The Founding of Thedford
In 1858, during the construction of the Grand Trunk Railway through this region, Nelson Southworth purchased land here on the line, donated a site for a station and laid out a village plot named Thedford. The hamlet which developed, however, took the name of the depot, Widder Station, which opened to serve the nearby village of Widder. During the 1860's Widder Station grew steadily as a shipping point for square timber, lumber, grain and cattle, and by 1869 the community consisted of 350 inhabitants. The addition of several industries, including a steam saw and grist-mill and a planing mill, fostered the village's growth and it was incorporated as the Village of Thedford by a County by-law of 1877.
Plaque via Alan L. Brown's site Ontario Plaques. Full page here.