Swansea was incorporated as a village in 1926. The Swansea Village corporate seal reveals a great deal about the colourful history of this neighbourhood. Included on the Swansea seal is explorer Etienne Brule, who in 1615 became the first European to set foot on what is now Swansea. Étienne (Stephen) Brûlé interpreter and explorer was born about 1591 at Champigny-sur-Marne near Paris. He is believed to have made the voyage to Quebec with Samuel de Champlain in 1608. He was to become an interpreter or dragoman between the French and their Amerindian allies.
He played an essential role in the first documented journeys of exploration in New France by going ahead of Samuel de Champlain, Gabriel Sagard, Jean Nicolet, Nicolas Perrot and others along the route to the Great Lakes.
He was also the first European to see the Ottawa Valley, Georgian Bay, Pennsylvania and four of the Great Lakes.
Brûlé was an excellent scout or pathfinder. He went on many expeditions for Champlain and the fur traders and explored land west of Quebec.
Also shown is a First Nations member. This is symbolic in that it recognizes that First Nations members were the first people to inhabit Swansea, hundreds of years ago.
The hills in the Swansea Village seal represent Swansea's rolling countryside, which is similar to the topography found in Swansea, Wales, after which this neighbourhood is named. The water in the Swansea seal refers to Swansea's natural boundaries, which include Lake Ontario, the Humber River and Grenadier Pond.
In 1967, Swansea Village joined Forest Hill Village as one of the last two independent villages to be annexed by the City of Toronto.
