Minden, Ontario

From the Minden website:

Formally known as "The Corporation of the Township of Minden Hills."

Minden, located 45 minutes north of Lindsay on Highway #35, is the county seat for the municipalities of Haliburton County.

The community is 138 years old. The early settlers were drawn here by the vast timber resources of the Highlands. The Gull River, which now flows quietly through the Village of Minden, once rang with the shouts of lumberjacks as they floated massive white pine and other timber to the mills to the south.

As the timber resources were depleted, the early settlers turned to farming. Since the end of World War II the growth of the area as a popular destination for visitors has helped to sustain the community.

Concerning the municipal flag:

The official introduction of our Municipal Flag was held on Friday, May 24, 2002 in conjunction with the official opening of Booth Crescent. You can purchase a Township flag at the Municipal Administration Office for just $50.00.

Ivan Sache, 12 September 2005

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The Naming of the Town of Minden

In the book "In Quest of Yesterday" by Nila Reynolds, on p. 222 she states: "Both the township and village were named for a north German town, Minden, on the River Weser, west of Hanover."

From "The Haliburton Highlands . Ontario's Vacation Playground" - "The Township of Minden was surveyed in 1860. But it was not until 1866 that a subdivision of Lot 3, Concession A, was made and became the Village Plot of Minden and not until 1874 that a further subdivision of part of Lot 3, Concession A, Anson, was made and registered as Minden West. It was also in 1874 that by a special Act of the Provincial Parliament the provisional County of Haliburton was formed, and Minden became the county seat."

In the talk given by Leopolda z L Dobrzensky in September, 2005, to the Haliburton Highlands Genealogy Group, Leo mentioned the following: "Do you know why Minden is called Minden? The town of Minden was named after the German town west of Hannover. There are many Minden's in North America. There is a good chance that the Seven Years War was responsible for the name 's popularity. This war, fought mainly in Europe between a number of states, also pitted the English against the French. The war started in 1756 and at first the French had the upper hand. They knew the future of the North American colonies was at stake and fought valiantly to keep the status quo. The tide of British fortunes turned on August 1st 1759 when a fierce battle was fought near the town of Minden on the river Weser in Germany. To this day, the meadow where the fighting took place is called 'Blutwiese' or 'bloody meadow'. The British and their allies led by the Duke of Brunswick defeated a much larger French army. That same month, Quebec fell to the British at the battle of the Plains of Abraham, with Wolfe defeating Montcalm. In 1763 the Treaty of Paris ended the war. The French colonies of New France, the island of Cape Breton became British territories. In 1856 crown land in Canada West - Upper Canada - was released for settlement purposes and surveyed into townships. These were named by the Office of the Commissioner of Crown Lands. Perhaps it was then that someone remembered the battle which decided the fate of British North America. At any rate, one of the townships was named Minden. On July 30, 1859 almost exactly 100 years after the victorious battle of Minden, the Canada Gazette of Toronto advertised, for the first time, the sale of lots in Minden Township. Earlier that year, a post office was to be established at Gull River and the new post office would be named Minden. We have no proof that the naming of Minden Township and the renaming of Gull River were intentional but I like to think that the creation of British North America, a great historical event, had something to do with it."

Information provided by Gail Leach-Wunker
Editor of Original Roots - publication of the Halliburton Highlands Genealogy Group
posted to FOTW by J. Patrick Fischer, 16 November 2005