Ontario

Encyclopedia : O : ON : ONT : Ontario

For other uses, see (disambiguation)}}}.

Geography

Ontario is bounded on the north by Hudson Bay and James Bay, on the east by Quebec, on the west by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York. Ontario's long American border is formed almost entirely by lakes and rivers, starting in Lake of the Woods and continuing to the Saint Lawrence River near Cornwall; it passes through the four Great Lakes Ontario shares with bordering states, namely Lakes Superior, Huron (which includes Georgian Bay), Erie, and Ontario (for which the province is named; the name Ontario itself is a corruption of the Iroquois word "Onitariio" meaning "beautiful lake" or "Kanadario," variously translated as "beautiful water"). There are approximately 250,000 lakes and over 100,000 kilometres (62,000 mi) of rivers in the province.

The province consists of three main geographical regions:

• the thinly populated Canadian Shield in the northwestern and central portions, a mainly infertile area rich in minerals and studded with lakes and rivers; sub-regions are Northwestern Ontario and Northeastern Ontario.
• the mostly unpopulated Hudson Bay Lowlands in the extreme north and northeast, mainly swampy and sparsely forested; and
• the temperate, and therefore most populous region, the fertile Great Lakes-Saint Lawrence Valley in the south where agriculture and industry are concentrated. Southern Ontario is further sub-divided into four regions; Southwestern Ontario (parts of which formerly referred to as Western Ontario), Golden Horseshoe (includes capital Toronto), Central Ontario and Eastern Ontario.

Bruce peninsula

Despite the absence of any mountainous terrain in the province, there are upland regions within the Canadian Shield which traverses the province from northwest to southeast and above the Niagara Escarpment in the south. The highest point is Ishpatina Ridge at 693m above sea level located in Northeastern Ontario.

The Carolinian forest zone covers most of the southwestern section, its northern extent is part of the Greater Toronto Area at the western end of Lake Ontario. The most significant geographic feature in the south is the Niagara Escarpment which flows from Niagara Falls to Tobermory. The Saint Lawrence Seaway allows navigation to and from the Atlantic Ocean as far inland as Thunder Bay in Northwestern Ontario. Northern Ontario occupies roughly 85% of the surface area of the province; conversely Southern Ontario contains 94% of the population (see article Geography of Canada).

Point Pelee National Park is a peninsula in southwestern Ontario (near Windsor, Ontario and Detroit, Michigan) that extends into Lake Erie and is the part of Canada's mainland furthest south. Pelee Island in Lake Erie is even further south. Both are south of 42°N – slightly further south than the northern border of California.

Demographics

Population of Ontario since 1851

Ethnic Groups

The information regarding ethnicities below is from the [2001 Canadian Census]. The percentages add to more than 100% because of dual responses (e.g. "French-Canadian" generates an entry in both the category "French" and the category "Canadian".) Groups with greater than 200,000 responses are included.

The major Religious Groups in Ontario are:

• 34.9% Protestant
• 34.7% Roman Catholic
• 3.1% Muslim
• 2.7% other Christian
• 2.3% Orthodox
• 1.9% Hindu
• 1.7% Jewish
• 1.1% Buddhist
• 0.9% Sikh
• 16.7% other, non-professing

10 largest Census Metropolitan Areas (CMA's) by population

Statistics Canada's measure of a "metro area", the Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) roughly bundles together population figures from the core municipality with those from "commuter" municipalities. [link]

CMA (largest other included municipalities in brackets)	2005 (est.)	2001
Toronto CMA (Mississauga, Brampton)	5,304,100	4,883,800
Ottawa–Gatineau CMA, Ontario part (Clarence-Rockland, Russell)	870,616	806,096
Hamilton CMA (Burlington, Grimsby)	714,900	689,200
London CMA (St. Thomas, Strathroy-Caradoc)	464,300	449,600
Kitchener CMA (Cambridge, Waterloo)	458,600	431,300
St. Catharines–Niagara CMA (Niagara Falls, Welland)	396,900	391,700
Oshawa CMA (Whitby, Clarington)	340,300	308,500
Windsor CMA (Lakeshore, LaSalle)	332,300	320,800
Barrie CA (Innisfil, Springwater)	165,000	148,480
Greater Sudbury CMA (Whitefish Lake & Wahnapitei Reserves)	161,100	161,500

