| A town in Halton Region, on Lake Ontario in Southern Ontario, Canada, and is part of the Greater Toronto Area. Oakville's first industries included shipbuilding, timber shipment, and wheat farming. In the 1850s, there was an economic recession and the foundry, the most important industry in town, was closed. Basket-making became a major industry in the town, and the Grand Trunk Railway was built through it. The town eventually became industrialized with the opening of Petro Canada and Shell Canada oil refineries (both now closed), the Procor factory, and, most importantly, the Ford Motor Company's Canadian headquarters and plant, all close to the Canadian National Railway and the Queen Elizabeth Way highway between Toronto and Fort Erie (Buffalo). In 1962 the town of Oakville merged with its neighbouring villages to become the new Town of Oakville, reaching northwards to Steeles Avenue in Milton. In 1973, the restructuring of Halton County into Halton Region brought the northern border southwards to just north of Highway 407. |
