St. Jacobs (Ontario) Voyage Tips and guide

Contents

St Jacobs, or 'Jakobstettl' in the local Pennsylvania Dutch, is a village of about 2000 people (2016) that s the heart of St Jacobs Country, a primary tourist destination north of Waterloo, Ontario.

St Jacobs is in the heart of North Waterloo's well-known Mennonite and Amish country. Driving in the area likely as not you will share the road with their horse-drawn buggies, particularly Sundays which is a day of church-going and visiting, and on Market Days when they are on the way to and from Market. Many offer home-grown produce, and home-made baking and preserves from home or road-side stands, but the 'No Sunday Sales' signs mean just that!

There are two main tourist destinations in the area. The market is immediately north of the Waterloo city limits. The historic village is 3 km to the north.

St. Jacobs features dozens of artisans in historic buildings, such as the Country Mill, Village Silos, Mill Shed, and the Old Factory. Visitors may watch artisans make pottery, quilts, designer clothes, jewellery, glass vases, woven wall hangings tiffany lamps, stained glass doors, miniature doll houses and more. There are also two blacksmith shops.

St Jacobs is home base to the network of Home Hardware, Home Furniture, and Home Building Supplies stores across Canada.

The first two settlements near St. Jacobs in the 1830s were Conestoga and Winterbourne. The latter was settled primarily by English and Scots, while St. Jacobs, like Conestoga, was primarily Germanic. In the early 1850s, there was an influx of Mennonites from Pennsylvania, so-called Pennsylvania Dutch. The word "Dutch" does not refer to the Netherlands but is a misnomer for Deitsch or Deutsch (German). They became known as "Old Order" Mennonites due to their conservative lifestyle.

Jacob C. Snider, of Swiss German descent, built a sawmill, a flour-mill and a woollen-mill by 1852, after having built a dam. These features helped to attract others to the small community, which became a village named Jakobstettel (Jacob's Village) in honour of Snider.

St. Jacobs is about 1 hour west of Toronto and 1 hour northeast of London. From Highway 401, exit 278/278A north, take Highway 8 to Highway 85 North, exit "King Street" (Regional Road 15). There are two King Street interchanges; you want the second one. Travel north, following the signs to St. Jacobs Country.

Grand River Transit is the transit authority for Waterloo Region. GRT bus route 21 runs from ION Conestoga station in Waterloo through St. Jacobs to Elmira six days a week.

GO Transit (website) offers some seasonal bus service (route 25) from City Centre Transit Terminal, Mississauga to St. Jacobs Farmers Market on Saturdays in July and August.

• Waterloo Central Railway, 50 Isabella St, ☏ +1 888-899-2757. The WCR offers a seasonal tourist service running a train of historic passenger cars, and a historic steam or diesel locomotive servicing 4 stops between Waterloo and Elmira. The WCR head office and museum is in St. Jacobs. Trains run Tuesdays from mid-June to the end of August, and Thursdays and Saturdays from mid-May to the end of October. There is also service during the Elmira Maple Syrup Festival. The stops are: (updated Jan 2019)
  • 43.498149-80.543771 Northfield stop, 90 Northfield Dr W, Waterloo (across the street from Ion Northfield station). No parking available. (updated Jul 2019)
  • 43.5097-80.55142 Farmers' Market Road stop, 330 Farmer’s Market Rd. (updated Jan 2019)
  • 43.53814-80.5569653 St. Jacobs stop, 50 Isabella St. Railway Museum, The Train Store, Train Restoration Shop. (updated Jan 2019)
  • 43.589369-80.5507864 Elmira stop. Stop is 1.5 km from Village of Elmira. (updated Jan 2019)

• 43.539318-80.5534211 The Mennonite Story Visitor Centre, 1406 King Street, ☏ +1 519-664-3518, [email protected]. Apr-Dec: M-Sa 11AM-5PM, Su 1:30-5PM; Jan–Mar: Sa 11AM-4:30PM, Su 2-4:30PM. Here you can learn about the history, culture and Faith of the Mennonite people of this area of Ontario. Take a journey and look at Mennonite life and history, the clothing and homes, beginning with a short DVD presentation. Donation of $5 per person requested. (updated Jul 2018)
• 43.539901-80.5518972 St. Jacobs & Aberfoyle Model Railway, 1440 King Street North, Building 3, ☏ +1 519-664-3737. May to mid-Dec: Sa and holiday Mondays 10AM-5PM, Su noon-5PM; Jul Aug also on Th noon-5PM; last admission sold at 4:30PM. An impressively large and detailed model railway. It depicts southern Ontario in O-scale models, many hand-crafted by several volunteers over many years. Every 40 minutes, the room dims and the layout sparkles with model lights depicting night-time. Originally in Aberfoyle, the layout moved here in 2012. As of December 2023 it has closed at this location, and is looking for a new home. Adults $8, seniors/students $7, children $5 (age 3 & under are free). (updated Jul 2018)
• 43.540537-80.5536343 The Mill (Exhibits) (St. Jacobs Silo Shops & Exhibits), 1441 King St N (at Front St). Besides shops, the Mill also has a few small museums and non-commercial exhibits as listed below. 
  • Quilt Gallery (3rd floor). 10AM-6PM daily. Features the work of individual artists, and of quilting groups. Admission by donation. 
  • The Maple Syrup Museum (3rd Floor). History of maple syrup production with artifacts and photographs. Admission by donation. 
  • Model Train Panorama (Basement level). A model railway diorama depicting the Village of St. Jacobs in 1940. 
  • Home Hardware's historic exhibit (Basement level). Artifacts from the retail chain Home Hardware which began in St. Jacobs. 
  • History of Electricity (Basement level). History of electricity over 200 years until light produced in the laboratory, plus the development of hydro-electricity in St. Jacobs. 

