Picton

Picton

Picton, unincorporated place and administrative centre of Prince Edward county, a municipality in southeastern Ontario, Canada. It lies along Lake Ontario’s Bay of Quinte, 15 miles (25 km) southeast of Belleville. A former town, Picton amalgamated with nine other communities in the county in 1998. It was founded in 1786 by loyalists led by Andrew and Henry Johnson and was known as Hallowell before being renamed for Sir Thomas Picton, a British major general in the Napoleonic Wars. Picton is the commercial centre of the municipality; its deepwater port on Picton Bay, an arm of the Bay of Quinte, handles iron-ore shipments from mines near Marmora, 40 miles (64 km) northwest. Picton’s industries include fruit and vegetable canning, textile and lumber milling, and dairying. A large army base and several provincial parks are nearby. Inc. 1837. Pop. (2006) Prince Edward county, 25,495; (2011) 25,260.