1791 “Pennoyer” Map of Oxford-on-Rideau and Malborough Townships*

This map, A 22, is referenced as C-277-1-325-0-1 at the Archives of Ontario. It represents the

original Government plan for the two Townships, initially surveyed in 1791. Note that there was

to be a Town established at the forks of the Rideau and South Branch rivers, located on both

banks and in both Townships. This plan was never implemented, partly because of the lack of

settlers before the completion of the Rideau Canal, by which time the new village of Kemptville

had already taken shape further upstream on the South Branch. An “A” appears at the corner

lots, showing that eleven lots were to be retained as Crown lots, while lots 1-3 in Concession 2

are labeled “Glebe”, meaning they were to be reserved for the maintenance of the Anglican

Church. Lot 2 in Concession 2 was reserved for a “Schoolmaster”. These arrangements, too,

was later revised. Note, also, that the lots on the map are numbered east to west, not west to

east as they are today. Another feature of this map, shared by most other maps before the

1860's, was the inaccurate survey of the South Branch itself. This must have led to confusion

when people supposing their land was by the river, found it to be some lots away in fact. It

actually took two further surveys to complete the laying out of Oxford-on-Rideau, and the story
of that project will be featured in a future issue of the Quarterly.

This is one of a large number of maps of North Grenville that are part of the holdings of the

North Grenville Historical Society (NGHS). For more information on

viewing this collection, contact Archivist Doug Hendry at doug@macsol.ca

* from NGHS Quarterly (The Journal of the North Grenville Historical Society) Pg. 11, Vol. 2, No. 2, May 2009.