq mi)
Population density: 6.9/km2 (18/sq mi) 6.4/km2 (17/sq mi) 6.6/km2 (17/sq mi)
Median age: 56.9 (M: 56.6, F: 57.3) 50.1 (M: 49.5, F: 50.6)
Total private dwellings: 6,092 6,020 6,220
Median household income: $58.935 $48,739
References: 2016[14] 2011[15] 2006[16] earlier[17]
Historical population
YearPop.±%
19965,336    
20015,312−0.4%
20065,556+4.6%
20115,655+1.8%
20166,088+7.7%
[18][19][2]

Populations prior to amalgamation (2001):

  • Population in 1996: 5,336
    • Anson, Hindon and Minden (township): 3,459
    • Lutterworth (township): 927
    • Snowdon (township): 950
  • Population in 1991:
    • Anson, Hindon and Minden (township): 3,239
    • Lutterworth (township): 899
    • Snowdon (township): 852

Mother tongue:

  • English as first language: 89.6%
  • French as first language: 2.0%
  • English and French as first language: 0.2%
  • Other as first language: 8.2%

See also

References

  1. "Certificate of Election Results" (PDF). Township of Minden Hills. Retrieved 2018-12-04.
  2. "Census Profile, 2016 Census: Minden Hills, Township". Statistics Canada. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  3. "Certificate of Election Results" (PDF). mindenhills.ca. October 23, 2018. Retrieved December 4, 2018.
  4. Murray, Florence B. 1963. Muskoka and Haliburton 1615-1875: A Collection of Documents. Florence B. Murray, ed. The Champlain Society for the Government of Ontario, University of Toronto Press
  5. Item Display - Post Offices and Postmasters - ArchiviaNet - Library and Archives Canada
  6. Minden Hills still under water after two weeks — and may be for two more, GlobalNews.ca, May 1, 2013. Retrieved May 4, 2013
  7. Flood release #24 Archived 2013-09-28 at the Wayback Machine, Minden Times, May 3, 2013. Retrieved May 4, 2013
  8. Township of Minden Hills - Flood Related Archived 2013-07-02 at the Wayback Machine
  9. Flood-related Cost Estimate Archived 2013-12-05 at the Wayback Machine
  10. Ingram, Chad. "Flooding back." The Times, Minden Times, 11 May 2017, . Retrieved 2 Oct. 2017
  11. Ingram, Chad. "Flood mitigation process will be slow ." The Times, Minden Times, 19 July 2017, . Retrieved 2 Oct. 2017
  12. "State of emergency continues in Minden as residents cope with flooding." CTV News Barrie, BellMedia, 8 May 2017, . Retrieved 2 Oct. 2017
  13. The Canadian Press. "Ontario premier Kathleen Wynne visits areas affected by flooding." Global News, Global News, 9 May 2017, . Retrieved 2 Oct. 2017
  14. "2016 Community Profiles". 2016 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. February 21, 2017. Retrieved 2019-06-14.
  15. "2011 Community Profiles". 2011 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. July 5, 2013. Retrieved 2012-02-28.
  16. "2006 Community Profiles". 2006 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. March 30, 2011. Retrieved 2012-02-28.
  17. "2001 Community Profiles". 2001 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. February 17, 2012.
  18. Statistics Canada: 1996, 2001, 2006 census
  19. "Minden Hills census profile". Canada 2011 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 28 February 2012.
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