10 largest municipalities by population

City	2001	1996
Toronto (provincial capital)	2,481,494	2,385,421
Ottawa (national capital)	808,391	721,136
Mississauga (part of Greater Toronto)	612,925	544,382
Hamilton	499,268	467,799
London	336,539	325,669
Brampton (part of Greater Toronto)	325,428	268,251
Markham (part of Greater Toronto)	208,615	173,383
Windsor	208,402	197,694
Kitchener	190,399	178,420
Vaughan (part of Greater Toronto)	182,022	132,549

Climate

Enjoying summer at Sandbanks Provincial Park on Lake Ontario.

Southern Ontario's climate is humid continental (Koppen climate classification Dfa-Dfb), with relatively hot, humid summers and cold winters. It is considered a temperate climate when compared with most of Canada. In the summer, the air masses often come out of the southern United States, as the stronger the Bermuda high pressure ridges into the North American continent, the more warm, humid air is transported northward from the Gulf of Mexico. Throughout the year, but especially in the fall and winter, temperatures are moderated somewhat by the Great Lakes, making it considerably milder than northern Ontario and similar latitudes in the continent's interior. Both spring and fall are generally pleasantly mild with cool nights.

The open lakes result in lake effect snow squalls on the eastern and southern shores of the lakes, which affect much of the Georgian Bay shoreline including Killarney, Parry Sound District, Muskoka and Simcoe County; the Lake Huron shore from east of Sarnia northward to the Bruce Peninsula, somtimes reaching London. Wind-whipped snow squalls or lake effect snow can affect areas as far as 100 kilometres (62 mi) or greater from the shore, but the heaviest snows usually occur within 20 kilometres (12 mi) from the shoreline.

Northern Ontario has a more extreme continental climate (Koppen Dfb-Dfc) with long, very cold winters and short, warm to hot summers. In the summer, hot weather occasionally reaches even the northernmost parts of Ontario, although humidity is generally lower than in the south. With no major mountain ranges blocking Arctic air masses, winters are generally very cold, especially in the far north and northwest (where a subarctic climate is found). The snow stays on the ground much longer in the region too; the first snowfall often comes in October and the last snow can come as late as May. The climate is moderated considerably on the east shore of Lake Superior, another snowbelt exists there.

Severe thunderstorms peak in frequency in June and July in most of the province, although in southern Ontario they can happen anytime from March to November due to the collision of cold Arctic air and warm Gulf air. The most severe weather prone regions are southwestern and central Ontario, much of them resulting from the Lake Breeze Front [1]. London has the most lightning strikes per year, and is also one of the most active areas for storms, in Canada. Tornadoes are also common throughout the province, especially in the southwestern part, although they are rarely destructive, the vast majority are classified as F0 or F1 on the Fujita Scale. In northern Ontario, some tornadoes go undetected by ground spotters due to the sparse population; however destruction to forests seen by aircraft pilots after the event is often how they are spotted.

Toronto: Canada's largest metropolis

Economy

This steady supply of electricity production along with an abundance of natural resources and an excellent transportation link to the American heartland, has contributed to making manufacturing the principal industry, found mainly in the Golden Horseshoe region, the most industrialized area in Canada. Important products include motor vehicles, iron, steel, food, electrical appliances, machinery, chemicals, and paper. Ontario surpassed the American state of Michigan in car production, assembling 2.696 million vehicles in 2004 (see Canada-United States Automotive Agreement).

However, as a result of steeply declining sales, on November 21, 2005, General Motors announced massive layoffs at production facilities across North America including two large GM plants in Oshawa and a drive train facility in St. Catharines which by 2008 will result in 8,000 job losses in Ontario alone. Subsequently in January 23, 2006 money losing Ford Motor Co. announced between 25,000 and 30,000 layoffs phased until 2012, Ontario was spared the worst, but job losses were announced for the St. Thomas facility and the Windsor casting plant. These losses will be offset by Ford's recent announcement of a hybrid vehicle facility slated to begin production in 2007 at its Oakville plant. Toyota also announced its plans to build a RAV-4 production facility in Woodstock by 2008 and Honda also has plans to add an engine plant at its large facility in Alliston.

