Editing Coboconk

{{Use Canadian English|date=January 2023}}
{{Infobox settlement
<!-- See Template:Infobox settlement for additional fields that may be available -->
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<!-- Basic info ---------------->
|name                   = Coboconk
|other_name             =
|nicknames               = The friendly village, The limestone village (retired)
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|motto                  =
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|image_skyline          = Coboconk ON.JPG
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<!-- Location ------------------>
|subdivision_type       = Country
|subdivision_name       = Canada
|subdivision_type1      = [[Provinces of Canada|Province]]
|subdivision_name1      = [[Ontario]]
|subdivision_type2      = [[Single-tier municipality|Municipality]]
|subdivision_name2      = [[Kawartha Lakes]]
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|established_title      = Settled
|established_date       = 1851
|established_title1     = Post office established
|established_date1      = 1859
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|area_total_km2         = 2
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<!-- Elevation -------------------------->
|elevation_footnotes    =  <ref name="topatlas">{{cite map
 | title      = Topographic map of Coboconk and area
 | author     = Toporama
 | date       = October 23, 2009
 | publisher  = Ministry of Natural Resources
 | url        = http://atlas.nrcan.gc.ca/site/english/maps/topo/map?mapsize=1150+1350&scale=10000.000000&mapxy=1295544.1790663109+-321033.0869845053
 | access-date = January 19, 2010}}</ref>
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|elevation_m            = 258
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|elevation_min_m        = 256.3
<!-- Population   ----------------------->
|population_as_of               = 1996
|population_footnotes           = <ref>{{cite web | title = 1996 Canadian Census (Last census with available date for Victoria county) | url = http://www12.statcan.ca/english/profil/Details/details1pop1.cfm?SEARCH=BEGINS&PSGC=35&SGC=3516034&A=&LANG=E&Province=35&PlaceName=coboconk&CSDNAME=Bexley&CMA=0&SEARCH=BEGINS&DataType=1&TypeNameE=Township&ID=7128 | access-date = 2009-07-13}}</ref>
|population_note                = For many years prior to 2001, a sign in Coboconk read ''Pop. 800'', and has since been removed.
|population_total               = 800
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<!-- General information  --------------->
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|postal_code_type       = [[Postal code]]
|postal_code            = K
|area_code              = [[Area code 705|705]]
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}}

'''Coboconk''', often shortened to '''Coby''', is a community in the city of [[Kawartha Lakes]], in the south-central portion of the [[Provinces and territories of Canada|Canadian province]] of [[Ontario]]. The village lies at the junction of [[Ontario Highway 35|Highway&nbsp;35]] and former [[Ontario Highway 48|Highway 48]], on the northern tip of [[Balsam Lake (Ontario)|Balsam Lake]], the highest point on the [[Trent–Severn Waterway]]. Coboconk has a prominent role in the logging, limestone, and tourism industries of the Kawartha Lakes region over the past 150 years.

== History ==
[[File:Coby ca 1900.jpg|thumb|left|The former Coboconk train station in 1901]]
Coboconk was first settled in 1851 with the building of a [[saw mill]] on the Krosh-qua-bo-Konk River (later anglicized to the [[Gull River (Balsam Lake)|Gull River]]) by John Bateman,<ref>{{cite book|last=Suggitt|first=Gladys M.|title=Roses and Thorns, A Goodly Heritage - The Early Days of Baddow and Area|publisher=John Deyell Co.|year=1972|page=252}}</ref><ref name="coboconkhistory">{{cite web|title=Coboconk History|url=http://www.vccap.org/coboconk/history.htm|access-date=July 15, 2009}}</ref> and like many villages in central Ontario, it served the lumber trade of the area,<ref name="kirk8184">{{cite book|title=County of Victoria, Centennial History|last=Kirkconnell|first=Watson|pages=81–84|url=http://www.canadiangenealogy.net/ontario/victoriacounty/phantom_village.htm#Nested|access-date=August 8, 2009}}</ref> which was clearing the forests of pine, hemlock and spruce, and sending the logs downstream for processing.<ref name="respectableditch2">{{cite book|last=Angus|first=James T.|title=A Respectable Ditch. A History of the Trent-Severn Waterway, 1833-1920|year=1999|pages=140–142|isbn=0-7735-1821-5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xeuqD9NSNIQC|access-date=July 7, 2009}}</ref>

