ST. THOMAS, ONTARIO

'St. Thomas' is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada. It is the seat for Elgin County and part of the greater London urban area, gaining its city charter on March 4, 1881.

Contents

History

Government

Demographics

Education

Media

Parks

Notable residents

External links

History

The city, located at the intersection of two historical roads, was first settled in 1810. It was named the seat of the new Elgin County in 1844 and was incorporated as a village in 1852, as a town in 1861, and as a city in 1881.

In the late 19th century and early 20th century several railways were constructed through the city, and St. Thomas became an important railway junction. A total of 26 railways have passed through the city since the first railway was completed in 1856. It has earned the title of the "Railway Capital of Canada." In the 1950s and 1960s, with the decline of the railway as a mode of transportation, other industry began to locate in the city, principally primary and secondary automotive manufacturing.
Jumbo (the elephant) died here on September 15, 1885, when a train crashed into him. There is a life-sized commemorative statue that was erected in 1985, on the centennial of Jumbo's demise.
The city was named after Thomas Talbot who helped promote the development of this region during the early 19th century.

Government

Cliff Barwick is the current mayor of St. Thomas. The City Council consists of the mayor and seven Aldermen, all elected at large.

Demographics

★ Caucasian: 95.5%

★ Aboriginal: 1.2%

★ Visible minorities: 3.3%

★ Protestant: 52.1%

★ Catholic: 21%

★ No affiliation: 22.1%

★ Other: 4.8%

Education

Fanshawe College has a campus in St. Thomas. Catholic schools are controlled by the London District Catholic School Board (LDCSB) and public schools are controlled by the Thames Valley District School Board (TVDSB). There are two independent Christian schools, St Thomas Community Christian School and Faith Christian Academy.

School name	Type	Grades	№ students
Arthur Voaden S.S.	public	9–12	670[1]
Balaclava St. P.S.	public	JK–8	2001
Central Elgin Collegiate Institute	public	9–12	15211
Edward St. P.S.	public	JK–6	1521
Elgin Court P.S.	public	JK–6	4131
Elmdale P.S.	public	JK–6	1351
Fanshawe College
Forest Park P.S.	public	JK–6	6751
Homedale P.S.	public	7–8	5461
Locke's P.S.	public	JK–8	4531
Monsignor Morrison	Catholic	JK–8	480[2]
Myrtle St. P.S.	public	JK–6	2111
New Sarum P.S.	public	JK–8	4531
Parkside C.I.	public	9–12	9401
St. Gabriel's C.S.	Catholic	K–3
St. Joseph's H.S.	Catholic	9–12
St. Raphael's C.S.	Catholic	4–8	3052
Scott St. P.S.	public	JK–8	2361
Southwold P.S.	public	JK–8	6261
Wellington St. P.S.	public	K–6	3001

1. As of 2003-10-30, obtained from the TVDSB website.
2. As of 2004–2005 school year, obtained from the LDCSB website.


★ '''Abbreviations:' C.I. = Collegiate Institute; C.S. = Catholic School; H.S. = High School; P.S. = Public School; S.S. = Secondary School''

Media

St. Thomas has several media outlets based in the city. The ''St. Thomas Times-Journal'' is the city's newspaper, owned by Bowes Publishers. Rogers Cable has a local cable television channel. A low-power FM radio station — VF8016, 90.1 MHz — broadcasts religious activities from Faith Baptist Church of St. Thomas.
CFHK-FM, branded as ''103.1 Fresh FM'', is also licensed to St. Thomas, although its programming largely targets the larger London market.
Although the city does not have its own television station, Industry Canada has allocated channel 33 for future use in St. Thomas.

Parks

There are two major parks in the city: Pinafore Park in the south, beside Pinafore Lake; and Waterworks Park in the north, which is straddled by Kettle Creek and the Waterworks Reservoir nearby.
The Trans Canada Trail goes through St. Thomas, with a pavilion located in Jonas Street Park.

Notable residents

★ Rachel McAdams, actress (''The Hot Chick, Mean Girls, The Notebook, Wedding Crashers, Red Eye, The Family Stone, Marriage'')

★ Stephen J. Peters, politician, MPP for Elgin—Middlesex—London, Minister of Labour (Ontario), previously Minister of Agriculture and Food (Ontario)

★ Stephen Ouimette, actor, director widely known for his work at the Stratford Festival of Canada

★ Joe Thornton, professional ice hockey player (San Jose Sharks, Boston Bruins, Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, St. Thomas Stars)

★ David Shaw, former professional ice hockey player (Stratford Cullitons, Kitchener Rangers, Québec Nordiques, New York Rangers, Edmonton Oilers, Minnesota North Stars, Boston Bruins, Tampa Bay Lightning, Detroit Vipers)

★ Dave Hudson, former professional ice hockey player (New York Islanders, Kansas City Scouts, Colorado Rockies)

★ Helen Shaver, actress, director, producer (''The Amityville Horror, The Color of Money, Judging Amy'')

★ Aaron Walpole, the third-place finisher in the third season of Canadian Idol

★ Kari-Lynn Winters, children's book author, dramatist, literacy educator

★ Janet and Greta Podleski, bestselling cookbook authors (Looneyspoons, Crazy Plates, Eat, Shrink & Be Merry!), Food Network hosts and Reader's Digest columnists

External links

★ City of St. Thomas official website

★ ''St. Thomas Times-Journal''

★ St. Thomas, Ontario, the Railway Capital of Canada

★ Elgin County Railway Museum

★ Elgin Theatre Guild

★ MyStThomas.ca - St.Thomas Business and Community Directory