Ingersoll is a town in Oxford County on the Thames River in southwestern Ontario, Canada. The nearest cities are Woodstock to the east and London to the west. Ingersoll is situated north of and along Highway 401. Oxford County Road 119 runs north diagonally through the town. A Canadian National rail line bisects the town east to west through its center. Passenger service from the Ingersoll train station is provided to other stops in Southwestern Ontario by Via Rail. To the south is a CPR line, with spurs into local industries, which provides freight service to points in the region. The local high school is Ingersoll District Collegiate Institute. The Ingersoll area was first settled in the 1790s by families from New England, became famous for home-made cheese production before the War of 1812, and its surrounding County of Oxford was home to the first cheese factories in Canada, starting in 1864. In 1866, through collaboration by the town's businessmen, a giant wheel of cheese weighing 7,300 pounds was produced at the James Harris Cheese Factory just south of Ingersoll, for promotion of the area's cheese industry. The Mammoth Cheese was exhibited at the New York State Fair in Saratoga, NY, and then in England. It was a Eureka! accomplishment applauded by the whole country, and in 1867 the Canadian Dairymen's Association was established in Ingersoll, attended by nearly two hundred dairymen from across Canada, followed by annual conventions long thereafter. A booming cheese export industry in the millions of pounds grew from Ingersoll to many parts of the world, and the town's name became synonymous with quality products. Ingersoll also developed as an industrial centre. During the late 19th century, the town's largest industries were Noxon Bros., a manufacturer of farm implements and the Ingersoll Packing Co., a cheese-exporting and pork-packing firm . The Noxons firm was shuttered in 1916, but other large industries took root during the early 20th century, including the St. Charles Condensing Co. , the Morrow Screw & Nut Co., the Ingersoll Machine and Tool Co., and the Ingersoll Cream Cheese Company.In the 21st century heavy manufacturing is Ingersoll's largest industry, including CAMI Automotive, a General Motors car manufacturing plant, originally a joint venture established in 1986 with Suzuki Motors of Canada, that has produced millions of vehicles. Ingersoll is twinned with Great Barrington, Massachusetts.
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