| Lake Wilcox | |
|---|---|
 Lake Wilcox from Lake Wilcox Park | |
  Lake Wilcox | |
| Location | Richmond Hill, Ontario |
| Coordinates | 43°56′56.69″N 79°26′9.45″W / 43.9490806°N 79.4359583°W |
| Type | Kettle lake |
| Basin countries | Canada |
| Surface area | 137 acres (0.55 km2) |
| Max. depth | 17.4 metres (57 ft) |
Lake Wilcox is a kettle lake in the Oak Ridges neighbourhood of Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada. The lake measures 1.5 kilometers across and covers 55.6 hectares or 0.55 square kilometres, making it the largest kettle lake on the Oak Ridges Moraine.[1] Lake Wilcox, Lake St. George and their associated wetlands form a "provincially significant wetland".[2]
The lake is named after William Willcocks (1735/36-1813), who was a merchant in York, Upper Canada and became mayor of Cork, Ireland in 1793 (after his return from Upper Canada).[3][4] Willcocks and his family moved to Upper Canada, where his cousin Peter Russell became interim administrator after the departure of John Graves Simcoe in 1796.[3] Willcocks "was an active land speculator" who acquired significant holdings in Upper Canada, including 800 acres (3.2 km2) surrounding the lake.[3] The name of the lake was originally Lake Willcocks, but it was corrupted over time to its present spelling.[3]
Willcocks resided in York and Markham, but died in the former in 1813.[5]
- ^ "Lake Wilcox". Town of Richmond Hill. 2 July 2021.
- ^ "Decade of Achievement" (PDF).[dead link]
- ^ a b c d Carter, Robert Terence (2011). Stories of Newmarket: An Old Ontario Town. Dundurn Press. ISBN 9781554888801.
- ^ "Mayors of Cork". Cork City Council. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
- ^ "Biography – WILLCOCKS, WILLIAM – Volume V (1801-1820) – Dictionary of Canadian Biography".