Modern Mississauga and Heritage Mississauga have come together to present an ongoing series called “Way Back Wednesday.”
We’ll share information about the history of Mississauga here and answer your questions.

Today’s topic is history of the Mississauga's Fifeshire, Burbank and Rogers Road.

In an earlier article in this series we explored the name origin of Burnhamthorpe Road. But what about the route of the road itself? The route of modern Burnhamthorpe Road, for most of its course, follows a concession road that was established in the Old Survey of Toronto Township in 1806, mapped out by Crown Surveyor Samuel Street Wilmot. It was simply noted as the first concession road north of Dundas Street.

To some early settlers, the route became informally known as the “Back Line”. The reason for this was that farms “backed” onto the road. Farms were laid out in long 200-acre rectangles, and for whatever reason farmers tended to “front” their farms onto Dundas Street and what is now Eglinton Avenue, and consequently “backed” onto what is now Burnhamthorpe. In the early years the Burnhamthorpe Road tracked through wood lots, with few clearings and even fewer homes visible.

Although the Burnhamthorpe Road route was surveyed across the Credit River Valley, the width and depth of the valley made a bridge crossing impractical. It was not until the early 1980s that Burnhamthorpe Road actually crossed the Credit River. Today, as you cross the river, modern Burnhamthorpe Road bends southward, deviating from its original surveyed route. In part this new course was made to ease the bridging of the deep ravine at the Mullet Creek. Modern Burnhamthorpe Road does not rejoin its original surveyed right of way until after it passes Glen Erin Drive.

But sections of “Old Burnhamthorpe Road” remain. Take a look at a city map, hold a ruler along Burnhamthorpe Road, and you can find the “straight as an arrow” routes of Fifeshire Court, Burbank Road, and Rogers Road – all of which were once part of the Burnhamthorpe Road right-of-way.

East of the Credit River, the road came to carry the name of Burnhamthorpe Road – simply because it led to the village of Burnhamthorpe. West of the Credit River, the route had informal names, including the Adamson Sideroad and Rogers Road. A portion of the old route still carries the Rogers Road name, whereas a stub of the Adamson Sideroad section is now known as Burbank. Another small section, now disconnected from the other routes, is known today as Fifeshire Court.