Rideau Canal 1826-1832

and

The Rideau Waterway

There are two plaques about this canal.
The first is in the County of Frontenac.
The second is in the County of Lanark.
Both can be seen on this page.

Photo by Alan L Brown - Posted June, 2004

Photo by contributor Geoff Chalcraft - September, 2007

Plaque Location

The County of Frontenac
The City of Kingston
On the south side of Kingston Mills Road
just west of the bridge over the Rideau Canal

Coordinates: N 44 17.563 W 76 26.590

Plaque Text

Financed by the British government, on the Duke of Wellington's advice, it was built to provide a secure military route between Upper and Lower Canada. Work was supervised by military engineers commanded by Lieut. Colonel John By whose technical ability and perseverance overcame many obstacles. Many of his Irish emigrant labourers died of a virulent fever. Traversing 203 km of largely unsettled country between Kingston and Bytown (now Ottawa), and including 47 locks, the canal was opened May 24, 1832.

Photo by Alan L Brown - Posted June, 2004

Photo Source - Wikimedia Commons

Plaque Location

The County of Lanark
The Town of Smiths Falls
In Victoria Park, on the north side of Lombard Street (Highway 15)
across from Aberdeen Street, 2 blocks west of Beckwith Street

Coordinates: N 44 53.755 W 76 01.384

Plaque Text

Constructed 1826-32 by the British government for military purposes, but used principally for commerce, the Rideau waterway, together with the lower Ottawa River, was the first canalized route from Montreal to the Great Lakes. Although eastbound traffic continued to use the St. Lawrence, westbound traffic, including many thousands of immigrants, utilized the new route to avoid the hazards and delays of upstream navigation on that river. With the completion, in 1846, of the St. Lawrence canals, use of the Rideau as a commercial thoroughfare declined sharply. However, it remained vitally important to the region by providing its agriculture and industry with economic access to markets. In time the Rideau became one of Ontario's major recreational waterways.

Related Ontario plaque
Lieutenant-Colonel John By, R.E.

More
Information

More
Canals

Here are the visitors' comments for this page.

(none yet)

Here's where you can write a comment for this page.

Note: If you wish to ask me a question, please use the email link in the menu.

Note: Comments are moderated. Yours will appear on this page within 24 hours
(usually much sooner).