Mississauga

Mississauga, Ontario is the seventh-largest city in Canada and the third largest city in Ontario (after Toronto and Ottawa). It borders the largest city in Canada, Toronto. In fact, it is a part of the Greater Toronto Area. Toronto Pearson International Airport is in Mississauga.

 Visitor attractions 
 Art Gallery of Mississauga, a free gallery in the Civic Centre showcasing local art
 Benares Historic House
 Bradley House Museum
 Living Arts Centre, a showcase for the arts
 Opera Mississauga
 Heritage Mississauga
 Portuguese Cultural Centre of Mississauga
 Renaissance Catering & Convention Centre

 History 
On August 2, 1805, Toronto Township was formed when officials from York (what is now the City of Toronto) purchased 84,000 acres (340 km²) of land from the Mississaugas. In January 2010, the Mississaugas and the federal government settled a land claim. The aboriginal people received $145,000,000 from that.

After the land was surveyed, much of it was given in the form of land grants to United Empire Loyalists. They emigrated from the Thirteen Colonies during and after the American Revolution, as well as loyalists from New Brunswick. A group of settlers from New York City arrived in the 1830s. In 1820, the government purchased additional land from the Mississaugas. Additional settlements were established, including: Barbertown, Britannia, Burnhamthorpe, Derry West, Elmbank, Malton, Meadowvale Village, Mount Charles, and Streetsville. European-Canadian growth led to the eventual displacement of the Mississaugas. In 1847, the government relocated them to a reserve in the Grand River Valley, near present-day Hagersville.

In 1873, the Toronto Township Council was formed to oversee the events of the various villages that were unincorporated at that time. The council's responsibilities included road maintenance, and a police force. Most of present-day Mississauga was agricultural land: including fruit orchards, through much of the 19th and first half of the 20th century. Exceptions included small villages, some gristmills and brickworks served by railway lines,

In the 1920s, cottages were constructed along the shores of Lake Ontario for people who lived in the city. 17 years later in 1937, 1,410.8 acres of land was sold to build the Malton Airport (later known as the Pearson Airport). It became Canada's busiest airport which also put the end to the community of Elmank.

The township settlements of Lakeview, Cooksville, Lorne Park, Clarkson, Erindale, Sheridan, Dixie, Meadowvale Village, and Malton were combined in 1968 to form the Town of Mississauga. At the time, both Port Credit and Streetsville were left out and remained separate. The town name was chosen by voting. In 1974, Port Credit and Streetsville became part of Mississauga. In that same year, the Square One Shopping Centre opened.

On November 10, 1979, a freight train left its tracks on the Canadian Pacific rail line while carrying explosive and poisonous chemicals just north of the intersection of Mavis Road and Dundas Street. One of the tank cars carrying propane exploded. Since other tank cars were carrying chlorine, the decision was made to evacuate nearby residents. With the possibility of a deadly cloud of chlorine gas spreading through Mississauga, 218,000 people were evacuated. Residents were allowed to return home, once the area was safe. It was one of the largest evacuations in North American history.

 Geography 
Mississauga covers  of land, with  of shoreline on Lake Ontario.

 Statistics 
Mississauga is a large and multicultural city. As of 2021, Statistics Canada counted 717,961 people in Mississauga.

 Law and Government 

The city of Mississauga has only had five mayors in its past and it was created in 1974. This is because in Mississauga usually mayors serve for a very long time. For example, Hazel McCallion was mayor for 36 years. The current mayor is  who assumed office in June 2024.

Mayors
 Dr. Martin L. Dobkin 1974–1976
 Ron A. Searle 1976–1978
 Hazel McCallion 1978–2014
 Bonnie Crombie 2014–2024
 Carolyn Parrish 2024–now

Council
Mississauga is split into 11 wards (parts) each of them having their own councillor.
 Ward 1 Stephen Dasko
 Ward 2 Alvin Tedjo
 Ward 3 Chris Fonseca
 Ward 4 John Kovac
 Ward 5 Natalie Hart
 Ward 6 Joe Horneck
 Ward 7 Dipika Damerla
 Ward 8 Matt Mahoney
 Ward 9 Martin Reid
 Ward 10 Sue McFadden
 Ward 11 Brad Butt

Federal and Provincial Ridings
Mississauga has six legislative (government) ridings that are the same for the Canadian government and the Ontario government. The Canadian government has people in charge of those ridings called M.P.'s (Member of Parliament) and the Ontario government has M.P.P.'s (Member of Provincial Parliament) in charge of them.
 Mississauga Centre
 M.P.: Omar Alghabra (Liberal)
 M.P.P.: Natalia Kusendova (Progressive Conservative)
 Mississauga East—Cooksville
 M.P.: Peter Fonseca (Liberal)
 M.P.P.: Silvia Gualtieri (Progressive Conservative)
 Mississauga—Erin Mills
 M.P.: Iqra Khalid (Liberal)
 M.P.P: Sheref Sabawy (Progressive Conservative)
 Mississauga—Lakeshore
 M.P.: Charles Sousa (Liberal)
 M.P.P.: Rudy Cuzzetto (Progressive Conservative)
 Mississauga—Malton
 M.P.: Iqwinder Gaheer (Liberal)
 M.P.P.: Deepak Anand (Progressive Conservative)
 Mississauga—Streetsville
 M.P.: Rechie Valdez (Liberal)
 M.P.P.: Nina Tangri (Progressive Conservative)

 References