"Canada's Canal" Built in Fear of Invading U.S. Celebrates 175th Anniversary
This year marks the 175th anniversary of the opening of the Rideau Canal, North America's oldest continuously operating waterway.
The Rideau Canal National Historic Site of Canada is a 202 km (125 miles) corridor of beautiful rivers, lakes and engineered canals linking the towns and cities of Eastern Ontario. It is North America’s oldest continuously operating waterway.
At the time it was proposed, shortly after the War of 1812, there remained a persistent threat of attack from the United States on Britain's colony of Upper Canada. To impede and deter any future American invasions, the British built various forts (eg. Citadel Hill, La Citadelle, and Fort Henry) and canals (eg. Grenville Canal, Chute-a-Blondeau Canal, Carillon Canal, and the Rideau Canal) to defend their territory.
The canal's initial purpose was military - to provide a secure supply and communications route between Montreal and Kingston, Ontario. Westward from Montreal, travel would proceed along the Ottawa River to Bytown (now Ottawa), then southwest via the canal to Kingston and out into Lake Ontario (and vice versa for eastward travel from Kingston to Montreal). The intent being to bypass the stretch of the St. Lawrence River bordering New York State which would have left British supply ships vulnerable to attack or a blockade of the St. Lawrence.
No further military engagements have taken place between Canada and the United States since the war of 1812, and consequently the Rideau Canal was never used for its intended purpose.
These days the canal is a National Historic Site, a Canadian Heritage River and is currently nominated by Canada as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
There is a wide-ranging list of activities and events that will take place throughout the Rideau corridor in 2007. A special website has been established to inform about some of these activities and events:
http://www.rideau175.org/index.html
By the way, in Ottawa, the Rideau Canal becomes the world’s largest skating rink every winter. It's still cold enough to grab your skates and for a unique experience.
The cleared area is 7.8 kilometres (4.8 miles) long and has the equivalent surface area of 90 Olympic hockey rinks. It runs from the locks at Carleton University to the locks between the Parliament Buildings and the Chateau Laurier. It serves as a popular tourist attraction and recreational area and is also the focus of the Winterlude festival in Ottawa. Beaver Tails, a fried dough pastry pastry, are sold along with other snacks and beverages, in kiosks on the skateway.
For skating conditions on the canal and more about the canal in the Nation's Capital, see:
http://www.canadascapital.gc.ca/bins/ncc_web_content_page.asp?cid=16297-16299-10080&lang=1
The Rideau Canal National Historic Site of Canada is a 202 km (125 miles) corridor of beautiful rivers, lakes and engineered canals linking the towns and cities of Eastern Ontario. It is North America’s oldest continuously operating waterway.
At the time it was proposed, shortly after the War of 1812, there remained a persistent threat of attack from the United States on Britain's colony of Upper Canada. To impede and deter any future American invasions, the British built various forts (eg. Citadel Hill, La Citadelle, and Fort Henry) and canals (eg. Grenville Canal, Chute-a-Blondeau Canal, Carillon Canal, and the Rideau Canal) to defend their territory.
The canal's initial purpose was military - to provide a secure supply and communications route between Montreal and Kingston, Ontario. Westward from Montreal, travel would proceed along the Ottawa River to Bytown (now Ottawa), then southwest via the canal to Kingston and out into Lake Ontario (and vice versa for eastward travel from Kingston to Montreal). The intent being to bypass the stretch of the St. Lawrence River bordering New York State which would have left British supply ships vulnerable to attack or a blockade of the St. Lawrence.
No further military engagements have taken place between Canada and the United States since the war of 1812, and consequently the Rideau Canal was never used for its intended purpose.
These days the canal is a National Historic Site, a Canadian Heritage River and is currently nominated by Canada as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
There is a wide-ranging list of activities and events that will take place throughout the Rideau corridor in 2007. A special website has been established to inform about some of these activities and events:
http://www.rideau175.org/index.html
By the way, in Ottawa, the Rideau Canal becomes the world’s largest skating rink every winter. It's still cold enough to grab your skates and for a unique experience.
The cleared area is 7.8 kilometres (4.8 miles) long and has the equivalent surface area of 90 Olympic hockey rinks. It runs from the locks at Carleton University to the locks between the Parliament Buildings and the Chateau Laurier. It serves as a popular tourist attraction and recreational area and is also the focus of the Winterlude festival in Ottawa. Beaver Tails, a fried dough pastry pastry, are sold along with other snacks and beverages, in kiosks on the skateway.
For skating conditions on the canal and more about the canal in the Nation's Capital, see:
http://www.canadascapital.gc.ca/bins/ncc_web_content_page.asp?cid=16297-16299-10080&lang=1
posted by eric model | 12:14 AM
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