![[Flag of Dufferin County]](../images/c/ca-onduf.jpg)
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The History of the Dufferin County Flag
The County of Dufferin was
incorporated by an act passed in the Ontario Legislature in 1874. The
proclamation of the new county was made 24 January 1881 after several conditions
had been met, including construction of new county buildings in Orangeville. The
residents of Amaranth, East Garafraxa, Melancthon, Mono and Mulmur Townships as
well as those of the Village of Shelburne and Town of Orangeville had voted to
form a new county, carved out of Simcoe, Wellington and Grey Counties. Several
names for the new county had been suggested, Hurontario being a favorite, but a
decision was made during the drafting of the legislation to name it in honour of
the popular Earl of Dufferin, who had been Governor General of Canada from 1872
to 1878.
No records exist that there was any Coat of Arms or flag created for the
newly created County of Dufferin. Letters and drawings exist in the Dufferin
County Museum and Archives dating from 1909. The letters are from Lord
Dufferin's son, the Second Marquis of Dufferin and Ava. The letter includes two
drawings: one shows the official coat of arms of the family and a second shows a
modified the family arms he suggested might be used as a county crest. Rowels
(spurs) in the top section were replaced by maple leaves and maple leaf sprays
were added to the bottom, outside of the shield. The middle bar became solid.
The letter warns however that according to the rules of heraldry "it is not
strictly correct for a corporate body to use a crest, the reason being that the
crest should always be shown on a helmet, and a corporate body has no head and
therefore cannot wear a helmet." The meaning of some of the heraldic devices is
not clear. The crescent is sometimes used to indicate a second son and the
diamond or Mascle is often found but has no particular known significance. In
his letter Lord Dufferin continues, "The motto is Per Vias Rectas or, in
English, By The Right Ways. The County Council can adopt this motto if they
wish". To the knowledge of Dufferin County staff the College of Arms has never
recognized the Dufferin County crest. Minutes of the Reporting Committee for the
Centenial of March 26, 1981 record that "Mr. Gordon Clark who is with the law
firm of McCarthy and McCarthy who Mr. Wm. Church had been in touch with
regarding the registration of the County of Dufferin Crest. Mr. Clark advised
Mrs. Rodger that the cost to register the Crest will be $ 300." Research does
not show if this was done.
Historical records do not show any adoption or
use of an official flag. In an interview with Harry Baker, who was Clerk of the
County starting in 1964 to "it was the councils of 1966 and 67 that decided that
a flag was needed". The County of Dufferin was about to celebrate the Centennial
of Canada. Arnold Patterson the Warden in 1966 was certainly well known in this
area as a true patriot, later working on various national identity projects.
Although no invoices can be found, Mr. Baker remembers that the flags were
ordered and made by Kennedy Flags of Erin, Ontario. Mr. Baker recalls that "we
had no design in mind. The man from Kennedy's made the design for us from things
provided". No one knows why blue was chosen for the ground colour: it may have
been a design decision by the flag designer. The Dufferin County Museum has a
flag in its collection (artifact A97-291) which has the county crest, the dates
1867-1967 and the wording "County of Dufferin, Ontario's Heartland." The flag
carries a smaller tag that reads Kennedy Flags No. 7. This flag was donated by
Victor Large, a County Councillor. Whether the flag was used before this time
cannot be verified through official county minutes. In 1974 the County of
Dufferin sponsored and published its first official history book. The book
reproduced the color drawings of the crest sent by the Marquis of Dufferin and
Ava and his accompanying letters. The book was an instant hit, and suddenly an
old crest became recognizable throughout the area again. It is not known when
the wording "Ontario's Heartland" was removed from the flag. However, I didn't
get any picture of the flag.
Complete story by Wayne Townsend, Curator
Dufferin County Museum and Archives.
About the county:
"Dufferin
County is a county of the Canadian province of Ontario. The county seat is
Orangeville. Dufferin covers an area of 359,812 acres (562 sq mi; 1,456 km2),
and its population is 54,436 (2006)." - from Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dufferin_County,_Ontario
Official
website:
http://www.dufferincounty.on.ca
Valentin Poposki, 28 April 2010
![[Logo]](../images/c/ca-onduf-logo.gif){kind=logo}
image located by Dave Fowler, 6 February 2022
