A Geographical Study of the Township of Whitby and the Town of Whitby

Abstract

<p>Th purpose of this study is to present a description of the natural and cultural landscapes of Whitby Township, and an analytical examination of the relationships which exist between them.</p> <p>The study has been divided into three chapters, chapter one dealing with the physical geography under several headings, chapter two being a brief historical account of the Townships settlement and the evolution of agriculture. Chapter three seeks to relate the present land use of both Whitby Town and Township, with the physical and cultural features which have been important in development up to the present. In order to do this, the concept of a "development area" was adopted. Each development area, of which there are three, has its own particular character, which has developed due to the predominance of one or more of the physical or cultural features . The development areas should not, however, be thought of as being distinctly separated one from another. Rather, their division is by a transitional zone, which is difficult to map and has been represented in Figure 4 by a line which passes through the general area where a change in landscape is noted. Neither should these areas be thought of, in the final analysis, as being separate units within the Township. The summary of the study illustrates this as it attempts to depict the Township as a whole and discusses the areas as a group on the basis of present conditions and future prospects .</p> <p>The field work for this study was carried out during the last two weeks of August and the first two weeks of September 1958. The land use map represents conditions during this period, Mapping was done through field observations with the use of aerial photographs the Ontario Country Soil Survey and The Physiography of Southern Ontario by L.J. Chapman and D.F. Putnam. These aids along with other articles and book listed in the bibliography were of great help in writing the text of this study. Besides mapping, the field research included interviews with Town and Township officials, agriculturalists, and persons concerned with urban activity.</p> <p> Most of the statistical information in the text was obtained from the Dominion Census Reports, either directly or by way of municipal brochures. Where the actual acreage of an area is given. The acreage has been derived from planimetric measurement, and where a proportion of acreages is given, it is the writer's opinion based on linear measurements .</p>