Renfrew, Ontario

History

Named after the town of Renfrew in Scotland, Renfrew was settled largely in part due to logging in the area in the early 19th century, where the river was used in order to drive the lumber to locations such as Ottawa. This heritage was until recently celebrated every July with the Lumber Baron Festival.

Geography

Renfrew and the surrounding Township of Horton are at the intersection of the Bonnechere River and the Ottawa River in the Ottawa Valley. Renfrew is at the intersection of provincial Highway 17, Highway 60, and Highway 132.

Renfrew County District School Board

Primary Schools (Grade K-6)

Middle School (Grade 7-8)

Secondary School (Grade 9-12)

Renfrew County Catholic District School Board

Primary Schools

Secondary School (Grade 8-12)

Climate

Renfrew has a humid continental climate (Köppen Dfb) with four distinct seasons, warm summers, cold snowy winters and no dry season.

Demographics

Population:

First Language:

Economy

Much of Renfrew's current prosperity can be attributed to its status as an economic centre for a surrounding rural region with a population of over 30,000. Renfrew is also an important stop for Ottawa-based cottagers and outdoor enthusiasts passing by on their way to nearby whitewater rafting, boating, camping, hunting, golfing, fishing, snowmobiling, down-hill skiing, and cross-country skiing. However, the area's largest single employers are the Renfrew Victoria Hospital and the Bonnechere Manor. In addition to numerous small employers, there are also several manufacturing facilities employing several hundred people; Scapa Tapes Renfrew, formerly Renfrew Tape makes products such as hockey tape that is used across North America and the duct tape brand featured on the discontinued Red Green Show. Times Fibre Canada and Madawaska Hardwood Flooring also have manufacturing facilities in town. Renfrew is also home to many successful small businesses. Between 2000 and 2005, a major portion of Renfrew's retail business, and the associated customer services jobs, shifted from the west-end Renfrew mall (now demolished) to its east-end industrial park near Highway 17 due to the opening of several major big-box such as No Frills and Walmart and smaller retail stores.

Despite the apparent prosperity, Statistics Canada reported the average earnings of Renfrew residents in 2000 as $35,811, or roughly 31% lower than the provincial average and 5% lower than the county average. Further, the town reports, relative to the population size and compared to the province as a whole, fewer positions in management, business, finance, administration and natural or applied sciences, while there was greater than the provincial rates of occupation in sales and service, trades, transport and equipment operators, processing, manufacturing and utilities.

Hockey

One of the four original teams in the National Hockey Association, the precursor to the NHL, was based in Renfrew. The Renfrew Creamery Kings sought to be allowed to play in the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association, but with no success. The team's owner, M. J. O'Brien, eventually financed and put together his own league, the NHA. The Creamery Kings played two seasons of hockey in the NHA, 1911 and 1912, until M. J. O'Brien pulled out to pursue his interests in the railroad. [1]

Media

The O'Brien Theatre was a balconied and elegantly decorated town landmark that was converted from a live theatre to a movie theatre, then upgraded in the 1990s to accommodate two screens, but maintains much of the original appeal.

Festivals

Famous residents

Renfrew's museum, the McDougall Mill Museum

John Lorn McDougall, politician and fur trader, built the mill in 1855 by the Bonnechere River near the town landmark Swinging Bridge and overlooking natural rapids below the Renfrew Power Generation generating station. It has been converted into a museum, sometimes referred to as 'Renfrew Museum', not to be confused with museums of that name in Pennsylvania and Scotland. The McDougall Mill Museum houses pioneer tools and machinery, a military section, a doll exhibit, as well as toys, Victorian clothing and household items.