Founded by Captains John Spence and William Kennedy as a trading and fishing post in 1848 and incorporated by an act of Parliament on July 24, 1858, Southampton is named after England's famous seacoast town, with the High (main) Street and charming houses and cottages along tree-lined streets. Marine heritage is preserved here with the Chantry Island Lighthouse, the "storm baskets" at the harbour mouth, the plans for rebuilding the long dock, which made Southampton the perfect Harbour of Refuge on Huron, and the Marine Coast Gallery at the Bruce County Museum & Cultural Centre as just a few examples.
A centre for the arts, Southampton boasts both a Summer Art School (the oldest in Ontario) and an Arts Society, the Festival Theatre presenting Summer Music, the Saugeen Art Group and Shoreline Artists, Bruce County Museum & Cultural Centre programs and juried art shows, and Music in the Park at Fairy Lake.
