Click to View Larger Map
-
-
-
Guelph is a city located in the Southwestern region of Ontario, Canada. Known as the Royal City, Guelph is roughly 28 km east of Kitchener-Waterloo and 100 km west of downtown Toronto at the intersection of Highway 6 and Highway 7. It is the seat of Wellington County but is, in many respects, politically autonomous from the county itself. Nevertheless, Wellington County is largely influenced by Guelph and, as one entity, Guelph and Wellington County have a population of 200,425.
Residents of Guelph are called Guelphites. Guelph also has a number of sister cities, which are selected based on economic, cultural and political criteria. Because of its low crime rates, clean environment and generally high standard of living, Guelph is consistently rated as one of the country's most livable cities. Moneysense magazine ranked Guelph fourth in the country to live in 2007 , and was also rated among Canada's ten best places to live by Chatelaine magazine.
Guelph and Wellington County have a rich and interesting history. Pride in that history can be seen in the downtown core of Guelph through buildings and the various monuments dedicated to the history makers of Guelph's past. Wellington County keeps its historical traditions alive and welcomes all to come and celebrate their roots. You can experience the story of Guelph and Wellington County through walking tours, museums and festivals.
Guelph is famous for its natural attractions and environment as well as historic limestone buildings in its downtown. Many downtown streets are lined with many old buildings, some of which are over a century old Church of Our Lady Immaculate' Roman Catholic Church, located downtown, is one of Guelph's major landmarks, and is designated as a National Historic Site in Canada.
Most of the natural attractions of Guelph are located beside the two rivers which pass inside the city, Speed River and Eramosa River. Some of these natural attractions include: Guelph Lake, University of Guelph Arboretum, Riverside Park: Located beside the Speed River at north of Guelph , York Road Park (beside the former Correctional Centre) , Hanlon Creek Park (Preservation Park) and Royal City Park and Wellington Street nature sites.
Music has always played a large part in the lives of people living in Guelph. From a Bell Organ factory to the opera singer Edward Johnson, Guelph has been a source of musical contribution. Today, Guelph is notable for its indie rock scene, which has spawned some of Canada's most important indie bands, including King Cobb Steelie, Royal City, The Constantines, Jim Guthrie, The Barmitzvah Brothers, Flashlight Brown and the Kramdens. Guelph is also home to the Hillside Festival, an indie music festival held at Guelph Lake during the summer, CFRU 93.3 FM, a campus radio station at the University of Guelph. Guelph is also home to Magic 106.1 FM and 1460 CJOY AM. Three Gut Records, the label responsible for The Constantines, Royal City, Jim Guthrie, Cuff The Duke, and others was based in Guelph. Other small and locally known labels/collectives such as Burnt Oak and Social Arts Club followed suit in supporting their own music scenes. The following notable music festivals take place in Guelph:The Guelph Jazz Festival , Hillside Festival.
