"Tavistock is quite a large and important village, much more so, in fact, than many which are incorporated. It is situated about midway along the southern boundary of South Easthope, 3 miles south of Shakespeare, 7 (direct) easy by south of Stratford, and on the county line between Perth and Oxford. It is an important station on the Buffalo and Lake Huron Branch of th Grand Trunk Railway, 108 miles from Buffalo, and 54 from Goderich; and also on the Port Dover and Lake Huron, 55 miles from Port Dover and 112 miles from Wiarton on Georgian Bay; and is possessed of every facility in regard to mails, telegraph, express.

BEFORE 1857
Henry Eckstein, yet living in this place, was the earliest settler within its limits, in 1848. He had been a soldier in the Prussian army and called the place Freiburg in honour of his native town in the Fatherland. There were only 5 habitations in the place previous to the completion of the B. & L.H. Railway; viz, those of Charles Wood, who kept the first store, D.H. Carss, who kept a tavern; Robert Reid at present in Krug & Falck's store; W. H. Munro, tinsmith; and Henry Eckstein, who kept tavern in a little log building where Hansuld's store now stands (1879).

NAMES
On completion of the railway, there were important and continuous accessions to the population, and the bulk of the inhabitants of Sebastopol were gradually drawn away from the older village and absorbed in the new. During the Crimean War the name of the place was changed to Inkerman, and on the opening of the Post Office in 1857 the authorities gave it the name of "Tavistock", which it still wears with becoming grace."
[This may have been done to avoid postal confusion with an Inkerman in Easter Ontario and a Freiburg in Waterloo County, according to Historian of Local Affairs, Art Williams of Embro.]

AFTER 1857
"Ever since the opening of the P.D. & L.H. Railway, 3 years ago, there has been marked improvement in the place. A special census taken in the early part of 1878 in connection with the anticipated incorporation, showed population considerably in excess of 800, and it can now be safely set down at 1000. It contains some very fine commercial blocks and many first-rate residences besides an unusually large number of high standard manufactories for a place of its extent. Its business enterprises embrace:
4 general stores, 1 drug store, 2 tin and stove stores, 1 harness store, 2 shoe stores, 2 merchant tailor establishments, dress-makers' and millinery establishments & whileits industries comprise a very extensive steam furniture factory with saw & planing mill, sash, door & blind factory (Kalbfleisch & Schaefer), Malcolm's large grist and flouring mill, Kalbfleisch & Poehlman's steam grist and flouring mill; Ballantyne's splendid cheese factory at the Port Dover Depot; Field & Hetherington steam woollen factory; 2 large steam flax mills; a steam stave and heading factory; 2 cooperages; a cider mill, 2 carriage factories (one very etensive); 3 blacksmith shops; and a number of smaller shops of other descriptions, such as bakers, butches & &c.
There are three churches (Baptist, Lutheran, Methodist); a large school with 3 departments; 4 hotels; 1 livery stable, express office, 2 telegraph offices and law and medicine are represented by 3 physicians and a conveyancer.
The agitation for incorporation has been temporarily suspended by the efforts of both East Zorra and South Easthope to retain their respective shares of the village as they are, by promises of an equitable division, pro rata, of their portions of the township's taxation, which would make Tavistock, in effect, though not legally, two distinct police villages. Meantime the matter rests in abeyance, but the probabilities seem in favour of an early incorporation."

PRE-INCORPORATION PROBLEMS
Editorial Notes of J.W. Green,
the Tavistock Gazette, November 18, 1897.
"The main objection to village incorporation is that it would increase taxation. In answer to this, it is recorded that Elmira, is smaller village than Tavistock, is taxed this year only 10 mills on the $, not-withstanding that there is a railway bonus and a special tax to meet. Embro with about a one-cent rate pays its way. The assessment of these two villages combined is scarce more than Tavistock's."
The October 16, 1902 issue of the Gazette gives a report of the Sanitary Inspector of South Easthope in which he points out the boggy nature of the ground at the junction of John and Hope Streets with water standing stagnant sufficient to be injurious to the immediate neighbourhood. [This serves but to explain the presence of logs on Hope Street, that Mr Henry Feick showed us, when he helped to dig up the road for paving years ago. It may likewise explain why we got the flood of waters at this same corner in July 1967 with its record rainfall. I wonder if the neighbours and I should go and see our courts about this old problem!]
On November 6, 1902 a deputation from the village journeyed to Woodstock to the East Zorra Division Court under Judge Finkle to request such a court for Tavistock. The citizens making the request were Messrs. Krug, Ratz, Steckle, Niemeier, Liebler and Staebler. The Woodstock corrspondent put the population at about 1500.
On December 2, 1902 the first Division Court was held in Tavistock in Kalbfleisch's Hall with officials of the Shakespeare Court presiding.
Mr. Green's Editorial continues:
"When the assessment of a village reaches $250,000 that village is no longer the gainer by remaining a part of the township in which it is situated, for the amount of taxes collected from it is almost always in excess of the money spent upon it. Tavistock's assessment now very nearly reaches $300,000 and from this sum two townships every year collect more than they spend here, notwithstanding that they have always dealt generously with the village.
If Tavistock were erected into an incorporated village, the building of much-needed sewers and the purchase of fire protection would undoubtedly create a small vilage debt almost at once, but the decrease in insurance rates would almost wipe out the fire engine debt while the sewers would be so great an improvement that the cost would not be considered.
There is constantly more or less talk on the streets concerning these matters and the business men, almost unanimously, are in favour of these improvements. It requires but a moving spirit to 'set the ball in motion' and procure for Tavistock those benefits which it has already been too long without."
The Oxford County Council made some progress toward the incorporation of Tavistock on Tuesday, June 2, 1908. A deputation consisting of Messrs. Wm. M. Appel, George Liebler, Wm. S. Russell, Fred Liebler, John F. Krug and C. Fraser appeared before them and presented the case of the ratepayers favouring incorporation. The council confirmed the census as taken by Mr. J.G. Field under the direction of the Perth County Council and on motion of Mr. D.R. Ross, reeve of Embro appointed a committee to prepare a by-law for the incorporation of the village.

INCORPORATION
From Old Home Week Programme - 1930

In the year 1909 Tavistock finally was incorporated as a separate municipality. The vote was taken in January and the first meting of the village council took place on Monday, February 15th with the following in office:

Clerk - J.G. Field

From the Tavistock Gazette, May 20, 1909 -
The following by-laws were read a third time and passed and come into effect at once: -
A by-law regarding hawkers and peddlars; a bylaw regulating the public morals of the village; a by-law prohibiting spitting on th sidewalks and riding bicycles on them; a by-law abolishing statue [sic] (should be statute) labour and to inaugurate the collection of poll tax; a by-law to appoint a street commissioner.
On motion, Mr. Andrew Baechler was appointed street commissioner and the collector of poll tax.

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* INCORPORATION: Tavistock became an incorporated village in 1909 and restructured into East Zorra-Tavistock in 1975. This is the first Village of Tavistock Council. (Reeve photo by Rounds Studio, Woodstock - Oxford County Archives)