Historical Facts of Havelock Belmont Methuen Township

Havelock was named after Major-General Sir Henry Havelock (5 April 1795 - 24 November 1857) a British general.

Havelock was incorporated as a village in 1892, although its history really began with the surveying of Belmont Township in 1823. In the early years this area was a small settlement which included a Post Office, a store, a bakery, a blacksmith and a millinery.

In 1881 the Canadian Pacific surveyed a right-of-way through the area and a year later laid rails on a graded roadbed. In the fall of 1884, the first full passenger train stopped at Havelock, from Toronto on its way to Smiths Falls. Havelock was an important freight depot from the 1880's to the 1960's. The passenger service was terminated in 1965. The freight service east of Havelock ended, shortly afterward. The railway's activity today consists of transporting nepheline cyenite and crushed basalt rock of volcanic origin from the two mines north of Havelock. The CPR railway station in Havelock has been designated as a Heritage Railway Station. The station is now in private ownership and converted to a restaurant. Much of the exterior and interior was restored in 2004. The restaurant is decorated with a number of railway photos and artifacts.

Click on photo to view

From these early beginnings, the Village of Havelock has expanded and changed, but it still has the feeling of a small country community with a variety of businesses that cater to basic shopping needs. This is a community of caring people who take great pride in their heritage.

In 1855, Belmont and Methuen became a Corporate Township in the county of Peterborough. The people settled in an area of dense forests, numerous lakes and rivers within the Canadian Shield rock outcropping.

The early township settlers survived by means of fishing, logging and farming. Later in the nineteenth century and continuing to the present time, mining is an important industry in the Township of Belmont and Methuen.

In 1998, the Village of Havelock amalgamated with the Township of Belmont and Methuen to form the Township of Havelock Belmont Methuen. The permanent base population is 3900. During the summer months the population base increases to 6400 as seasonal residential property owners return to their cottages.