Lambton County

Lambton County
County (upper-tier)
County of Lambton
Flag of Lambton County
Flag
Official seal of Lambton County
Seal
Location of Lambton County
Location of Lambton County
Coordinates: 42°54′N 82°06′W / 42.900°N 82.100°W / 42.900; -82.100
Country Canada
Province Ontario
Formed1849
County seatWyoming[1]
Municipalities
List
Area
[2]
 • Land2,999.93 km2 (1,158.28 sq mi)
Population
 (2021)[3]
 • Total
128,154
 • Density42.7/km2 (111/sq mi)
DemonymLambtoneer
Time zoneUTC-5 (EST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
Websitewww.lambtononline.ca/

Lambton County is a county in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. It is bordered on the north by Lake Huron, which is drained by the St. Clair River, the county's western border and part of the Canada-United States border. To the south is Lake Saint Clair and Chatham-Kent. Lambton County's northeastern border follows the Ausable River and Parkhill Creek north until it reaches Lake Huron at the beach community of Grand Bend. The county seat is in the Town of Plympton-Wyoming.

The largest city in Lambton County is Sarnia,[4] which is located at the source of the St. Clair River at Lake Huron. The two Blue Water Bridges cross the river at Sarnia, connecting it to Port Huron, Michigan. The bridges are one of the busiest border crossings between the two countries. The river is also traversed by one passenger ferry further south, and a rail tunnel, also at Sarnia, runs underneath it. The CN rail tunnel accommodates double stacked rail cars. Along with Sarnia, the population centres in Lambton County are: Corunna, Petrolia, Grand Bend, Wyoming, Forest, and Watford.

Historical map that includes Lambton County (1875)

Lambton County started as a part of the District of Hesse. The district of Hesse included British territories west of Long Point (practically all of western Ontario). The district was later divided and renamed using English district names (Essex, Suffolk, Kent, etc.). Lambton was part of Kent county. In 1849 districts were abolished and the County of Lambton was formed. Lambton and Kent first shared the capital city of Sandwich (since renamed as Windsor, Ontario). In 1852 the partnership was dissolved and Lambton become a full county. It is named in honour of John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, who visited the area in the late 1830s.[5]

  1. ^ "Contact Us". The Corporation of the County of Lambton. Retrieved August 6, 2019.
  2. ^ "Census Profile, 2016 Census - Lambton, County (Census division), Ontario and Ontario (Province)". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  3. ^ "Population and dwelling counts: Canada and census divisions". Statistics Canada. February 9, 2022. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  4. ^ "City of Sarnia - Overview". Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  5. ^ "The Man Who Gave Lambton Its Name". LambtonCounty.com. Retrieved 10 November 2018.