By 1790, the mill, tavern and stores established here near the Bay of Quinté had stimulated the growth of a settlement. Named "Belleville" in 1816, the village progressed steadily as a milling and shipping centre, and in 1834, the thriving community became a police village. The completion in 1856 of the Grand Trunk Railway between Toronto and Montreal, a booming lumber trade, and the development of a fertile agricultural hinterland fostered significant commercial and industrial growth in Belleville, which had become a town in 1850. Following the discovery of gold near Madoc in 1866, Belleville was known as the "golden gate" of Hastings County, and after 1872 became a major Canadian marketing centre for cheese. In 1877 it was incorporated as a city.

Location

In Victoria Park, just off South Front Street, along the waterfront, Belleville

Themes

• Agriculture
• Communities
• Industry and trade
• Transportation systems and communications