Haliburton County

Haliburton County
—  County  —
Haliburton County's location in relation to Ontario.
Coordinates: 45°05′N 78°30′W
Country	Canada
Province	Ontario
Region	Central Ontario
County seat	Minden
Municipalities	List Algonquin Highlands Dysart et al Highlands East Minden Hills
Area
• Land	4,071.86 km2 (1,572.15 sq mi)
Population (2011)
• Total	17,026
Time zone	EST (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)

Haliburton village

Haliburton is a county of Ontario, Canada, known as a tourist and cottage area in Central Ontario for its scenery and for its resident artists. Minden Hills is the county seat. Haliburton County was established in 1983, but had existed as the Provisional County of Haliburton since 1874. Haliburton County and the village of Haliburton, are named after Thomas Chandler Haliburton, author, statesman, and the first chairman of the Canadian Land and Emigration Company.

Haliburton is a village on Head Lake inside Haliburton County which is its namesake. The county also contains the village of Minden, as well as the smaller communities of Wilberforce, Gooderham, Irondale, Cardiff, West Guilford, Eagle Lake and Fort Irwin. The county borders Algonquin Park on the north.

The county is serviced by two hospitals, one in Haliburton and one in Minden. Both are administrated by Haliburton Highlands Health Services.

Subdivisions

• Township of Algonquin Highlands
• Municipality of Dysart et al (Dysart, Bruton, Clyde, Dudley, Eyre, Guilford, Harburn, Harcourt and Havelock)
• Municipality (township) of Highlands East
• Township of Minden Hills

Geography

Haliburton County is dubbed the "Haliburton Highlands". This is in part attributed to its similarity to the Scottish Highlands, and the Scottish ancestry of the founding population. The Haliburton Highlands region is also one of the higher points on the Canadian Shield, ranging from 1,066 feet (325 m) at the Haliburton/Stanhope Municipal Airport to 1,450 feet (440 m) above sea level at Sir Sam's Ski Resort in Eagle Lake.

Lakes

Haliburton county is spotted with many rivers and lakes, included endorheic lakes fueled by natural springs. Some of the major lakes are as follows:

• Bitter Lake
• Burdock Lake
• Boshkung Lake
• Drag Lake
• Gull Lake
• Haliburton Lake
• Halls Lake (Ontario)
• Hawk Lake
• Head Lake
• Lake Kashagawigamog
• Kawagama Lake
• Kennisis Lake
• Kushog Lake
• Minden Lake
• Mountain Lake
• Paudash Lake
• Redstone Lake
• Salerno Lake
• Twelve Mile Lake
• Wenona Lake

Demographics

Historic populations:

• Population in 2001: 15,085
• Population in 1996: 15,321

Economy

Haliburton County's economy is dominated by tourism, due to the regions many rivers and lakes. The ratio of properties occupied in the summer months, to properties occupied year-round is about 3 to 1. Employment primarily caters to the needs of this seasonal population, including residential construction, resorts, services and retail.

The creative economy is alive and well in Haliburton. The Haliburton County Development Corporation (HCDC) is currently working on a project called Innovative Haliburton to bring attention to the creative economy in Haliburton, as well as, partnering with Haliburton County Economic Development to advance the creative economy in eastern Ontario. In 2009, HCDC formerd a creative economy committee to look at ways to: encourage innovative people who already have an attachment to the area to move and run their business here, support new and existing businesses in the county that work in the creative economy, showcase local businesses that are successfully engaged in the creative economy, support our local governments to engage in planning that will help attract new businesses.

Education

Haliburton County is part of the Trillium Lakelands District School Board.

Elementary

Minden Hills

• Archie Stouffer Elementary School - Grades K-8

Dysart et al.

