History of Tay Township In 1615, the Jesuits established and named this area as the first Christian mission in Canada. They called it Huronia and it stretched from present day Tiny Township, through Flos, Tay and Medonte, to Orillia. After the massacre of the Hurons by the Iroquois, and the dispersion of the surviving priests and Indians to Christian Island, the Ojibway Indians occupied the area. From this period, little is known about the next 75 years, but LaSalle, Champlain, and other explorers passed through the area. The next piece of history starts in 1778 with George Cowan who established Cowan's Trading Post. It was known as the Chimnies, and was located on the east side of Matchedash Bay, across from present-day Fesserton. Lieutenant-Governor John Graves Simcoe who wanted to find a safe route for transporting military supplies to the Great Lakes used Matchedash Bay next in the summer of 1793. He decided that his naval headquarters would be at Penetanguishene, but an alternate route would have to be found. In 1798 all the lands in the west and north to Thunder Strait, the land where Tiny and Tay are presently, and the three islands; Christian, Hope, and Beckwith, were bought from the Ojibway by the government of Upper Canada for 101 pounds ($500.00). To find out more about The History of Tay Township click on the links below! The CPR Fleet, Port McNicoll Curling On The Slip, Port McNicoll The CPR Gardens at Port McNicoll The Victoria Harbour Mercantile Co. Store The Victoria Harbour Lumber Co. The Hogg's Bay Trestle The Waubaushene Bridge The Coldwater Fair Lumberjacks, 1900 Excavations at Ste. Marie Among the Hurons Sources There are many heritage properties within Tay Township. For further information on a particular property, please search within the categories listed below. Port McNicoll Victoria Harbour Waubaushene Waverley Rural East Rural West Bridges