Stratford (2001 population 29,676) is a city on the Avon River in Perth County, in southwestern Ontario, Canada. Both the city and the river were named when it was first settled in 1832 after Stratford-upon-Avon, England, of Shakespearean fame.
Stratford was incorporated as a town in 1859 and as a city in 1886.
Originally a furniture manufacturing city and railway junction, tourism became a large part of the local economy when the Stratford Shakespearean Festival started in 1953. The annual festival now brings hundreds of thousands of Shakespeare buffs to the area.
Some Important Dates in Stratford's History:
- 1828 - Settlement begins.
- 1832 - Thomas Mercer Jones names the village "Stratford" and renames the portion of the Thames River running through it "The Avon River."
- 1849 - The Perth County News is Stratford's first weekly newspaper.
- 1853 - Perth County is created, with Stratford as its county seat.
- 1854 - Stratford is incorporated as a village.
- 1859 - Stratford is incorporated as a town.
- 1885 - Stratford is incorporated as a city.
- 1918 - A gift from a Michigan CNR employee, swans come to live in Stratford.
- 1933 - The army is called in to end a general strike.
- 1936 - The Shakespearean Gardens are created.
- 1953 - The Stratford Shakespearean Festival Theatre is opened.
- 1957 - The Festival moves into its first permanent structure.
- 1964 - The CNR shops close.
- 1997 - Nations in Bloom crowns Stratford the "Prettiest City in the World."
According to the 2001 Statistics Canada Census:
- % Change (1996-2001): 2.3
- Dwellings: 12,642
- Area (sq. km.): 21.92
- Density (persons per sq. km.): 1353.7
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