In 1859 the village name was anglicized by the establishment of a post office.<ref name="post">{{cite web|title=Post Offices and Postmasters|publisher=[[Library and Archives Canada]]|url=http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/databases/post-offices/001001-119.01-e.php?&isn_id_nbr=878&interval=24&&PHPSESSID=64upq1e33gqlm3e14dhun5rg12|access-date=December 20, 2009}}</ref> The name is a translation of the two Indigenous names for the village, which came from the name of the river: ''Ko-ash-kob-o-cong'', translating to ''"the part of the river where a portage of a few rods needs to be made"'' and ''Quash-qua-be-conk'', translating to ''"where the gulls nest."''<ref name="roses253">{{cite book|last=Suggitt|first=Gladys M.|title=Roses and Thorns, A Goodly Heritage - The Early Days of Baddow and Area|publisher=John Deyell Co.|year=1972|page=253}}</ref>

In October, 1859, a bylaw was passed by the United Council in [[Bobcaygeon]], permitting the construction of ''[[List of Ontario colonization roads#The Cameron Road|The Cameron Road]]'' from [[Fenelon Falls, Ontario|Fenelon Falls]], then known as Cameron's Falls after the initial settler of the area, through [[Rosedale, Ontario|Rosedale]], then called Rosa Dale, after the wife of Mr. Cameron, and into Coboconk. The forced road cut through lots fronting Balsam Lake, and was little more than a dirt trail for many years.<ref name="roses253" /> When the [[Department of Northern Development]] was absorbed into the [[Department of Highways, Ontario|Department of Highways]] on April 1, 1937,<ref name="dond">{{cite web|title=Department of Northern Development|author=Archives of Ontario|at=Administrative History|publisher=Government of Ontario|url=http://ao.minisisinc.com/scripts/mwimain.dll/1374/1/6/607?RECORD|access-date=January 19, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714101723/http://ao.minisisinc.com/scripts/mwimain.dll/1374/1/6/607?RECORD|archive-date=July 14, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>
''The Cameron Road'' was designated as part of Highway 35.

In November 1872, the [[Toronto and Nipissing Railway]] reached Coboconk and a station was built. The station was named ''Shedden'' after the president of the railway, causing the town to be renamed to that on June 1, 1873. The name would hold until December 1, 1880, when local residents had the town renamed Coboconk.<ref name="post" /> The line served the village for some time into the mid-twentieth century. The advent of local mail delivery coupled with the building of highways in the 1950s ([[Ontario Highway 35]] and [[Ontario Highway 115]]) into the area eventually led to the demise of the line. The tracks were lifted in 1965, and the station moved to its present location in the Laidlaw Heritage Village, overlooking Legion Park in 1995. It is not the original station, however, and was built after the old station burnt down due to a lightning strike on August 4, 1908.<ref>{{cite web|title=Coboconk Train Station|author=Charles Cooper|publisher=Northern Consulting|url=http://www.northernconsultingservices.com/cts/history_stn.htm|access-date=December 13, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Kawartha Lakes Museums and Heritage|url=http://www.city.kawarthalakes.on.ca/residents/parks-recreation-culture/arts-culture-heritage/heritage-museums#The_Sheddon_Area_Historical_Society|access-date=August 8, 2009}}</ref>

Coboconk was home to several grist and lumber mills, as well as brick kilns for several brick makers, including the [[Toronto Brick Company]] and the [[Canada Lime Company]], which continued to operate into the mid-twentieth century, and a large limestone quarry.<ref name="kirk8184" /> While most of the mills have been torn down, the kilns remain in place on Queen street, and are visible as one enters the village from the south on Highway 35.<ref>{{Google maps|title=A view of the old lime kilns as one enters Coboconk from the south on Highway 35|url=http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=44.656029,-78.795765&num=1&t=h&sll=49.891235,-97.15369&sspn=16.71875,56.536561&ie=UTF8&ll=44.655375,-78.795362&spn=0.013951,0.027595&z=15&layer=c&cbll=44.655525,-78.795324&panoid=L-_y-BBrm-J2xwPV7wLToA&cbp=12,335.2,,0,2.62|access-date=February 13, 2008}}</ref>
[[File:Coboconk1965.png|thumb|An aerial view of Coboconk in the 1960s]]

