St. Marys (Ontario)

St. Marys is a town of 7,300 people in Southwestern Ontario, between Stratford and London. It is known as the "stone town" for its large number of limestone buildings.

History
The first settlers arrived at the junction of the Thames River and Trout Creek, southwest of Stratford in the early 1840s, attracted by the area's natural resources. At the new town site, the Thames River cascaded over a series of limestone ledges, providing the power to run the first pioneer mills and giving the community an early nickname: Little Falls.

The arrival of the Grand Trunk Railway in the late 1850s increased the growth; the community became a centre for milling, grain-trading and the manufacture of agriculture-related products.

In the riverbed and along the banks, limestone was close to the surface and could be quarried for building materials. Many 19th-century limestone structures survive: churches, commercial blocks, and private homes. They have given St. Marys its nickname: Stonetown.

Get in
St. Marys is near Highway 7 southwest of Stratford. If coming from the east (Stratford and beyond), turn right on Perth Road 9. If coming from the west, turn left on either Perth Road 123 or Perth Road 120A.

By train

 * Operates daily between Sarnia and Toronto including stops in London, St. Marys, Stratford, Kitchener, Guelph, Georgetown, Brampton, and Mississauga.
 * Operates daily between Sarnia and Toronto including stops in London, St. Marys, Stratford, Kitchener, Guelph, Georgetown, Brampton, and Mississauga.