St. Davids

 

St. Davids is situated and the intersection of two important Indian trails, the north-south route from Lake Ontario to the top of the Niagara Escarpment and the east-west path along the ledge below the Escarpment extending from New York state to Lake Huron.  The first non-Native settlers in St. Davids were the families of soldiers of Loyalist regiments.

 

At first St. Davids served as a trading post.  Then the waterpower of the Four Mile Creek made it the milling centre of Upper Canada.  The first mill in the Village, constructed by Peter and James Secord in 1782-83, still stands and is now a home.

 

St. Davids was considered to be a British stronghold by the attacking American forces and York Road was a vital military link.  Because of this, the village and its residents played a vital role during the War of 1812-14.  St. Davids was controlled by the both the Americans and the British on a number of occasions.  The US forces were finally driven out in July 1814 but not before they expelled the residents and looted and burned the village.

 

After the War, York Road became an important stagecoach and mail route, part of the Queenston-Grimsby-Burlington Toll Road.  The Village’s prominent location and the advent of the St. Davids station of the Erie and Ontario Railway resulted in several fruit wholesalers and other firms locating their businesses in the area after 1850.  These were joined by important industries such as John Sleeman’s Stamford Spring Brewery and Distillery and the nearby quarry.

 

Toward the end of the 1800s the local economy gradually shifted from general and mixed farming to tender fruit growing.  The railway gave the growers access to market and by the 1880s there was a significant commercial fruit market and a fledgling canning industry.  By 1900 St. Davids was a bustling centre with thriving business and industrial place and a prominent place in the agricultural community.