The Village of Morrisburg was named in 1851.

   In  1838, a commission was established to look into improving navigation  on the St. Lawrence River.  Sir James Morris, as a commissioner  was instrumental in promoting the idea and the construction of the  Williamsburg Canals on the St. Lawrence River.  The canals were built between 1844-1856 on the north side of the St. Lawrence River  to form part of the Great Lakes Navigation System. The construction  of the canals on the front of Dundas County provided the impetus for  the growth of a village then called West  Williamsburg.

   In  1850, postal affairs were transferred from London, England to the United Province of Canada.  The Province of Canada passed the "Post Office Act" the same year. Sir James Morris was named the first Postmaster-General of Canada on February 22, 1851.  Under  his direction, postal rates were reduced from 16 cents to 5 cents  and  postal services were greatly expanded and many towns  received official post offices.  In 1851, when West Williamsburg was granted a post office under the new Act, the residents and officials renamed  the settlement "Morrisburg",  in honour of Sir James Morris. This  compliment to the  Honourable gentleman was in recognition of all of  his efforts  which allowed the village to become established and to grow (the canals and the post office). Morrisburg's first Postmaster, under  the new "Post Office Act", was W.G. Stearns.

   Morrisburg was incorporated as a village in 1860. In 1864, Sir James Morris gifted the sum of $100.00 to the village in appreciation of  the honour paid to him. The gift was to be used to procure a town clock or a bell.  A bell was purchased and placed above the  public school which also served as the meeting place for council.  This bell remained above the public school until the Seaway Project at which time it was removed and placed into storage. The  bell was then presented to Morrisburg Public School by the Women's  Institute and was displayed at the school's entrance  until 1992.  In 1992, the village of Morrisburg erected a clock tower in the shopping plaza. The bell was relocated from Morrisburg Public School  into the clock tower at that time.  This final move completed a  process that had begun 128 years earlier.

Facts  about Sir James Morris:

   Sir James Morris was born in Paisley, Scotland, in 1798 and moved to Canada with his  parents in 1801. First elected to the House of Assembly, Upper Canada, in 1837 as a "Reformer" from Leeds County, he became a  commissioner for the improvement of navigation of the St. Lawrence  River in 1838. He was elected member for Leeds County in the  United  Canada Parliament in 1841 and was appointed to the Legislative Council in 1844.  In 1851, Morris was appointed to  the Executive Council and also appointed as Canada's First  Postmaster-General in the same year.  He was speaker of the  House in 1853-1854 and was government director on The Grand Trunk Railroad from 1852-1854.  He was speaker of the Legislative  Council in 1858 and was Receiver General for Canada in 1862-1863. Sir James Morris died in Brockville, Leeds County, Ontario, in 1865.
 
Ref:Burpee, L.J.; The Makers of Canada Series, The Oxford Encyclopedia of Canadian History, Oxford - University Press  1926.