London (Ontario)

London (Ontario), city, seat of Middlesex County in southwestern Ontario, Canada, on the Thames River. London is situated in an agricultural region. Canada's main tobacco-growing region is near the city. London is also a distribution, educational, financial, manufacturing, and medical center. Institutions of higher education in London include the University of Western Ontario (1878) and its affiliated institutions, Huron College (1863), Brescia College (1919), and King's College (1912); and a large community college. Among the city's many museums are the Banting Museum, the McIntosh Gallery (1940), the London Museum of Archaeology, the Royal Canadian Regiment Military Museum (1962), the London Regional Art Museum, and a children's museum. Also here is Pioneer Village, a reconstructed mid-19th-century community. London was settled in 1826 and incorporated as a city in 1854. It was named for London, England. The city was damaged by a flood in 1937. Population 311,620 (1991); 336,539 (2001).