Barrie

Sister cities

• Taizhou
• Zweibrücken
• Murayama

History

At its inception, Barrie was an establishment of houses and warehouses at the foot of the Nine Mile Portage from Kempenfelt Bay to Fort Willow, an indigenous transportation route that existed centuries before Europeans arrived in Simcoe County. The portage linked Kempenfelt Bay through Willow Creek, connecting Lake Simcoe to the Nottawasaga River which flows into Georgian Bay off Lake Huron. Barrie played an integral role in the War of 1812. During the war, the city became a supply depot for British forces and, in addition, the Nine Mile Portage was adopted by the British military as a key piece of their supply line which provided a strategic path for communication, personnel and vital supplies and equipment to and from Fort Willow and Georgian Bay/Lake Huron. Today, the Nine Mile Portage is marked by signs along roads in Barrie and in Springwater Township. The scenic path from Memorial Square to Fort Willow is accessible to visitors year-round. In 1815, Treaty 16 was signed, which transferred 250,000 acres of land from the Chippewa people to the colonial government. In 1818, Treaty 18 was signed, which resulted in the surrender of an additional 1,592,000 acres of land. The British supply depot would continue to prove useful for portaging Europeans and settlers making their way to northern and western Upper Canada. The city was named in 1833 after Sir Robert Barrie, who was in charge of the naval forces in Canada and frequently commanded forces through the city and along the Nine Mile Portage. Barrie was also the final destination for a branch of the Underground Railroad. In the mid-19th century, this network of secret routes allowed many American slaves to enter Barrie and the surrounding area. This contributed to the development (and name) of nearby Shanty Bay. In…

Geography

Barrie is located in the central portion of southern Ontario, approximately north of Toronto within the Greater Golden Horseshoe subregion. It is accessible via Highways 26, 400 and 11 and has convenient access to Highway 401, the Highway 407 Express Toll Route and to neighbouring Toronto. Toronto Pearson International Airport is less than a one-hour drive from Barrie via Highway 400. Barrie's historic downtown area is situated in a distinct curved or wrapped valley, surrounding the western edge of Kempenfelt Bay. Terrain is generally flat near the city's centre. Moving up the valley slopes toward the city's north and south ends, the terrain can be rather steep in some areas. The minimum elevation of Barrie is around the shores of Kempenfelt Bay and the maximum elevation is northwest of the Lake Simcoe Regional Airport. Barrie falls into Plant Hardiness Zone 5b. The city does not have any major rivers within its limits but does have numerous creeks and streams, most of which empty into Kempenfelt Bay. * Allandale * Ardagh Bluffs * Craighurst * Crown Hill * Cundles * Dalston * Downtown * Eastview * Ferndale * Holly * Horseshoe Valley * Letitia Heights * Little Lake * Minet's Point * Painswick * St. Paul's * The Grove Barrie has been designated an Urban Growth Centre by the province of Ontario. As one of the fastest growing cities in Canada, this designation aims to mitigate urban sprawl and concentrate higher-density development in areas specified by the City of Barrie. Its population growth can be attributed to the emergence of the city as a bedroom community for Toronto. In 1991, Barrie had a population of 62,728 and by 2017, Barrie had an estimated population of 147,000. By 2031, the city's population is expected to exceed 200,000 people. To plan for the…

Most-observed species

• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  12,795
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  11,913
• American Goldfinch

  Spinus tristis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  10,547
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  9,952
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  9,632
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  9,318
• Canada Goose (canadensis Group)

  Branta canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  8,852
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  8,394

Most recent

• M 4.1 — 2026-01-28
  24 km ESE of Orillia, Canada
• M 3 — 2018-05-08
  14 km SSE of Ajax, Canada
• M 2.5 — 2012-07-29
  17 km SSW of Parry Sound, Canada
• M 2.5 — 2010-05-17
  19 km WNW of Gravenhurst, Canada
• M 4.2 — 2005-10-20
  12 km NE of Meaford, Canada