Perry, Ontario

Perry is a township in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in the Almaguin Highlands region of Parry Sound District.

Perry
Township (single-tier)
Township of Perry
Emsdale
Perry
Coordinates: 45°30′N 79°17′W
Country	Canada
Province	Ontario
District	Parry Sound
Settled	1873
Incorporated	1888
Government
• Type	Township
• Mayor	Norm Hofstetter
• Fed. riding	Parry Sound-Muskoka
• Prov. riding	Parry Sound—Muskoka
Area [1]
• Land	186.34 km2 (71.95 sq mi)
Population  (2021)[1]
• Total	2,650
• Density	14.2/km2 (37/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC-5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
Postal Code	P0A 1J0
Area codes	705, 249
Website	www.townshipofperry.ca

Communities

• Clear Lake
• Emsdale
• Novar
• Scotia
• Swindon
• Walls

History

Scotia Junction GTR station in 1910

The township opened up for settlement in the 1870s. By 1878, there were about 150 families, coming mostly from southern Ontario. But the rocky land of the Canadian Shield is not well suited for agriculture, causing about 20 families to leave by 1881. The remaining settlers focused on logging and subsistence farming.^[2]

In 1885, the Northern and Pacific Junction Railway was built through the township, leading to the development of communities such as Novar, Scotia, and Emsdale, as well as accelerating the logging industry. In the 1890s, another railway, the Ottawa, Arnprior and Parry Sound Railway, brought more economic growth.^[3]

In 1888, the Township of Perry was incorporated. in the subsequent decades, there was a big population decline due to many families migrating to Western Canada. By 1920, the logging industry also began to decline, but beginning a gradual transition to the tourism and cottage economy.^[3]

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Perry had a population of 2,650 living in 1,144 of its 1,710 total private dwellings, a change of 8% from its 2016 population of 2,454. With a land area of 186.34 km² (71.95 sq mi), it had a population density of 14.2/km² (36.8/sq mi) in 2021.^[1]

Historical census populations – Perry Township

Year Pop. ±% 1891 1,704 —     1901 1,365 −19.9% 1911 486 −64.4% 1921 1,075 +121.2% 1931 933 −13.2% 1941 961 +3.0% 1951 982 +2.2%	Year Pop. ±% 1956 973 −0.9% 1961 980 +0.7% 1966 910 −7.1% 1971 994 +9.2% 1976 1,234 +24.1% 1981 1,449 +17.4% 1986 1,549 +6.9%	Year Pop. ±% 1991 2,049 +32.3% 1996 2,215 +8.1% 2001 2,252 +1.7% 2006 2,010 −10.7% 2011 2,317 +15.3% 2016 2,454 +5.9% 2021 2,650 +8.0%
Source: Statistics Canada[1][4][5][6][7]

Mother tongue (2021):^[1]

• English as first language: 94.7%
• French as first language: 1.3%
• English and French as first languages: 0.4%
• Other as first language: 3.0%

Transportation

The communities of Emsdale and Novar are flag stops on Ontario Northland's intercity motor coach service along its Toronto–Barrie–Bracebridge–Huntsville–North Bay route.

See also

• List of townships in Ontario