Stratford, a town nestled in Queens County, Prince Edward Island, is a charming blend of history and modernity. Located southeast of Charlottetown, Stratford is the third-largest municipality in the province, boasting a population of 10,927 as per the 2021 census. The town has seen significant growth in recent years, thanks to the improvements made to the Hillsborough River Bridge, which connects it to Charlottetown.
Stratford's history is a tale of amalgamation. The town was incorporated in 1972 as Southport, named after the main road, "Stratford Road." This name was a nod to the secondary name that had competed with Southport as the village name more than a century earlier.
On April 1, 1995, the incorporated communities of Bunbury, Cross Roads, Keppoch-Kinlock, and Southport amalgamated to form the Town of Stratford. The new town also annexed a small portion of the Lot 48 township. Initially designated as Charlottetown South, the town's renaming became controversial as municipal leaders opted to choose a name that had no historic connection to the predecessor constituent communities.
The name "Stratford" was derived from the Stratford Road, a 4 km suburban road connecting Bunbury via Southport with Cross Roads. The name was chosen by the residents of the new municipality through a vote.
Stratford is situated on a peninsula formed by the Hillsborough River estuary, Charlottetown Harbour, and Hillsborough Bay - a sub-basin of the Northumberland Strait. The town is located in the township of Lot 48, offering picturesque views and a serene environment.
Stratford's location across the Hillsborough River from the provincial capital, Charlottetown, has made it an important gateway to the eastern part of the province throughout its history. The area's fortunes have been and remain tied to the evolution and development of transportation links with Charlottetown.
The area grew at a slower pace as a farming community initially. Its first significance was as part of the essential transportation connection between Charlottetown and the Kings County seat, Georgetown. The Georgetown Road, built by local men and male prisoners sentenced to "hard labour," was a vital link that began at the south side of the Hillsborough River.
By the 1820s, a small ferry service opened to bring passengers, animals, and goods between Ferry Point in Southport to a wharf on the Charlottetown waterfront. The location across from the capital city where it landed became locally known as "the Ferry".
As settlers arrived in the 19th century, many of them tenant farmers, land was cleared, and the constituent communities of present-day Stratford grew. Most of the early area place-names were originally the names of single farms or homes: Bellevue, Bunbury, Rosebank, Keppoch, Kinlock.
The locally known name for the area changed from "the Ferry" to "Southport," referring to its proximity to Charlottetown, and Southport remained the community name until 1994. However, the name "Stratford" was proposed in the 1850s by Major J. P. Beete, a wealthy and eccentric Englishman who owned property in Lot 48. This competed with "Southport" for about 25 years until Major Beete returned to England.
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Stratford had a population of 10,927 living in 4,307 of its 4,667 total private dwellings, a change of 12.5% from its 2016 population of 9,711. With a land area of 22.67 km2 (8.75 sq mi), it had a population density of 482.0/km2 (1,248.4/sq mi) in 2021.
Stratford, Prince Edward Island, is a town that has grown and evolved over the years, yet it has managed to retain its historical charm. It's a place where the past and the present coexist, offering a unique experience to its residents and visitors alike.