Some economists believe that the North American Free Trade Agreement has contributed to a decline in manufacturing in part of North America's manufacturing "Rust Belt" that includes a portion of Southern Ontario from roughly Windsor east to St. Catharines (50km south of Toronto). This area and the Greater Toronto region contain the bulk of the auto sector in the province. The biggest contributing factor is the increased globalization and particularly the increasing manufacturing power from China that has led to the de-industrialization of Ontario and the gradual shift to a dominant service-oriented economy. These factors considered, Ontario still remains an industrial giant within North America.

Toronto, the capital of Ontario, is the centre of Canada's financial services and banking industry. Suburban cities in the Greater Toronto Area like Brampton and Mississauga are large product distribution centres, in addition to having automobile related industries. The information technology sector is also important, especially in Markham, Waterloo and Ottawa. Hamilton is the largest steel manufacturing centre and Sarnia is the centre for the petrochemical production. Construction employs at least 7% of the work force, but due to undocumented workers this figure is likely over 10%. This sector has thrived over the last ten years due to steadily increasing new house and condominium construction combined with low mortgage rates and climbing prices, particularly in the Greater Toronto area. Mining and the forest products industry, notably pulp and paper, are vital to the economy of Northern Ontario. More than any other region, tourism contributes heavily to the economy of Central Ontario, peaking during the summer months owing to the abundance of fresh water recreation and wilderness found there in reasonable proximity to the major urban centres. At other times of the year, hunting, skiing and snowmobiling are among the out of high-season draws. This region has some of the most vibrant fall colour displays anywhere on the continent and tours directed at overseas visitors are organized to see them. Tourism also plays a key role in border cities with large casinos, among them Windsor and Niagara Falls which attract many US visitors.

Nominal Gross Domestic Product in 2003 was an estimated C$494.229 billion (40.6% of the Canadian total), larger than the GDP of Austria, Belgium or Sweden. Broken down by sector, the primary sector is 1.8% of total GDP, secondary sector 28.5%, and service sector 69.7%.

Further economic information on provincial GDP etc. at [Ontario Facts]

Transportation

400-Series Highways, including one of North America’s busiest, Highway 401 make up the primary vehicular network in the south of province and they connect to numerous border crossings with US, the busiest being the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel. Other provincial highways, the Trans-Canada highway and regional roads inter-connect the remainder of the province.

Via Rail operates the inter-regional passenger train service on the Quebec City-Windsor Corridor. In addition Amtrak rail connects Ontario with US destinations, including Chicago and New York. Ontario Northland provides rail service to destinations as far north as Moosonee near James Bay, connecting them with the south. Freight rail is dominated by the founding cross-country CN and CP rail companies, which during the 1990s sold many short rail lines from their vast network to private companies operating mostly in the south. Regional Commuter rail is limited to the provincially owned GO Transit, which serves a train/bus network spanning the Golden Horseshoe region, its hub in Toronto. The TTC in Toronto operates the provinces only subway and streetcar system, the second busiest in North America. Outside of Toronto, the O-Train LRT line operates in Ottawa with ongoing expansion of the current line and proposals for additional lines.

Lester B. Pearson International Airport is the nation's busiest airport, handling approximately 30 million passengers per year. Other important airports include Ottawa International Airport and John C. Munro International Airport in Hamilton, which is also an important courier and freight aviation centre.

Many far northern destinations, mostly aboriginal communities that are beyond the existing road and rail network are accessible only by air.

Professional Sports

• Toronto Maple Leafs
• Ottawa Senators

• Toronto Blue Jays

• Toronto Marlies
• Hamilton Bulldogs

• Ottawa Lynx

• Toronto Argonauts
• Hamilton Tiger-Cats
• Ottawa Renegades Suspended before the 2006 season

• Toronto Raptors

• Toronto Rock

• Toronto FC, expansion team to begin play in 2007.

