In 1873, the Toronto Township Council was formed to oversee the events of the various villages that were unincorporated at that time. The Council's responsibilities included road maintenance, and a police force. Most of present-day Mississauga was agricultural land: including fruit orchards, through much of the 19th and first half of the 20th century. Exceptions included small villages, some gristmills and brickworks served by railway lines, 