Community of Centreville: Past and Present

The first settlers to the area were four farm families in 1815. By 1830 a hotel had been built and the settlement was known as ‘Whelan’s Corners’. Next, a log school house (still standing about two km west of the hamlet’s main intersection) and the Catholic Church (two km south) were built. Two churches were built in 1845 and 1849 and, when granted a post office address in 1849, the hamlet became Centreville. In 1850, when townships were granted government status, Camden East Township started holding its council meetings in Centreville. The present township hall was built in 1905 with renovations and additions over time. A mainstay of the community was the founding of the Centreville Agricultural Society in 1853 and by 1919 it took on county status when the Addington Fall Fair moved to Centreville from Tamworth. You can still visit the Fair any Labour Day weekend, a main community event.

The hamlet lacked a water, lake or river source and, when the rail service went south through Camden East, the hamlet started to decline. Along with this were three major fires which destroyed much of the settlement, including three hotels. Most of the destroyed buildings were not rebuilt.

Today it is a community of commuters and retirees who live alongside several of the original farm families, still working in dairy, beef, cash crop and/or organic fruits and vegetables.