The first peoples to inhabit the area of King Township arrived 12,000 years ago, as the glaciers retreated from southern Ontario. These peoples were nomadic and lived in small family groups across the tundra-like landscape and in settlements along glacial lake shorelines, such as the highlands surrounding the Holland Marsh.

 

As the climate warmed, the First Peoples began to harvest seasonably available resources and trade networks were established between different groups. During this time, they relied on fishing and the hunting of deer and caribou.

 

By the Woodland Period (2,800 – 1,200 years ago), indigenous populations in the area increased; camps and villages of longhouses became more permanent. During the point of contact with the Europeans, some 500 years ago, the Mississsauga inhabited the area of King Township.

 

Europeans began exploring the land and began to interact and trade with the First Peoples. The Europeans and First Peoples adopted each other’s material goods and subsistence strategies.