A Brief History of Brockville

The founding of the settlement that became the village of Brockville has its roots in the first wave of Loyalist refugees displaced from their homes during the years of the American Revolution, 1776-1783. In the summer of 1784, the first of these disbanded soldiers and their families arrived by bateaux and set-up camp in the area known today as Johnstown. They gathered and drew for their land grants. In the summer of 1784, William Buell landed at the mouth of the creek now known as Buell's Creek. Buell, a native of Hebron, Connecticut, was 33 years old and a former officer in the King's Rangers, one of the Loyalist regiments.

Buell and other families settled in the area including the Charles and Daniel Jones. The Jones' and Buell's were responsible for the pattern of early development in our city. In 1808, it was decided that a central location was needed for the courthouse and jail for the districts known as Johnstown and Elizabethtown. All three landowners were eager to give a piece of land to the government to re-locate to the area. The high ground on Buell's land, where the present Leeds-Grenville Courthouse stands, was chosen. This proved to be perhaps the step that sealed the future prosperity of this settlement.

A large courthouse and jail were erected and a wide avenue was laid out down to the river. It wasn't long before the inhabitants of the growing community began to seek a name that would be distinct from that of the Township of Elizabethtown. We find that officially Brockville is referred to as early as August 10, 1812 in a report sent to Major General Isaac Brock by Col. Lethbridge of Kingston who reported having just returned from Prescott and "Brockville".

On January 28th 1832, Brockville became the first incorporated village in Upper Canada to receive the status of a self-governing community. In 2007, we celebrated our 175th Anniversary.

Coat of Arms

In 1966, the City of Brockville was granted a Coat of Arms from the Royal College of Arms in England. The shield colours of white and blue are the colours of the Brockville Rowing Club, while the wavy bars represent the community’s connection with the St. Lawrence River.  Of the three beehives, the first comes from the old town seal as did the motto “Industria, Intelligentia et Prosperitas"; the second and third beehives represent Commerce and Industry.

The lion and eagle supporters appear in the Coat of Arms of Sir Isaac Brock, the 1812 war hero, for whom the city was named. The crest atop the helmet denotes the city’s rifle regiment, the Brockville Rifles.

City Flag

In May of 1967, the City of Brockville passed a by-law adopting the new Seal, the City of Brockville Flag, the Citizen's Flag and the Mayor's Banner.