Historic Newmarket

The presence of a number of native portage trails was instrumental in the development of the Town of Newmarket.  The Don Trail was developed into Yonge Street, and part of the Rouge Trail exists today as Main Street.  The existence of these trails made exploration and settlement easier in early pioneer days.
 
Timothy Rogers, a Vermont Quaker, chose the site of the future Newmarket in 1800 as a place to which he would bring forty families, mostly Quaker, from the United States.

The arrival of the Ontario, Simcoe and Huron Railway in 1853 encouraged the growth of the community.  Newmarket was originally part of Whitchurch Township until becoming a Village in 1857, and a Town in 1880.

The twentieth century brought innovation and prosperity.  Electricity, telelphones, automobiles and an electric railway revolutionized daily life.  Three industries became major employers in Newmarket:  Cane Woodenware (later Dixon Pencil), Office Specialty, and Davis Leather.

The Quaker Meeting House, which has stood near Newmarket's southern boundary since 1812, is a reminder of how far the New Market has come in its two centuries of being the Heart of York.