Galt is a community in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada, in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario on the Grand River. Prior to 1973, it was an independent city, incorporated in 1915, but amalgamation with the town of Hespeler, Ontario, the town of Preston, Ontario and the village of Blair formed the new municipality of Cambridge. Today it is also known as Downtown Cambridge. The first mayor of Cambridge was Claudette Millar. There was considerable resistance among the local population to this "shotgun marriage" arranged by the provincial government and a healthy sense of rivalry had always governed relations among the three communities. Even today, many residents refer to their area of Cambridge as being Galt or Preston or Hespeler. Each unique centre has its own history that is well documented in the Cambridge City Archives. No current population data is available for the former Galt since the Census reports cover only the full area of Cambridge. The former Galt covers the largest portion of the amalgamated municipality, making up the southern half of the city. It is located on the Grand River and has a very long history as an industrialized area. The former Preston and Blair are located on the western side of the city, while the former Hespeler is in the most northeasterly section of Cambridge. History In the late 1700s, developers began to buy land around the Grand River from the Six Nations Indians who were led by Joseph Brant. One speculator, William Dickson, a wealthy immigrant from Scotland, bought of land along the Grand River in 1816; this was later to become Galt and the Dumfries Townships. Dickson divided the land and advertised in Scotland for immigrants; many were attracted and arrived in what is now Galt, primarily from Roxburghshire and Selkirkshire. Dickson sold lots to these new settlers. The centre of the planned community was at the junction of Mill Creek and the Grand River, then called Shade's Mills. Absalom Shade, a carpenter from Pennsylvania, was hired in 1816 by William Dickson to manage his lands in Dumfries Township. He later operated a general store, a mill and a distillery in Shade's Mills, which later became Galt. In 1819, he built a small bridge over the Grand River to serve customers on the other side; it lasted until 1832. Shade also supplied food and built roads for the Canada Company. He helped establish the Grand River