Aerial photograph of Fisherville Church, ca. 1960s
The first settler in Fisherville was Jacob Fisher, who emigrated to Vaughan from Somerset County, Pennsylvania. He arrived in 1795 but was not granted property until 1798. His land straddled Steeles Avenue, putting it partly in what was Vaughan Township and York Township. He brought his family, consisting of 22 persons with him, including sons and sons-in-law. Jacob Fisher built a mill on the west branch of the Don River, and a community developed around it.
The community consisted of several houses, a blacksmith shop, a Presbyterian Church, and an inn. This inn became a very popular stopping place, and eventually the property of the Cherry family. It was located on the southeast corner of the intersection of Dufferin and Steeles Streets and was sold several times over the course of its history, existing for a time as a dance hall. In 1945, it was purchased by the University of Toronto and the Connaught Medical Research Laboratories were subsequently built on the property.
Over time, Fisherville’s population decreased, and it was eventually subsumed into Concord, with the local Presbyterian Church being moved to Black Creek Pioneer Village.
City of Vaughan Archives: RG 14
Aerial photograph of Fisherville Church, ca. 1960s
The first settler in Fisherville was Jacob Fisher, who emigrated to Vaughan from Somerset County, Pennsylvania. He arrived in 1795 but was not granted property until 1798. His land straddled Steeles Avenue, putting it partly in what was Vaughan Township and York Township. He brought his family, consisting of 22 persons with him, including sons and sons-in-law. Jacob Fisher built a mill on the west branch of the Don River, and a community developed around it.
The community consisted of several houses, a blacksmith shop, a Presbyterian Church, and an inn. This inn became a very popular stopping place, and eventually the property of the Cherry family. It was located on the southeast corner of the intersection of Dufferin and Steeles Streets and was sold several times over the course of its history, existing for a time as a dance hall. In 1945, it was purchased by the University of Toronto and the Connaught Medical Research Laboratories were subsequently built on the property.
Over time, Fisherville’s population decreased, and it was eventually subsumed into Concord, with the local Presbyterian Church being moved to Black Creek Pioneer Village.
City of Vaughan Archives: RG 14