Oxford County celebrates 175th anniversary with new book

(Contributed Photo)

Debbie Kasman, Tillsonburg Post Correspondent

Oxford County is celebrating its 175th anniversary, which represents a significant chapter in its history, and the county has been celebrating this special anniversary all year with social media posts, exhibits at the administration building in Woodstock and at the Legislative Assembly in Toronto, which will be on display until the end of this year.

The county has existed for 233 years. It was proclaimed in 1792, but counties at that time were for organization of the militia and electoral representation in parliament, and districts did civil government until 1849.

The Baldwin Act, which was passed in 1849 and took effect in 1851, established a two-tier system of municipal government, where districts were replaced by counties as the senior local level of government.

At that time, counties were composed of various cities, towns, villages and townships, each with its own local council. These councils were initially elected by men who lived in the jurisdiction or who had property there to the value of $400. The local councils were headed by reeves who, as part of their duties, also sat on county council.

Therefore, Oxford County has existed for 175 years as a county with civil government functions (when the 1849 Act came into force), and 174 years as a county with its present-day territory, which began in 1851.

There was a restructuring in 1975 where the territorial structures of the townships of 1851 were kept, but the municipal territories within that county were changed and townships were merged with new names.

Blandford and Blenheim merged to form the new Township of Blandford-Blenheim, and West Oxford, Dereham Township and the village of Beachville merged to create South-West Oxford.

East Zorra, North Oxford, and West Zorra were also combined into the Township of Zorra. East Zorra and Tavistock merged to form the Township of East Zorra-Tavistock.

As part of its anniversary celebration, Oxford County Archives is also planning a new book to commemorate the occasion. The book is the Oxford County Archives’ largest project for the year and was written by archives staff as well as local community contributors such as Drumbo & District Heritage Society and Museum, Oxford Historical Society, Plattsville & District Historical Society, Zorra Heritage Committee, Oxford County Library, Norwich & District Museum, Tavistock & District Historical Society, Beachville District Museum and Scott Gillies (formerly Ingersoll Cheese and Agricultural Museum).

The book will be available by the end of June and for sale at the archives as well as at other various locations throughout the county.

A new exhibit will also be launching at the Woodstock Art Gallery from July 12th until January 24, 2026. This exhibit will explore the history of some of the county’s iconic administrative buildings, including the Court Houses, Jail, Registry Offices and House of Refuge, and will highlight some of the architectural drawings, photographs and artwork maintained by Oxford County Archives.

One final project for the year will be a fall video series with a few county councillors delving into archival records related to their family history.

** Thank you to Liz Dommasch, Archivist, Oxford County Archives and Dr. George Emery, professor emeritus, Western University, for their historical contributions to this article.