Glengarry County, ON

Glengarry County was settled by people of Scottish heritage and is rich in Scottish culture. The Glengarry Highlands Games are held every year to showcase Scottish competitiveness and attract about 20,000 people a year. It is the largest of its kind among the global Scottish diaspora.

There’s enough to do in the county to fill up a 2-day itinerary, but the region is so dispersed that you’ll spend at least a quarter of the time driving around getting from one point to another. Cornwall is the largest city in the county. The Cornwall Museum and Archives sits on the western bank of the St. Lawrence River in the middle of the picturesque Lamoreaux Park. Geese waddle on the grass in good weather and leave their green poo all over the place; stay on the path if you want to save your shoes.

Both St. Andrews and St. Raphael’s have historic churches. The St. Andrew’s church (punctuated differently from the name of the town) was built in 1801 and is the oldest stone church in Ontario. The graveyard opposite the church is the final resting place of explorer Simon Fraser. Simon Fraser University and the Fraser River in Vancouver both take their namesakes from this explorer. St. Raphael’s church suffered a fire in 1970.

A gristmill in Martintown was built by Alexander McMartin, the businessman the town was named after. Despite competition from mechanised mills, it continued operation until 1947, when it finally closed. It is now a museum and has been open for access by the public every summer since 2004.

Williamstown has the oldest country fair in Canada, it has opened every year in August since 1810 by Loyalist John Johnson. Johnson’s manor is a national historic site and has been converted into the museum. Next to the fairgrounds, the Glengarry, Nor’Westers and Loyalist Museum documents the migration of Loyalists to Canada during the American Revolution.

The region is still a nightmare for the post office. In 1802, 25% of the Highlanders that settled in the county had the last name MacMillan and over 500 Macdonalds live in the catchment area of one post office.