Homes Stats
Homes For Sale: 38
Homes For Lease: 3
Average List Price: $915,417
Commerical Stats 30 day average
Commercial For Sale: 3
Commercial For Lease: 0
Average List Price: $3,483,333
Area Description
Bobcaygeon is a community on the Trent-Severn Waterway in the City of Kawartha Lakes, east-central Ontario, Canada.
Bobcaygeon was incorporated as village in 1876, and became known as the "Hub of the Kawarthas". Its recorded name bob-ca-je-wan-unk comes either from the Mississauga Ojibwa word baabaagwaajiwanaang "at the very shallow currents", giishkaabikojiwanaang "at the cliffed cascades" or obaabikojiwanaang "at currented rocky narrows", or from the French beau bocage "beautiful hedged farmland". The first lock in the Trent-Severn Waterway was built in Bobcaygeon in 1833.
The provincial government had reserved and surveyed a town site on the north bank of Bobcaygeon River between Sturgeon and Pigeon Lakes, which was named Rokeby by visiting Lieutenant Governor Sir John Colborne. Need laid out streets and plotted lots on the island, which was named Bobcaygeon. Today, Bobcaygeon designates both sides of the Bobcaygeon River, after the post office was established on the island by the first postmaster, Thomas Need.
In 1844, Thomas Need sold his profitable business interests to Mossom Boyd, and returned to England. Boyd and his sons built up a logging enterprise that was recognized as the third largest logging operation in Upper Canada. In addition to timbering, the Boyds also operated a system of steamboats under the name Trent Valley Navigation Company as well as an experimental beefalo herd on Boyd Island. Descendants of this herd remain in Alberta.
By 1869, Bobcaygeon was a village with a population of 800 in the Township of Verulam County, Victoria County. There was a good trade in lumber, limestone, hides, grain and the GalKay lead mine. There were stages to Lindsay, Peterborough and Minden. In summer, boats travelled to Lindsay and Peterborough. The average price of land was $20 per acre.[2]
Bobcaygeon, with a population of about 1,000, was incorporated as a village by a Victoria County by-law of 1876. During a series of restructuring moves, the village government joined with the Township of Verulam in 1999, and then was ordered amalgamated the other municipalities of Victoria County by the Kitchen Commission in 2000. Now Bobcaygeon exists as a community within the City of Kawartha Lakes.
Today, Bobcaygeon's chief industry is tourism, particularly related to recreational fishing. Bobcaygeon is a hub for the region, providing many of the services unavailable in the smaller neighbouring communities.