Cobourg_Incorporation_FNLpdf COBOURG1837 celebrating 175 years since incorporation 1795 Surveying of Hamilton Township is begun in preparation for the settlement working its way westward along the shores of Lake Ontario 1798 First o�cial list of settlers in what became Cobourg. Among them are: Eliud Nickerson: Cleared land and settled near present day King & Division Elias Jones: Built a cabin, later a store, at mouth of to day's Cobourg Creek (An earlier list of settlers was said to indicate "fraud, duplicity and unprincipled sel�shness" on the part of those responsible for assigning the surveyed lots!) 1808 Courthouse for Newcastle District located at Amherst (Burnham & Elgin Sts.) 1819 The area is renamed "Cobourg" 1820-30 Rapid growth takes place including such newcomers as F.S.Clench, Henry Ruttan, George Strange Bolton 1830 Cobourg Harbour is begun and east pier built 1832 Cobourg becomes a "Police Village" The loss of HMS Speedy in 1804 with all 29 aboard led to the decision to build the District Court House in Amherst. The Speedy was carrying a prisoner, lawyers and a judge from York to Presqu'isle for a murder trial when tragedy struck. The wreck is still being researched. THE LOSS OF SPEEDY Photo courtesy of TBD Steps on the road to cobourg's incorporation In 1832 Cobourg Became a "Police VillagE". WHAT DID THAT INVOLVE? It was simply a matter of declaring to the government that a group of settlers had met and voted to: • agree on a set of by-laws,restricted to a certain section of a township, • and enforce it own regulations for civic behaviour.