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INGERSOLL AREA
In 1793, Major Thomas Ingersoll applied to Lieutenant Govenor John Graves Simcoe and the Council of the Province of Upper Canada for a township grant and was awarded 66,000 acres of land along the Thames Valley in Oxford County. Ingersoll had agreed to settle himself, his family and forty other families in the area that encompassed East, West and North Oxford Townships. The land that T. Ingersoll cleared was later to become the town of Ingersoll and in 1795 he erected the first log house in this area on the east side of the Thames River. Ingersoll named this new homestead Oxford-on-the-Thames. The house no longer stands, however this significant spot is recognized with a commemorative gazebo in downtown Ingersoll. One hundred and two hundred acre plots of land were sold to many of the families that arrived with Major Ingersoll and between 1799 and 1800 these lots were surveyed and deeds were issued to the owners. A small fee of six pence sterling per acre was required as payment for the land. In 1818, Thomas Ingersolls eldest son Charles came into possession of the original Ingersoll farm and renamed the settlement of Oxford-on-the-Thames, Oxford Village. The village was renamed, Ingersoll, for Charles father, before its incorporation on January 1st, 1852. According to the return made by the Crown Land Office, in 1852, Ingersoll was comprised of a total of 997 acres of West Oxford Township land and 725 acres of North Oxford Township land. Ingersoll is located in Oxford County where both soil and climate are ideal for growing crops and raising cattle. In the early 1800s, the increase in dairy cattle in Oxford County led to the development of the production of cheese and butter and in 1850 the county ranked 10th in the production of butter. Considerable credit is given to Hiram & Lydia Ranney for the development of the cheese manufacturing industry in Canada. The Ranneys brought an extensive knowledge of cheese making and dairying to the Salford, Ontario area and created the first cheddar cheese in Canada. In 1864, Harvey Farrington established the first Co-Operative cheese factory in Norwich, Ontario. By 1871 there were 85 cheese factories located in Oxford County In 1866, the town of Ingersoll created the Mammoth Cheese, which weighed in at over 7000 lbs and was 3 feet high and close to 7 feet in diameter! The cheese was produced by the James H. Harris Cheese Company (formerly located where the Elm Hurst Inn now stands) and was first displayed at the State Fair in Saratoga, New York, and then exhibited internationally to promote Oxford cheese sales around the world. During the 1870s, Ingersoll became an international cheese marketing centre and home to the Canadian Dairymens Association. In 1899, the St. Charles Condensing Company established a milk processing plant, the first of its kind in Canada. The rapid growth of the farming sector led to the establishment of numerous agriculture related industries and businesses. The Ingersoll Foundry (1837), the Noxon Brothers Manufacturing Company (1856) and the M.T. Buchanan Company (1877) manufactured quality farm machinery. William Stone started a hide and wool business which later became a fertilizer and rendering plant. Apples were also grown locally and packed for domestic and foreign markets. The prosperity of the rural community, which led to Ingersolls early growth and development, still remains an important part of the towns viability.
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