• Stuart W. Baker Elementary School - French Immersion, Grades K-4
• J. Douglas Hodgson Elementary School - Grades 4-8

Highlands East

• Cardiff Elementary School - Grades K-8
• Wilberforce Elementary School - Grades K-6

Secondary

• Haliburton Highlands Secondary School - Grades 9-12

Post-Secondary

• Fleming College - Haliburton School of the Arts

Adult Education

• Highlands Adult Education and Training Centre
• Fleming College Academic Upgrading

Private Education

• Frost Centre Institute (former Leslie M. Frost Natural Resource Centre)
• Tall Oaks Christian Academy - Grades K-8
• Haliburton Language School - English as a Second Language and other languages

Arts and culture

The Haliburton Highlands is home to a thriving arts community. The County is dotted by galleries, both public and private, offering events, programs and workshops to the public. Artists’ studios can be found in almost every community, many offering public demonstrations, small galleries, and classes. There are murals and public sculptures in the downtowns of most communities, as well as in park settings. The County is home to the renowned Haliburton Sculpture Forest[1], a unique outdoor collection of sculptures by Canadian and international artists.

Heritage is also a focus in the County, with established museums in Carnarvon, Dorset, Haliburton, Minden, and Wilberforce, as well as many fledgling museums emerging in some of the smaller communities. Many buildings throughout the County are designated heritage sites by the province, and many others undergoing preservation through the interests of the public.

The performing arts also receive much attention. Haliburton Highlands Secondary School has strong drama and music programs, showcasing their talents throughout the year to the public. As well, the Highlands Summer Festival presents a wide array of theatre offerings throughout the summer, showcasing the talents of local and seasonally local actors and musicians. Numerous indie bands perform throughout the County, with open mic events being held at a number of establishments.

Haliburton is also home to the Creative Business Incubator. The incubator provides entrepreneurs with a flexible, affordable space; ready access to business support assistance and coaching, broadband service and an environment conducive to entrepreneurial growth. The incubator is a project of the Haliburton County Development Corporation.

Notable people

• Ron Stackhouse former NHL player
• Bernie Nicholls former NHL player
• RD Lawrence a Canadian naturalist and wildlife author
• Matt Duchene NHL player currently playing for the Colorado Avalanche
• Cody Hodgson NHL player currently playing for the Buffalo Sabres
• Lauren Dixon actress on Saddle Club series 3

In popular culture

• Pisco Bandito, the bandit fish, is described as living "in Haliburton near the Lake of Bays" in Moxy Früvous' song Pisco Bandito.
• Certain scenes were filmed on location at Camp Wanakita and Kilcoo Camp for the Disney Channel Original Movie, Camp Rock, starring the Jonas Brothers.
• Camp White Pine was the location of the Canadian classic comedy Meatballs with the 2011 cast reunion scheduled to be held at nearby Camp Timberlane Canada which was to be the original shooting location for the movie.

Forest fire protection history

The former Dysart fire tower was erected in 1956 on a hill by the east side of Haliburton village just off Highway 118. Its 100-foot (30 m) frame still stands, but the towerman's cupola has since been removed. It was erected by Ontario's former Department of Lands and Forests (now the MNR) as an early detection to protect the local forests from fire. This tower was put out of use in the late 1960s when aerial detection systems were put in place. It was one of the County of Haliburton's many towers that were part of the former Lindsay Forest Fire District. Other towers included: Harburn, Eyre, Green's Mountain, Harvey, Cardiff, Digby, Lutterworth, Sherbourne (St. Nora), Dorset and Bruton. When a fire was spotted in the forest a towerman would get the degree bearings from his respective tower and radio back the information to headquarters. When one or more towermen from other towers in the area would also call in their bearings, the forest rangers at headquarters could get a 'triangulation' read and plot the exact location of the fire on their map. This way a team of forest firefighters could be dispatched as soon as possible to get the fire under control. There was a Department of Lands and Forests headquarters stationed in Minden, Ontario and at St. Nora Lake (later the Leslie Frost Centre), which offered forest ranger training from 1945 onwards.

External links

• Haliburton County Official Website
• Haliburton Highlands Trails and Tours Network
• Haliburton County Tourism Website
• The Haliburton County Chamber of Commerce
• Haliburton Forest & Wildlife Reserve
• Haliburton Highlands Health Services
• http://www.haliburton.biz
• Haliburton Sculpture Forest
• Haliburton County Development Corporation