Grenville County is a former county in the Canadian province of Ontario. It fronted on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River, between the towns of Kingston and Cornwall. The county was created in 1792, and named in honour of William Grenville, 1st Baron Grenville, who was the British Secretary of State responsible for the colonies in 1790. It consisted of five townships, which were settled primarily by United Empire Loyalists in the late 1700s after the Revolutionary War. Prior to being settled by Europeans, the area was home to many generations of native cultures. Grenville County merged with Leeds County in 1850 to create Leeds and Grenville County. The county covered an area of . History Prior to European settlement, numerous Native American villages were present in Grenville County; when the settlers first arrived, these natives still occupied the area and were essentially forced out by the settlements. The French briefly occupied this area at present-day Johnstown, in what was to become Edwardsburgh township, and at Pointe au Baril (present day Maitland) in what would be Augusta township. These French settlements date back to 1670 and 1759 respectively. In the late 1700s while the region was part of the British Lununberg District in the Province of Quebec, land was surveyed in and around what would later become Grenville County to be distributed as land grants to the United Empire Loyalists and their families for their loyalty to the Crown. The emphasis of the Crown government was on military defense, economic growth and political stability. The strategy was to increase the population, maintain efficient military districts, and develop political counties and townships to be dotted with agricultural hamlets and towns and commercially-oriented cities. There was not emphasis on industrial development because of lack of basic infrastructure in the region. The first townships laid out were called the Royal Townships. Situated along the St. Lawrence River where land was most productive and travel was convenient, two of these townships were to become part of Grenville County – Edwardsburgh, Royal Township Six, and Augusta, Royal Township Seven. In 1791 the Province of Upper Canada was created from part of the Province of Quebec. The Upper Canada partition of Lunenberg District was renamed Eastern District in 1792; Grenville County was one of the counties created in 1792. Shortly after the Loyalist refugee arrivals, Irish and Scottish immigrants began to settle in the