Cutting Across Southern Ontario—From Dundalk, Just West of Georgian Bay to Port Maitland on the North Shore of Lake Erie—The
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The WCA thanks the Ontario Trillium Foundation for their support of this ‘War of 1812’ Bicentennial commemorative project. VIEWPOINTS utting across southern Ontario—from Dundalk, just west of Georgian Bay to Port Maitland on the north shore C of Lake Erie—the Grand River is not only a striking geographical feature of Central Canada, but it is also historically important, economically vital and socially significant. The river enjoys both a long natural history as well as an extensive cultural history that begins with the end of the last ice age. This series of twelve panels tells the story of the Grand River, including its geology, its history prior to the arrival of Europeans in the 1600s, as well as the significance of the region to the American Revolutionary Wars, the War of Scan to view this panel 1812, and the Industrial Revolution. The Grand River provided not only early transportation for the region but also power for industry. As the Industrial Revolution took hold in Ontario, this part of the province soon became a hub of manufacturing. Companies like Seagram, Massey-Harris (pictured below), Eby, Cockshutt, American Standard, Schneider, Bell and many others became household names. Massey-Harris Company (Brantford). Source: www.masseycollection.ca Before European contact, this part of Ontario was home to many aboriginal populations that lived in harmony with nature and prospered from the bounties provided by the Grand River. The Mississauga and Six Nations—including the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Tuscarora, Cayuga and Seneca—all call the Grand River home. The Grand River, c. 1781 Source: www.warof1812rph.com. As the Napoleonic war raged in Europe and with the United States supporting France, conflict between Britain and the U.S. soon spread to the “New World”, and in June of 1812 war was formally declared between Britain and the United States. Hostilities in the Grand River Watershed followed. War of 1812 Re-enactors. HAMILTONON The Grand River and the communities along all of its tributaries cover almost 7,000 square kilometres in the heart of southwestern Ontario, an area currently settled by almost one million people living in 39 urban and rural municipalities. Map of the Grand River Watershed. Source: Grand River Conservation Authority. The Grand River flowing through Cambridge, Ontario. The Mohawk name for the Grand River, O:se Kenhionhata:tie means ‘Willow River’. The river was named Grande Rivière by the French during the 18th century. It was later renamed Ouse (Our) River by John Graves Simcoe for the Great Ouse River near his home in Lincolnshire..