The Municipality of Calvin and the surrounding region takes pride in its varied natural resources and an abundance of picturesque views. It is nestled south of the Mattawa River along Highway 17 and just north of Ontario’s world famous Algonquin Park. The area offers Samuel de Champlain Provincial Park, the Canadian Ecology Centre, the Eau Claire Gorge Conservation Area, and the Voyageur Multi-Use Trail System. Visitors are pleased with the appealing surroundings and the warm hospitality awaiting them where the 17th and 21st centuries meet.
In the book “Calvin Remembers One Hundred Years 1887-1987” by Richard Gould, researched and published by the Calvin Township Centennial Committee in 1987, the 2nd paragraph of the Forward states: “Those early pioneers worked the land, struggled against adversity, conquered the rugged terrain, the numbing cold and snow prisons of winter, and undaunted went on to make it work for them. Their greatest reward was the freedom they had obtained.” p. XII
In Chapter Three entitled “Dileno D. Calvin”, the history of the Municipality of Calvin’s namesake is told. Dileno Dexter Calvin was M.P.P. for Frontenac County 1868-1883. Even though the reason for naming a township after him is unknown, D.D. Calvin’s activity in the lumber industry on Garden Island near Kingston may have been a factor, “In 1865 his company was one of the largest timber operations in Canada…” p. 22
Established as a township in 1881, Calvin Township was then surveyed, enabling residents to register deeds for their property. On Dec. 10, 1881, the Provincial Land Surveyor, Lawrence Tallan, wrote in his notes to the Hon. Commissioner of Crown Lands on p. 34: “Taking a low estimate, I consider 60% of Calvin fit for agricultural, and much larger for grazing purposes.” In 1887 when Calvin Township was incorporated, 96 lots were deeded to various individuals. The Canadian Central Railway reached the Amable du Fond River from Mattawa in October 1881 and to Mackey’s Mill at the head of Crooked Chute Lake by the end of the year.