East Gwillimbury

East Gwillimbury, is a town of about 24,000 people (2016) in Ontario, about 30 minutes north of Toronto. It includes the villages and hamlets of Holland Landing, Queensville, Mount Albert, River Drive Park, and Sharon.

Understand
East Gwillimbury was named by Governor John Graves Simcoe, founder of York (now Toronto), in honour of his wife Elizabeth, whose maiden name "Gwillim."

The main centres in East Gwillimbury are the villages of Holland Landing, Queensville, Sharon, and Mount Albert.

History
East Gwillimbury began with the early development of Upper Canada by Lieutenant-Governor John Graves Simcoe in the late 18th century. On his order, Yonge Street was constructed from Lake Ontario to what is now the village of Holland Landing in East Gwillimbury.

As the East Gwillimbury area grew, a number of communities developed. They were the villages or hamlets of Brown Hill, Franklin, Holland Landing, Holt (formerly Eastville), Mount Albert, Queensville (formerly colloquially known as the Four Corners), Ravenshoe, River Drive, and Sharon (formerly Hope).

Get in
Ontario Highway 404 runs from Toronto to just south of Keswick in the Town of Georgina, passing through East Gwillimbury. The town is served by three interchanges along Highway 404: Green Lane just north of Newmarket, Queensville Sideroad, and Woodbine Ave at the north end.

By train
Take GO Transit to the East Gwillimbury stop on the Bradford line.



By road
Highway 404 extends from Toronto through East Gwillimbury and to Woodbine Avenue near Ravenshoe Road in Georgina.

By bus
York Region Transit operates bus services to Sharon, Holland Landing and Mount Albert.
 * GO Transit on their routes to Barrie and Georgina.