Markham marks 20-year anniversary of partnership with sister city in Germany

Yorkregion.com
Sept. 22, 2022

Markham has a close historical tie with Germany, and the only remaining walled medieval town Nördlingen located north-west of Munich.

William Berczy, who was born in Bavaria (now known as Germany), and the Berczy settlers are an important part of Markham’s history. In 1792, Berczy led nearly 200 German settlers to Upper Canada after they failed to develop a tract of land in western New York. Lieut.-Gov. John Graves Simcoe offered them land in return for construction work in the early town of York. The settlers constructed a section of Yonge Street and settled in what is now Markham.

2021 marked the City of Markham’s 20th anniversary of its city-to-city partnership with Nördlingen. This year, Mayor Frank Scarpitti, Councillor Karen Rea and delegates were in attendance at Stadtmauerfest, Nördlingen’s Historic Wall Festival, where a commemorative sign was unveiled to celebrate this milestone anniversary.

As a token of appreciation, Mayor Frank Scarpitti led a tree planting ceremony and presented Nördlingen Mayor David Wittner with a 20-Year Partnership Anniversary Certificate.

“Over the last 20 years, due in part to our shared historical roots, the partnership and friendship between our cities has grown,” said Nördlingen Mayor David Wittner. “It is my wish that we continue to expand and strengthen our bond -- in particular to engage the youth of Nördlingen and Markham.”

Markham’s partnership with Nördlingen has provided many opportunities for cultural and student exchanges over the years.  In 2013, “Markham Street” was unveiled in Nördlingen. In 2017, the City of Markham dedicated the William Berczy statue to commemorate Canada’s 150th birthday.

To commemorate the special occasion, the photo album “History of the Nördlingen-Markham city-to-city partnership” has been digitalized and now can be viewed online at YourVoiceMarkham.ca/Nordlingen.

The album was created and gifted to the City of Markham in 2013 by Aksel Rinck, who along with the Markham Berczy Settlers Association, the Markham Historical Society and the Friends of Markham based in Nördlingen, has been instrumental in building and maintaining the partnership between the City of Markham and Nördlingen. On September 10, 2022, Aksel Rinck passed away in Nördlingen, Germany at the age of 100.