Waterloo Pioneers

In the year 1800 a small number of Mennonite families arrived from Pennsylvania to settle Block 2, former Six Nation land along the Grand River. Others, mainly Mennonites, following during the next three years until problems regarding ownership of the land curtailed the migration. Representatives were sent back to Pennsylvania to raise the money necessary to secure clear title to the land, with the result that a joint stock company was formed and 24,000 ha purchased. Pennsylvania 'Dutch' settlers quickly took up this land, creating the first sizeable inland settlement in Upper Canada.