When the Rosedale lock (Now lock 35 of the Trent-Severn Waterway) was completed in 1873,<ref name="respectableditch">{{cite book|last=Angus|first=James T.|title=A Respectable Ditch. A History of the Trent-Severn Waterway, 1833-1920|year=1999|pages=139–141|isbn=0-7735-1821-5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xeuqD9NSNIQC|access-date=July 7, 2009}}</ref> Coboconk became the furthest point one could travel from Lake Ontario. It remained as such for over three decades during a period when the construction of the Trent ceased due to political and financial turmoil. With the opening of the [[Kirkfield Lift Lock]]s in 1907,<ref>Government of Ontario Plaque at Kirkfield Lift Lock</ref> travel beyond Coboconk became possible.

On May 16, 1877, the central island of the village was destroyed by major fire which started in the local Key Hotel.<ref name="kirk8184" />

On January 1, 2001, being located within Bexley and Somerville townships, Coboconk was incorporated into the newly formed city of Kawartha Lakes.

== Geography ==

Coboconk is located on the border of the [[Township (Canada)|geographic townships]] of [[Bexley Township|Bexley]] and [[Somerville Township|Somerville]], at the junction of [[Ontario Highway 35|Highway 35]] and Kawartha Lakes Road 48 (Formerly [[Ontario Highway 48|Highway 48]]).<ref>{{cite map|author=Geomatics Office|title=Official Ontario road map|publisher=Ministry of Transportation|year=2003|section=O27|url=http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/traveller/map/images/pdf/southont/sheets/Map5.pdf|access-date=January 19, 2010}}</ref>
The village lies within the [[Gull River (Balsam Lake)|Gull River]] valley on the ridge between the Paleozoic Limestone region of South-Central Ontario and the Precambrian Granite [[Canadian Shield]]. A limestone [[cuesta]] crosses the southern portion of the village.<ref name="geology">{{Cite web|title=Paleozoic Region - Bedrock Topography and Geology|author=Trent Conservation Coalition|publisher=Ontario Ministry of Environment|year=2004|url=http://www.ene.gov.on.ca/envision/water/groundwater/trent_river_watershed/paleozoic/Map03-BedrockTopographyandGeology.pdf|access-date=December 26, 2009|archive-date=December 20, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061220042858/http://www.ene.gov.on.ca/envision/water/groundwater/trent_river_watershed/paleozoic/Map03-BedrockTopographyandGeology.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>
Coboconk lies between the northern tip of [[Balsam Lake (Ontario)|Balsam Lake]], and the southernmost point of the Gull River [[drainage basin|drainage system]]. A dam divides the two watersheds, as well as controlling the water levels of Balsam and [[Mitchell Lake (Ontario)|Mitchell Lake]]s,<ref>{{cite web|title=Written Submission of Presentation|author=Shadow Lakes Association Inc.|publisher=Panel on the Future of the Trent-Severn Waterway|date=August 14, 2007|url=http://tswpanel.ca/francais/downloads/14-08-07_shadow_lakes_association-written_submission.pdf|access-date = January 19, 2010}}</ref> the highest point on the [[Trent–Severn Waterway]].<ref>Government of Ontario information plaque at [[Kirkfield Lift Lock]], indicating Balsam Lake as the highest point on the Trent–Severn Waterway.</ref> [[Four Mile Lake (Ontario)|Four Mile Lake]] is located nearby.

