Mississauga

Mississauga is Canada’s sixth largest city with a population of about 700,000 and a land area of about 300 square kilometres. Located to the west of Toronto, Mississauga is an amalgamation of many small Ontario communities that arose from the time when Europeans first began settling in the area about four hundred years ago. Some of the original names of the villages and towns comprising Mississauga are: Lakeview, Clarkson, Cooksville, Dixie, Erindale, Lorne Park, Port Credit, Sheridan and Streetsville and these names are still used to describe communities within the greater municipality today.

The name Mississauga comes from a First Nations word meaning “Those at the Great River Mouth” , perhaps in reference to the Credit River which flows into Lake Ontario. When Europeans first arrived in at the area they found it extensively settled by various First Nations groups including the Algonquian Mississaugas, a tribe originally from the Georgian Bay area.

Today Mississauga is a vibrant, fast-growing, multicultural community which has a diverse economy including manufacturing, transportation and tourism. It’s also a very multicultural community with 52% of the population identifying as visible minorities. The city holds numerous cultural events throughout the year such as Canada Day, the Port Credit Southside Shuffle Blues Festival, Ribfest, a Waterfront Festival and Carassauga to name but a few.

Located along the shores of Lake Ontario to the south and bounded by Toronto to the east, Oakville to the west and Brampton to the north Mississauga is centrally located within the overall Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and well connected to the Ontario 400-series highway system via the QEW, Highways 403, 407 and 410. Also, Mississauga is home to Pearson International Airport, the largest airport in Canada, so is conveniently located for frequent travellers. 

Because of its proximity to Lake Ontario, the climate is quite moderate by Canadian standards. Daily high temperatures in July and August are just under 30 °C. Winters can be cold with temperatures below freezing in January and February with the average temperature being about −5 °C.

A short trip to Toronto by train or car puts one within easy reach of all the professional sports teams whether it’s the Toronto Blue Jays, Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors, or Toronto FC. Downtown Toronto is also home to major cultural venues such as the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) and the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM). Other major points of interest in Toronto include the CN Tower, Ripley’s Aquarium, the Hockey Hall of Fame, the Toronto Zoo, Casa Loma, Harbourfront, the Toronto Islands as well as world-class shopping and dining.

Mississauga is the home to two main post-secondary institutions: the University of Toronto Mississauga with an enrolment of approximately 13,000 students and Sheridan College with an enrolment of about 5,000 students. There are also numerous public and private elementary and high schools serving the community.

Just as people did hundreds of years ago, Mississauga has a lot to offer and continues to be a place in which people want to live. This is a good place to call home.