(
2004 population 110,000) is a
Town located east of
Toronto on the north shore of
Lake Ontario , and is the seat of
Durham Region ,
Ontario ,
Canada .
The Town of Whitby was incorporated in
1855 , three years after it was chosen as the seat of government for the newly formed County of Ontario. Although settlement dates back to
1800 , it was not until
1836 that a downtown business centre was established by Whitby's founder
Peter Perry .
Whitby's chief asset was its fine natural harbour on Lake Ontario, from which grain from the farmland to the north was first shipped in
1833 . In the
1840s a road was built from Whitby Harbour to
Lake Simcoe and
Georgian Bay to bring trade and settlement through the harbour to and from the rich hinterland to the north. In the
1870s a railway was constructed to
Port Perry and
Lindsay from Whitby Harbour.
Whitby is also the site of
Trafalgar Castle School , a private girls' school founded in
1874 . The building, constructed as an Elizabethan-style castle in
1859 –
62 as a private residence for the Sheriff of Ontario County, is a significant architectural landmark and Whitby's only Provincial historic site marked with a plaque. The school celebrated its 125th anniversary in 1999.
During the Second World War, Whitby was the location of
Camp X , a secret spy training facility established by
Sir William Stephenson , the "Man Called Intrepid". Although the buildings have since been demolished, a monument was unveiled on the site of Camp X in
1984 by Ontario's
Lieutenant-Governor John Black Aird .
Whitby's most famous sporting team is the Whitby Dunlops, a celebrated
Ice Hockey squad that captured the world championship in
1958 at
Oslo ,
Norway . This team featured long-time president of the
Boston Bruins ,
Harry Sinden . Furthermore, Whitby is home to Olympic Medalists, and NHL players Adam Foote, and Joe Nieuwendyk.
Today, Whitby is the seat of government in Durham Region, and the regional government is the town's largest employer. Also located in the town is the
Whitby Psychiatric Hospital , a large mental health centre.
It is commonly considered part of the
Greater Toronto Area , although for census purposes it belongs to the greater
Oshawa Metropolitan Area . They are both in the eastern part of the
Golden Horseshoe region. As is the case with Oshawa, several major manufacturing businesses are located in Whitby.
Whitby Township (now the Town of Whitby) was named after the seaport town of , dating from about
867 CE when the Danes invaded Britain. It is a contraction of "Whitteby," meaning "White Village." The allusion may be to the white lighthouse on the pier at Whitby, Yorkshire, and also at Whitby, Ontario.'
In addition to Whitby, Yorshire, the Town of Whitby is also officially twinned with
Longueuil ,
Quebec and
Feldkirch ,
Austria
Whitby is also home to the Iroquois Sports Complex, one of the largest minor sports centres in North America
- Being a bedroom community, Whitby has many of the problems that come with such a status, such as a lack of entertainment options for youth.
- Transportation is an increasing problem. Whitby's housing boom has increased pressure on the road system, making Whitby more difficult to get around during rush hour. Due to low density, the former Whitby Transit is infrequent and service off-peak is very limited. A new regional system, Durham Region Transit , is hoped to alleviate some of these local transportation issues.
- Housing prices have increased dramatically, making it more difficult for some young families hoping to purchase their first home.
- The Whitby Mental Health Centre has had several patient escapes.
- Despite being among the 100 Largest Cities In Canada , Whitby lacks a hospital. The Whitby General Hospital has been converted into a long-term care centre.
- Whitby's Downtown has become largely neglected. Many downtown historical buildings have been demolished.
- The town is often criticized for its failure to uphold the principles of Smart Growth , with Urban Sprawl becoming an increased problem.
- The community newspaper, ''The Whitby this Week'', is often accused of being overly right-wing and non-informative.
- Due to the rapid increase of population, there is a recent growing trend of hooliganism and tom-foolery by the youth of Whitby. A testament to this was the cancellation of Whitby's annual "Mardi Gras" celebration, previously celebrated at the start of every summer.
- Schools are close to or are already overpopulated.
- Whitby has succumbed to several youth gangs over the past few years, most notably the 'poofts' who reside in west whitby, however a recent crackdown has subsided many of these gang efforts. Consequently, these problems subsist as an underlying issue in whitby's bi-law crackdown on youth criminal activity.
The racial makeup of the city is 88.1% White, 3.5%
Black , 2.8%
Asian , 1.6%
Mixed Race , 1.4% Chinese, and there are also smaller numbers of people who are
Aboriginal ,
Eritrean ,
Filipino , and
Hispanic .
In the city the population is spread out with 23.8% under the age of 14, 67.8% of the population between 15 - 64, and those over 65 number 8.4% of the total population. The median age of the city is 35.4, which is younger than the provincial and national average.