[[File:Coboconk.jpg|thumb|left|Aerial view of Coboconk in 2007]]

== Demographics ==
Because Coboconk has never been an [[incorporated place]], no [[census]] data exists for the village itself. Prior to the amalgamation of Victoria County into Kawartha Lakes, data was available for each township and village. The village of Coboconk lies half within the boundaries of former Somerville Township, and half within the former Bexley Township, and as such, the demographics of those two [[township (Canada)|townships]] is the only data available.<ref>{{cite report|title=Community Profile - Somerville Township|section=Population Statistics|page=2|author=Statistics Canada|year=1996|url=http://www12.statcan.ca/english/profil/Details/details1pop1.cfm?SEARCH=BEGINS&PSGC=35&SGC=3516031&A=&LANG=E&Province=All&PlaceName=Coboconk&CSDNAME=Somerville&CMA=0&SEARCH=BEGINS&DataType=1&TypeNameE=Township&ID=7126|access-date=February 14, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite report|title=Community Profile - Bexley Township|section=Population Statistics|page=2|author=Statistics Canada|year=1996|url=http://www12.statcan.ca/english/profil/Details/details1pop1.cfm?SEARCH=BEGINS&PSGC=35&SGC=3516034&A=&LANG=E&Province=All&PlaceName=Coboconk&CSDNAME=Bexley&CMA=0&SEARCH=BEGINS&DataType=1&TypeNameE=Township&ID=7128|access-date=February 14, 2010}}{{Dead link|date=August 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

== Services ==

Coboconk, as one of the larger unincorporated villages of the former [[Victoria County, Ontario|Victoria County]], contains most of the essential services required by the population. Though it does not contain a [[hospital]] (The nearest being equidistant in either Lindsay or [[Minden, Ontario|Minden]]), it does have a [[Fire Services in Kawartha Lakes#Coboconk|fire hall]] with a single pumper; a public school named Ridgewood P.S.; a medical centre; a post office; several churches; a mixed use library and a community centre.<ref>{{cite web|title=Coboconk Businesses|author=Victoria County Community Access Program (VCCAP)|publisher=City of Kawartha Lakes|url=http://www.vccap.org/coboconk/business.htm|access-date=2009-12-28}}</ref>

== Attractions ==

[[Balsam Lake Provincial Park]] (448 ha) and [[Indian Point Provincial Park]] (947 ha) are both minutes west of Coboconk. The former is a summer campground,<ref>{{cite web|title=Parks Ontario - Balsam Lake|url=http://www.ontarioparks.com/ENGLISH/bals.html|access-date=2009-08-08|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090716124542/http://www.ontarioparks.com/English/bals.html|archive-date=2009-07-16}}</ref>
while the latter is a natural environment conservation area.<ref>{{cite web|title=Parks Ontario - Indian Point|url=http://www.ontarioparks.com/ENGLISH/indi.html|access-date=2009-08-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100223040107/http://www.ontarioparks.com/english/indi.html|archive-date=2010-02-23|url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[File:Coboconk jail.JPG|thumb|right|225px|Coboconk's jail now houses a gift shop]]
Coboconk is one of several places (including [[Tweed, Ontario]] and [[Creemore, Ontario]]) which lay claim to be ''the home of Canada's smallest [[jail]]'',<ref>{{cite web|title=Jail Trivia|url=http://www.coolquiz.com/trivia/canada/jail.asp|access-date=December 20, 2009}}</ref> a claim which it promoted on the welcoming sign on the south side of the village. At 4.57&nbsp;m by 8.84&nbsp;m (26.68&nbsp;[[m^2|m<sup>2</sup>]]), it is certainly amongst the smallest jails in [[North America]]. However, the absolute distinction belongs to the jail house in [[Rodney, Ontario]], which measures just 4.5&nbsp;m by 5.4&nbsp;m (24.3&nbsp;m<sup>2</sup>).<ref>{{cite book|last=Brown|first=Ron|title=Behind Bars: Inside Ontario's Heritage Gaols|page=96|year=2006|publisher=Dundurn Press Ltd.|isbn=978-1-897045-17-6|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ql01sEqKe_gC&q=Coboconk+4.57+5.84+metres&pg=PA96|access-date=August 5, 2009}}</ref>
The Coby Jail has {{convert|2|ft|m|adj=mid|-thick}} limestone walls mined from the local quarry. These along with the iron bars remain unchanged since the construction of the jail in 1884.<ref name="SLassoc"/> Inside the jail were two cells, in addition to the wardens office. The sole constable of the jail, Joseph Wakelin, was appointed in 1899 and retired in 1922.<ref name="jailspg8182">{{cite book|last=Brown|first=Ron|title=Behind Bars: Inside Ontario's Heritage Gaols|pages=81–82|year=2006|publisher=Dundurn Press Ltd.|isbn=978-1-897045-17-6|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ql01sEqKe_gC&q=coboconk+1899+-woodslee&pg=PA81|access-date=August 5, 2009}}</ref>

