Leeds And The Thousand Islands: Lansdowne and its history

A rural village with a history of its own

Lansdowne is a rural village in the Township of Leeds and the Thousand Islands in Ontario. If you’re looking for a place to stay in Leeds And The Thousand Islands with village history, a historic walking tour, and options for different kinds of outings, you’ll find several specific points of interest here. Lansdowne is also a service centre for the community, with numerous retail and service businesses available to residents and visitors.

Lansdowne is accessible by car via Exit 659 off Highway 401. The village provides a clear point of reference when travelling to this part of the township. When choosing a vacation rental or holiday home, you can consider whether you’d like to make Lansdowne the focus of your stay for its history and local amenities, or whether outings in the surrounding area are more important to your travel plans.

Historic traces in the village

An informative walking tour through Lansdowne takes you past historic buildings. One notable building is 1113 Prince Street: it is the only building in the municipality in the Second Empire style. The building known as the McKelvey Inn also still stands at the intersection of County Road #2 and Reynolds Road. These examples provide specific stops on the walking tour and show different aspects of local architectural history.

The village’s development is also connected to changes in transportation routes. Lansdowne was originally a stagecoach stop. With the advent of the railway in 1855, the village was moved about a mile north to its present location near the railway line. Lansdowne station was a regular stop for trains until 1966. Those interested in the history of places and transportation can use these milestones as a timeline for the village’s development.

Lansdowne was also in the process of installing informative signs about the community’s history. The first sign stood in the front yard of Thousand Islands Elementary School and recalled schools from the area’s past. Together with the historic buildings, this sign offers another perspective on local history: landmarks and the history of education are part of it, too.

Village life, festivals, and activities

A Dutch-Canadian friendship tulip garden has been planted at the Lansdowne Community Veterans’ Memorial. Every year on November 11, residents and visitors gather there to remember those who fought for their freedom. The site brings together a visible symbol of friendship and an annual remembrance.

Lansdowne is also associated with the annual Horse Festival, also called Equine Extravaganza, and an annual Textile Festival. Horseback riding and farm tours are also among the activities for visitors associated with the village. These events and activities offer different points of interest: the Horse Festival and horseback riding are about horses, while the Textile Festival focuses on textiles. For families or groups travelling together, these different interests can help you decide what kind of outing to include in your trip.

Jerry Park has sports fields, a splash pad, a playground, tennis courts, and an ice rink for winter. The park therefore offers opportunities for exercise and play, as well as a seasonal activity. If you’re travelling with children, these specific facilities can help you decide whether a visit to the park suits your vacation interests. The ice rink is explicitly a winter option; the other facilities add further activities.

Day trips in the surrounding area

Charleston Lake Provincial Park is north of Lansdowne. Its facilities and amenities include three campgrounds, hiking trails, a boat launch, a beach, and a day-use picnic area. When planning, you can weigh village history in Lansdowne against an outing with hiking trails, boat access, or time at the park’s beach and picnic area. The different destinations appeal to different interests, so you don’t have to limit yourself to just one kind of outing.

A self-guided barn quilt tour is another offering from the community, and its route passes through Lansdowne. It complements the historic buildings and walking tour with another way to discover the village as part of a tour. When choosing a vacation rental in Leeds And The Thousand Islands, you can therefore consider whether village history, park activities, or outings in the surrounding area will be the focus of your trip.

If you’d like to discover more places, here are some additional destinations: Gananoque, Mallorytown, Westport, Brockville, Kemptville, Prescott, Merrickville and Johnstown.

For the broader travel overview: Leeds And Grenville United Counties.