In Canada West of the 1860s, approximately 15% of farm land was operated by tenant farmers. By this time period, there was a shortage of good, cleared farm land in the south of the province and the government tried to encourage a new generation of pioneer settlement in the unpopulated counties of Muskoka, Haliburton and Renfrew. For those who wanted to farm but did not want to leave their home territory, tenancy was an alternative. Many tenant farmers, however, dreamed of owning their own farms and tried to save the money to do so. Unlike farmers who owned or inherited their own land, tenant farmers only spent what was necessary on maintenance, equipment and general improvements. Thus, tenant farms often appeared to be run on a poorer level than their owner neighbours.
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