New Prussia, Ontario Explained

Official Name:New Prussia
Settlement Type:Unincorporated rural community
Pushpin Map:CAN ON Waterloo#Canada Southern Ontario
Pushpin Label Position:right
Coordinates:43.4536°N -80.7569°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:Canada
Subdivision Type1:Province
Subdivision Name1:Ontario
Subdivision Type2:Region
Subdivision Name2:Waterloo
Subdivision Type3:Township
Subdivision Name3:Wilmot
Timezone:Eastern (EST)
Utc Offset:-5
Timezone Dst:EDT
Utc Offset Dst:-4
Postal Code Type:Forward sortation area
Postal Code:N0B
Area Code:519 and 226
Blank1 Name:GNBC Code
Blank1 Info:FEAOH[1]

New Prussia is an unincorporated rural community in the township of Wilmot, Region of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.[1] [2]

The Nith River flows a short distance east of the settlement.

New Prussia prospered during the mid-1800s, though little remains today of the former settlement.

History

New Prussia was settled by Roman Catholic immigrants from the Rhine Province of Prussia.[3] Early Catholic church services were held by itinerant Jesuits.[4]

A school was erected in 1859 and named "SS#18, New Prussia School". An addition was added in 1952. The school closed in 1966, and was converted into a commercial property. The extant school building has been described as "one of the last physical remnants of the settlement" of New Prussia.[5]

In 1863, the Guenther House was built, and has remained one of the longest continually run century farms in the area. The house is listed on the Wilmot Township Heritage Register.[6]

Decline

The population of New Prussia declined during the late 1800s when many German immigrants in Waterloo County moved west to Bruce County to purchase inexpensive Crown land. This westward movement of German immigrants was called "Saugeen fever", after the Saugeen River which flows through Bruce County.[3] [7] [8]

The Wellesley Alliance Church is today located in New Prussia.[9]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: New Prussia . Natural Resources Canada . October 6, 2016 .
  2. Web site: Wilmot . Statistics Canada . November 2, 2016 .
  3. News: June 24, 2014 . Region Installs Wilmot's Final Few Historical Place Name Signs . New Hamburg Independent.
  4. Monahan . Arthur P. . 1956 . Catholicism in the Hamilton Area before the Establishment of the Diocese in 1856 . CCHA Report . Canadian Catholic Historical Association . 23 . 40.
  5. Web site: Region of Waterloo Public Building Inventory - Educational Buildings - Part 2 . Region of Waterloo . July 29, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160214201324/http://www.regionofwaterloo.ca/en/discoveringTheRegion/resources/Public_Building_Inventory_Part_2_-_Educational_Buildings.pdf . February 14, 2016 . dead .
  6. Web site: Heritage Register of Non-Designated Properties for the Township Of Wilmot . Township of Wilmot . December 7, 2015 .
  7. Lenhard . J. A. . 1936–37 . German Catholics in Ontario . CCHA Reports . Canadian Catholic Historical Association . 4 . 41–45.
  8. Web site: New Prussia . Township of Wilmot . July 29, 2017.
  9. Web site: Wellesley Alliance Church . Wellesley Alliance Church . July 29, 2017.