The History of Athens, Ontario
"A vibrant community in Eastern Ontario with a rich history and a bright future."
Athens, Ontario is a charming small town known for its strong sense of community, scenic surroundings, and rich local heritage. Founded in the early 1800s and originally called Farmersville, the town grew as a milling and farming center, later taking the name Athens in 1855 to reflect its cultural ambitions. One of its most notable historical landmarks is the Old Town Hall, built in 1888, which still stands as a symbol of the town’s proud past. Today, Athens blends its history with a welcoming atmosphere, making it a great place to live, visit, and celebrate Ontario’s rural roots.
Main Street, Looking West, Athens, Ontario (1910). Photo by Special Collections Toronto Public Library
The Settlement of Athens
Dixon's Corners
Athens began as only a small, four-way intersection. This intersection harboured a tavern that John Dixon established in 1784, and the intersection was ultimately named Dixon’s Corners. The tavern was where the post office is now, on the Main Street of Athens. A railroad bed used to go through Dixon’s Corners, Dixon’s Corner’s name was changed to Farmersville by Joshua Bates, shortly before the tavern became a post office. Dixon’s Corners is a present-day place in South Dundas which was founded in 1852 when J. A. Dixon built a store there.
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Farmersville to Athens
Many British Loyalists received land including Joshua Bates, who named the growing farm community as Farmersville. Benoni Wiltse, a United Empire Loyalist, and his brothers settled in this area in 1792. Farmersville was renamed to Athens in 1888 by Arza Parish in honour of Athens, Greece because it was educational centre with grammar school, a model school for teacher training, and a high school.
Map of Farmersville Yonge
The Map of Farmersville Yonge was produced by Mika Publishing in Belleville, 1973. The map gives information about the town of Farmersville Yonge (now known as Athens) such as locations of streets, the park, churches, people's homes, bussinesses and the offical location of ADHS. This map is in pretty good condition other then a small stain, odor and accretion and chip. It is not in need of any work. The dimensions I got of the map are 28cm in length and 21 ½ cm in width.
Athens Train Stations Through Time
The first train station in Athens was built in 1886 by the Brockville, Westport and Sue St. Marie Railway corporation. It was built on Elgin St. East, north of Henry St. It was a small, single-story, rectangular shaped station created from timber wood planks. The station consisted of one passenger waiting room, a ticket operating office, and an express room it also had a large platform for passengers to easily access the trains and leave them. Many students would take the trains to Athens in the late 1800’s to go to school. The train station burnt down on the morning of March 12, 1942. Another station was then built by the Canadian National Railway.
BWS Railway, Original Athens Station. 1886 - 1942.
The CNR Athens station, active, circa 1950.
The CNR Athens station, abandoned, circa 1965.
The second train station in Athens, Ontario was built in 1942, to replace the original station. The station was a single-story build with a gable roof. It consisted of a passenger waiting room, ticket operating office and an express room. The platform was built with cinder. As the years went by, its last sight of a passenger train was in 1952. At the end of this station’s service in 1960, it became abandoned for a few years. Eventually, it was bought by Dr. Douglas Wight before it became a house that was re-located North, by Lake Eloida and Plum Hollow, by the intersection of Hard Island Road and Lake Eloida Road.
The re-located, private residence which was the Athens CNR train station.
Arza Parish
Following Richard Giles, Arza Parish took over as Postmaster in 1847, a role he held for four decades. A cornerstone of the village, Parish was born in 1808 to Loyalists William and Sally Parish. He emerged as a premier businessman and moneylender, operating his post office and store on the current site of the Bank of Montreal. He eventually built a residence that later became part of the Armstrong House, famously planting a locust tree out front that served as a landmark for over a century.
His wife, Eliza Bissell, was equally vital to the community. She founded the first Sunday School and served as the village’s primary caregiver, attending to every birth and death regardless of the hour or weather. Her tradition of service was later carried on by Sarah "Aunt Sarah" Wiltse, a Quaker midwife for whom Sarah Street was named.
Arza’s political legacy was significant; he served as the first reeve of the Township of Rear of Yonge and Escott in 1854. His son, Watson Gould Parish, followed in his footsteps, becoming the first reeve of Athens in 1890.
The village's physical landscape also shifted over time. The "Central Block" was once home to frame buildings, including a hotel and various mercantile shops like those owned by H.H. Arnold. As brick structures rose, these original frame buildings were often moved to new locations—such as 7 Main St. W. or 19 Henry Street—where they continued to serve as homes and businesses for generations.