Agriculture

History

Pre-1867

Map of Ontario, showing CMA's and CA's

American troops in the War of 1812 invaded Upper Canada across the Niagara River and the Detroit River but were successfully pushed back by British and Native American forces. The Americans gained control of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, however, and during the Battle of York occupied the Town of York (later named Toronto) in 1813. Not able to hold the town, the departing soldiers burned it to the ground.

After the War of 1812, relative stability allowed for increasing numbers of immigrants arriving from the British Isles. From a mostly agrarian based society canal projects spurred on greater trade within the colony and later with the United States, despite the recent conflict.

As the population began to increase, many in the colony began to chafe against the aristocratic Family Compact that governed while benefitting economically from the regions resources, much as the Château Clique ruled Lower Canada. Accordingly, rebellion in favour of responsible government rose in both regions; Louis-Joseph Papineau led the Lower Canada Rebellion and William Lyon Mackenzie led the Upper Canada Rebellion. For more on the rebellions of 1837, see History of Canada.

Although both rebellions were crushed in short order, the British government sent Lord Durham to investigate the causes of the unrest. He recommended that self-government be granted and that Lower and Upper Canada be re-joined in an attempt to assimilate the French Canadians. Accordingly, the two colonies were merged into the Province of Canada by the Act of Union (1840), with Ontario becoming known as Canada West. Parliamentary self-government was granted in 1848. Due to heavy immigration the population of Canada West more than doubled by 1851 over the previous decade, and as a result for the first time the English-speaking population of Canada West surpassed the French-speaking population of Canada East tilting the representative balance of power.

An economic boom in the 1850s coincided with railway expansion across the province further increasing the economic strength of Central Canada.

A political stalemate between the French- and English-speaking legislators, as well as fear of aggression from the United States during the American Civil War, led the political elite to hold a series of conferences in the 1860s to effect a broader federal union of all British North American colonies. The British North America Act took effect on July 1, 1867, establishing the Dominion of Canada, initially with four provinces: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec and Ontario. The Province of Canada was divided at this point into Ontario and Quebec so that each linguistic group would have its own province. Both Quebec and Ontario were required by section 93 of the BNA Act to safeguard existing educational rights and privileges of the Protestant and Catholic minorities. Thus, separate Catholic schools and school boards were permitted in Ontario. However, neither province had a constitutional requirement to protect its French- or English-speaking minority. Toronto was formally established as Ontario's provincial capital at this time.

From 1867 to 1896

Beginning with Sir John A. Macdonald's the National Policy (1879) and the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway (1875-1885) through Northern Ontario and the Prairies to British Columbia, Ontario manufacturing and industry flourished.

From 1896 to the present

In July 1912, the Conservative government of Sir James P. Whitney issued Regulation 17 which severely limited the availability of French-language schooling to the province's French-speaking minority. French-Canadians reacted with outrage, journalist Henri Bourassa denouncing the "Prussians of Ontario". It was eventually repealed in 1927.

Influenced by events in the United States, the government of Sir William Hearst introduced prohibition of alcoholic drinks in 1916 with the passing of the Ontario Temperance Act. Prohibition came to an end in 1927 with the establishment of the Liquor Control Board of Ontario by the government of George Howard Ferguson. The sale and consumption of liquor, wine, and beer are still controlled by some of the most extreme laws in North America to ensure that strict community standards and revenue generation from the alcohol retail monopoly are upheld.

The post-World War II period was one of exceptional prosperity and growth. Ontario, and the Greater Toronto Area in particular, have been the recipients of most immigration to Canada. Changes in federal immigration law have led to a massive influx of non-Europeans since the 1980s. From a largely ethnically British province, Ontario has now become very culturally diverse.

The nationalist movement in Quebec, particularly after the election of the Parti Québécois in 1976, contributed to driving many businesses out of Quebec to Ontario, and Toronto surpassed Montreal as the largest city and economic centre of Canada.

Ontario has no official language, but English is considered the de facto language. Numerous French language services are available under the French Language Services Act of 1990.

