Jarvis, Ontario

Jarvis is a small community in Haldimand County, Ontario, Canada.

This community is located near the towns of Simcoe, Townsend, Cayuga, Port Dover and Hagersville. Highway 3 and Highway 6 form a crossroads near the centre of the community.

History

Jarvis is located on land originally granted to William Jarvis, Provincial Secretary of Upper Canada from 1792 to 1817.

On May 24, 1873, a fire destroyed a quarter of the town. Although there were no deaths a large amount of wooden structures in town were destroyed.

The town was much bigger in the early 1900s, featuring 4 churches, 4 hotels, 5 blacksmiths, a school, brickyard, and cheese factories.

On September 26, 1991, a natural gas explosion occurred at a residence in town, injuring the homeowner. The then population of 1300 people were evacuated for 4 days. Natural gas lines, electricity lines, and phone lines into town were disabled until the all clear was given.

Demographics

Ethnicity

Only those ethnicities which compose more than 1% of the population have been included.

Ethnic Groups in the Community of Jarvis, Ontario (2021)

Ethnic Group	2021		2016
	Pop.	%	Pop.	%
Canadian	275		460
English	370		460
Irish	305		260
Scottish	235		265
FrenchTemplate:Efn	30		140
German	220		185
Italian	85		30
Ukrainian	20		35
Dutch	110		75
Polish	45		25
Québécois	30		0
French Canadian	15
Russian	25		0
Norwegian	15		0
Welsh	30		20
Portuguese	40		0
American	20		10
Hungarian	35		15
Total responses	1,275		1,065
Total population	1,214		1,037
Note: Totals greater than 100% due to multiple origin responses.

Language

As of the 2021 census, there were 1,185 citizens that spoke English only and 25 that spoke both official languages.

Religion

As of the 2021 census, there were 770 and 495 as non-religious and secular perspectives.

Education

Schools include Jarvis Community Christian School (a member of the Ontario Alliance of Christian Schools) and Jarvis Public School.

Jarvis Public School has 22 students enrolled in grade 6 as of the 2017-18 school year. Slightly over 18% of the students at Jarvis Public School have some form of developmental disability. Grade 3 and 6 students at Jarvis Public perform the best at writing and the worst at mathematics. Recent testing has indicated that 40% of Jarvis Public School students in grade 3 and grade 6 are experiencing troubles coping with the current Ontario curriculum. Female students have somewhat of a greater edge over the male students in reading; but the gulf between the male students and the female students is not so significant in math.

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Business

Businesses in the town of Jarvis include a gas station, an award winning microbrewery, several restaurants, and two convenience stores. Jarvis also has a community centre that holds Jack and Jills along with weddings and other events.

There is also a car dealership that also sells motorcycle trikes, a flower store, a new and gently used children's clothing shop along with a butcher shop and bakery. There was only one bank in Jarvis (CIBC), which had served Jarvis since 1898 and officially closed on May 24, 2018, due to lack of business.

Royal Canadian Air Force Station Jarvis

During World War II the Royal Canadian Air Force built and operated No. 1 Bombing & Gunnery School as part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan on a 600-acre site 6 kilometers southeast of Jarvis. A historical plaque on Concession 2 Walpole marks the location, and the reverse side of the plaque lists the names of the thirty-eight Commonwealth airmen and one civilian who died while serving at No. 1 B&GS.

The air station appears in the 1942 Hollywood movie Captains of the Clouds.