Canada Census 2011

The early returns for last year’s census have been released. Remember, any census is a snapshot in time. Also, the numbers are not exactly accurate. This is in spite of claims by Statistics Canada. I expect that considering the attitude of the Harper Government this will only get worse in the future. I always read population numbers as being plus or minus a thousand or so.

Let’s start with Middlesex County in which London is located.

Statistics Canada, 2011 Census of Population.

Middlesex County showed a population of  439,151 with an increase over 2006 of 4.0%.

There are two ways at looking at the City of London. First is at the Metropolitan Census District.

Statistics Canada, 2011 Census of Population.

The Metropolitan Census District includes some of Middlesex County, some of Elgin County, and the city of St. Thomas. It showed a population of 474,786  with a +3.7% increase in population from 2006.

Statistics Canada, 2011 Census of Population.

The city showed a population of  366,151  with an increase of +3.9% over 2006. I will not even start with the unemployment numbers. It appears that only the City of Windsor lost people over 2006 in Southwestern Ontario.

To Begin

To begin let us start with a short description of London to set the scene for further posts. London is located in Southwestern Ontario roughly half way between Toronto and Detroit.

The current location at the forks of the Thames river was selected in 1793 by Lieutenant-Governor John Graves Simcoe as the future site of the capital of Upper Canada: but was rejected by the then Governor-General.

London was founded in 1826 The British located a garrison in the village in 1838. On January 1, 1855 London was incorporated as a city (10,000 or more residents). London was a city within a forest, and thus came by its nickname “The Forest City”.

The arrival of the railroad in 1853 stimulated a rapid growth in the city’s population, and cemented London’s role as the prominent city in Southwestern Ontario. London’s population as of 2009 was 362,000.