Local legend tells of a man named Lee who was locked up one night by the constable, who then returned home. Upon the constable's return, Lee was found sitting beside the jail, with no physical damage to the door or lock.<ref name ="jailspg8182" />
This legend, however, can be attributed to the builder of the jail, Albert Ryckman, who left several bricks in place without mortar with the foresight that should he be caught after a night at the local pub, known as the Pattie House, he could simply escape unnoticed. It is said that he made use of this escape route several times over the years.<ref name="SLassoc">{{cite web|title=Area History|website=Shadow Lakes Association|date=Spring 2005|url=http://www.shadowlakes.on.ca/areahistory.htm|access-date=January 19, 2010}}</ref>

The jail sat vacant for 50 years before being purchased by the Coboconk New Horizons Club in 1974.<ref name="SLassoc" /> It is now a designated heritage site<ref name="SLassoc" /> and museum,<ref>{{cite web|title=Kawartha Lakes Museums|publisher=City of Kawartha Lakes|year=2009|url=http://www.explorekawarthalakes.com/en/experience/museums.asp|access-date=January 19, 2010}}</ref> named Ye Olde Jailhouse.<ref name="2010 mapart">{{cite map|title=Ontario Back Road Atlas|year=2010|publisher=[[MapArt]]|isbn=978-1-55198-226-7}}</ref>

Balsam Lake is claimed to be the highest freshwater lake in the world from which one can sail to the ocean. [[Parks Canada]] recognized this feature by placing a historical landmark at the Coboconk docks. A celebration was held on the 2010 summer solstice, June 19, to unveil the marker.<ref>[http://www.mykawartha.com/community/article/833027--coboconk-stakes-a-claim Coboconk Stakes a Claim]</ref>

== Coverage in the media ==
The village was featured in the news when Bob Edmonds, a resident, had his winning lottery ticket stolen by the local [[convenience store]] clerk.<ref name="fifth estate">{{cite web|title=Fifth Estate|publisher=[[CBC News]]|date=October 29, 2006|url=http://www.cbc.ca/fifth/luckofthedraw/index.html|access-date=2009-12-27}}</ref> The ensuing scandal began a series of changes within the [[Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation]] to improve the security of claiming prizes.

Coboconk was also associated with the 2005 murder of [[Alicia Ross]], when some of her remains were recovered following her killer's confession.<ref>{{cite web|title=Secret Murder Details Finally Released As Alicia Ross Murder Trial Opens|publisher=City TV|date=May 7, 2005|url=http://www.citytv.com/toronto/citynews/news/local/article/12939--secret-murder-details-finally-released-as-alicia-ross-murder-trial-opens|access-date=2010-01-02}}</ref>

Coboconk appears in Canadian fiction in the murder-mystery novel ''Old City Hall'' by [[Robert Rotenberg]],<ref name="national post">{{cite web|last=Marchand|first=Philip|title=Murder most polite|work=National Post|date=March 14, 2009|url=http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/afterword/archive/2009/03/14/philip-marchand-murder-most-polite.aspx|access-date=2009-12-26}}</ref> as well as in a 1926 novel.<ref>{{citation|last=Loudon|first=W.J.|title=Studies of Student Life - Volume III - Silas Smith of Coboconk|year=1926|publisher=MacMillan Co. of Canada Ltd.}}</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==

{{City of Kawartha Lakes}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Communities in Kawartha Lakes]]