Williamson, Gravenhurst

Williamson (Summer 2010 population 741), nicknamed The Peace Village, is a community within the Town of Donsley. Despite the majority of the town belongs to the Archemedes Census Metropolitan Area, Williamson is the only community in the town belonging to the Lisi Metropolitan Area. The community is formally defined as the portions of the Town of Donsley east of the Perimeter Expressway. The community is bounded east by the City of Lisi along the Peace River. The new community of Confederation is located within the lawful boundaries of the community.

History
Williamson was first settled in the 1940s, as a distant community from the City of Lisi, located about 20 km southeast of the site of Williamson. It is named after the Williamson family who first settled in the region along with the Wellington family in the late 1700s. The Williamsons later moved away, and never returned until the 1940s. The community was then named Williamson in honour of the ones who first settled here. The community remained its size since then, with several families and a population of a few hundred. At one point, Williamson was on the verge in separating from the Town of Donsley, and forming its own police village or joining the City of Lisi. However, the crisis was quickly resolved with more resources, such as new schools, and new transportation facilities and services put into place of the community.

Recently, the rapid urban sprawl of the City of Lisi pressured the community by seeing new developments surrounding the older developments in the centre of the community. The community is currently at threat with more new housing developments coming, with the Town of Donsley government officials planning the ambitious St. Andrew's Housing Plan.

Today, Williamson became a major public transportation hub, as the community conveniently located between the Town of Wellington and the City of Lisi.

Much of the original families of the settlement have moved away, in response to the new housing developments.

Transportation
As a major transportation hub, the community hosts a terminal namely Williamson Terminal, scheduled to be opened in Late 2010 or Early 2011, as well as serviced by Williamson GO Station. The community is also located on the corridor of Highway 506. The community is also at the rail junction of the Golden Corridor Line and the Haldimond Line.