What Erindale Village looked like over 100 years ago in Mississauga

Published August 27, 2022 at 10:16 am

The story of Erindale Village begins in 1822 when a block of land, known as the Racey Tract, was opened for settlement under the direction of Thomas Racey, a crown agent. In 1825 village lots were auctioned off, with the village first being known as “Toronto”, and later as “Credit”, “Springfield, and “Springfield-on-the-Credit”.

The founding fathers of nearby St. Peter’s Anglican Church and the surrounding community are recognized as being General Peter Adamson, Doctor Joseph Adamson, Alexander Proudfoot, Colonel William Thompson, Fredrick Starr Jarvis, and Henry Carpenter, most of whom are commemorated with street names. Other prominent early residents included Sir John Beverley Robinson, hotel owner Emerson Taylor, miller John McGill, and brewer Samuel Conover, amongst many others.

It was not until 1900 that the village of “Erindale” got its name, after the estate of Reverend James Magrath. Erindale served as a stopping place for those travelling between Hamilton and York (Toronto). The village contained the renowned Royal Exchange Hotel, a number of general stores, mills, and churches. The village began to decline when it was bypassed by the Great Western Railway in 1855.

The Credit Valley Railway arrived in 1879 and built a station nearby, on Erindale Station Road. In 1919 Erindale suffered a fire, and little of what was lost was rebuilt. Erindale amalgamated with other villages in Toronto Township in 1968 to form the Town of Mississauga.

Erindale – CP Train Station at Erindale Station Road crossing, c1920