• Trans-Canada Trail (park in parking lot near Albert & Young Sts.). A portion of the Trans-Canada Trail runs through St. Jacobs, including the Health Valley trail, which runs between the village and the market, and the Mill Race Trail, which runs alongside the Conestogo River west of the village. 

• 43.512099-80.5556391 St. Jacobs Farmers' Market, 878 Weber St N, Woolwich. Tuesday during summer and Thursday and Saturday year round, 7 AM–3:30PM. The market offers fresh produce, baked goods, ethnic foods, furniture, clothing, etc. There are approximately 600 vendors. On Thursdays, there are livestock auctions at the Ontario Stockyards. The Waterloo County Farmers Market (Saturdays year round, 7AM–2PM, Sundays April to December, 10AM–4PM) is on the opposite side of the road. They are just outside of the City of Waterloo 2.5 km south of the town of St Jacobs. (updated Jan 2019)
• 43.509421-80.5545952 St. Jacobs Outlet Mall, 25 Benjamin Rd. E (in the market district), ☏ +1 519-888-0138. M-F 9:30AM-9PM, Sa 8:30AM-6PM, Su noon-5PM. A mall with around 25 shops, most of which are brand-name factory outlets, including Corningware, Reebok, Royal Doulton, Lego, Levi's, around five shoe outlets, a food court, and more. (updated Jan 2019)
• 43.540633-80.5540483 The Mill (Shops) (St. Jacobs Silo Shops & Exhibits), 1441 King St N (at Front St). A lot of small shops nestled in the nooks and crannies of an old feed mill. 
• 43.509196-80.5576254 Market Road Antiques, 845 Weber St. N. (in the market district). 10AM-6PM. This former stockyards building offers around 20,000 square feet of antiques. (updated Jan 2019)
• 43.54306-80.5476015 Picard's Peanuts, 3011 Sawmill Rd (at Highway 85), ☏ +1 519-664-2400. M-Sa 9AM-5PM; Su 11AM-5PM. (updated Jan 2019)
• 43.540322-80.5536096 A Touch of Scotland, 1429 King St N (at Front St). Scottish, Irish and UK products including food and clothing. (updated Jan 2019)
• 43.537669-80.5541717 La Crème Decor. Women's clothing and jewelry specializing in prom and event dresses. (updated Jan 2019)
• 43.538664-80.5539388 St. Jacobs Mennonite Quilts, 1389 King St N. Quilt shop (updated Jan 2019)
• 43.538287-80.5564769 Artefacts Salvage & Design, 46 Isabella St. Antique hardware including doors, stained glass, floor grates, gates, etc. (updated Jan 2019)
• 43.538656-80.55391710 Angel Treasures, 1389 King St N. 10AM-5PM. Gift shop. (updated Jan 2019)

Area restaurants offer international cuisine, and authentic Waterloo County 'food that schmecks' home-cooked fare.

• 43.508489-80.556031 Jack's Family Restaurant, 20 Benjamin Rd, ☏ +1 519-746-4800. M-Sa 7AM-9PM, Su 7AM-8PM. Pizza, Greek, smoked meat, ribs. Breakfasts $8-13, mains $8-24. (updated Jul 2018)
• 43.539115-80.5534922 Jacob's Grill, 1398 King St N, ☏ +1 519-664-2575. M-W 11:30AM-9PM, Th-Sa 11:30AM-9PM, Su 11:30AM-7PM. Burgers, sandwiches, pizzas ~$15; mains $15-29. (updated Jul 2018)

• 43.540309-80.552731 Block Three Brewing Co, 1430 Unit 2 King Street North, ☏ +1 519-664-1001. Bottle shop: Su-W 11AM-6PM, Th-Sa 11AM-9PM. A microbrewery focused on artisanal small-batch beers. Visit the bottling shop and tasting room to try a wide-range of styles and see the production area, learn about the brewing techniques, and guide you through a tasting of the beer. (updated Jul 2018)

Many travellers visiting St. Jacobs stay in Waterloo or in other nearby cities. There are also accommodations in St. Jacobs:

• 43.50652-80.5552091 Courtyard by Marriott Waterloo St. Jacobs, 50 Benjamin Road East (in the market district), ☏ +1 519-884-9295. (updated Jan 2019)