• Timeline of Ontario history

Government

The older logo of the Government of Ontario

The British North America Act 1867 section 69 stipulated "There shall be a Legislature for Ontario consisting of the Lieutenant Governor and of One House, styled the Legislative Assembly of Ontario." The assembly has 103 seats representing ridings elected in a first-past-the-post system across the province. The legislative buildings at Queen's Park in Toronto are the seat of government. Following the Westminster system, the leader of the party currently holding the most seats in the assembly is known as the "Premier and President of the Council" (Executive Council Act R.S.O. 1990). The Premier chooses the cabinet or Executive Council whose members are deemed "ministers of the Crown." Although the Legislative Assembly Act (R.S.O. 1990) refers to members of the assembly, the legislators are now commonly called MPPs (Members of the Provincial Parliament) in English and députés de l'Assemblée législative in French, but they have also been called MLAs (Members of the Legislative Assembly), and both are acceptable. The title of Prime Minister of Ontario, while permissible in English and correct in French (le Premier ministre), is generally avoided in favour of "Premier" to avoid confusion with the Prime Minister of Canada.

Politics

Currently Ontario is under a Liberal government headed by Premier Dalton McGuinty.

Federally, Ontario is known as being the province that offers the strongest support for the Liberal Party of Canada. The majority of the party's present 101 seats in the Canadian House of Commons represent Ontario ridings. As the province has the most seats of any province in Canada, earning support from Ontario voters is considered a crucial matter for any party hoping to win a Canadian Federal Election.

Territorial evolution 1788-1899

In 1792, the four districts were renamed: Hesse became the Western District, Lunenburg became the Eastern District, Mecklenburg became the Midland District, and Nassau became the Home District. Counties were created within the districts.

By 1798, there were eight districts: Eastern, Home, Johnstown, London, Midland, Newcastle, Niagara, and Western.

By 1826, there were eleven districts: Bathurst, Eastern, Gore, Home, Johnstown, London, Midland, Newcastle, Niagara, Ottawa, and Western.

By 1838, there were twenty districts: Bathurst, Brock, Colbourne, Dalhousie, Eastern, Gore, Home, Huron, Johnstown, London, Midland, Newcastle, Niagara, Ottawa, Prince Edward, Simcoe, Talbot, Victoria, Wellington, and Western.

In 1849, the districts of southern Ontario were abolished by the Province of Canada and county governments took over certain municipal responsibilities. The Province of Canada also began creating districts in sparsely populated Northern Ontario with the establishment of Algoma District and Nipissing District in 1858.

The northern and western boundaries of Ontario were in dispute after Confederation. Ontario's right to Northwestern Ontario was determined by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in 1884 and confirmed by the Canada (Ontario Boundary) Act, 1889 of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. By 1899, there were seven northern districts: Algoma, Manitoulin, Muskoka, Nipissing, Parry Sound, Rainy River, and Thunder Bay. Four more northern districts were created between 1907 and 1912: Cochrane, Kenora, Sudbury and Timiskaming.

• [Early Districts and Counties 1788-1899]

• List of Ontario counties (current census divisions)

See also

• Canada
• Franco-Ontarian
• List of Ontario-related topics
• Legislative Assembly of Ontario
• Lieutenant-Governors of Ontario
• List of botanical gardens in Canada
• List of Ontario premiers
• List of Canadian poets
• List of communities in Ontario
• List of Ontario counties (census divisions)
• List of cities in Canada

• Coat of Arms of Ontario
• Flag of Ontario
• List of Ontario Universities
• Ontario Academic Credit
• List of Canadian provincial and territorial symbols
• List of Ontario Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology
• Northern Ontario
• Northwestern Ontario
• Ontario Court of Appeal
• Ontario Superior Court of Justice
• Order of Ontario
• Scouting in Ontario

References

• Michael Sletcher, 'Ottawa', in James Ciment, ed., Colonial America: An Encyclopedia of Social, Political, Cultural, and Economic History, (5 vols., M. E. Sharpe, New York, 2006).

External links

• [Government of Ontario]
• [Tourism Ontario]
• [Historic Bridges in Ontario]. Features numerous photos, detailed information, and maps.
• [Map]
• [Ontario MPP Contact Information]
• [CBC Digital Archives - Ontario Elections: Twenty Tumultuous Years]

[[zh-min-nan:Ontario]]

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