Ontario

I

Introduction

Ontario, one of the central provinces of Canada, bordered on the north by Hudson Bay and James Bay, on the east by Quebec, on the south-east by the American state of New York, on the south by Lakes Ontario, Erie, Huron, and Superior and the American state of Michigan, on the south-west by the American state of Minnesota, and on the west by Manitoba. The Ottawa River forms part of the eastern boundary, the St Lawrence and Niagara rivers part of the south-eastern boundary, the St Mary's, St Clair, and Detroit rivers part of the southern boundary, and the Rainy River part of the south-western boundary.

Ontario became part of the Canadian Confederation on July 1, 1867, as one of the four original provinces. It had been known as the province of Upper Canada (1791-1841) and from 1841 to 1867 was united with Quebec into one province. The province's name is derived from an Iroquois term perhaps meaning “beautiful lake”, a reference to Lake Ontario, or “rocks standing by the water”, a reference to Niagara Falls.

II

Land and Resources

Ontario is the second-largest province in Canada; only Quebec is larger. Ontario covers 1,068,580 sq km (412,579 sq mi), of which 177,390 sq km (68,490 sq mi) are inland water surface. The extreme dimensions of Ontario are about 1,610 km (1,000 mi) from east to west and about 1,690 km (1,050 mi) from north to south. The highest elevation in the province is 693 m (2,275 ft), at Ishpatina Ridge, near Haileybury; the lowest elevation, sea level, occurs at James Bay and at Hudson Bay. Ontario has a shoreline of some 7,600 km (4,725 mi) along four of the five Great Lakes and of some 1,210 km (752 mi) along Hudson and James bays.

A

Physical Geography

Ontario can be divided into four geographic regions that are of unequal size—the Canadian Shield, the Hudson Bay Lowland, the Great Lakes Lowland, and the St Lawrence Lowland. The Canadian Shield region covers about two-thirds of the province. It is underlain by ancient Precambrian igneous and metamorphic rocks, which are the source of most of the mineral wealth of Ontario. The average elevation in the Canadian Shield region is about 305 m (1,000 ft), but peaks reach above 660 m (2,165 ft) in the rugged area north and east of Sault Sainte Marie. The region slopes gently to the north, where it is overlain by flat-lying sedimentary rocks of the Hudson Bay Lowland.

A south-eastern extension of the Canadian Shield separates the St Lawrence and the Great Lakes lowlands, both of which are underlain by flat sedimentary Palaeozoic limestones, shales, and sandstones. The St Lawrence Lowland is less than 91 m (300 ft) high and is part of the sand and clay plains that extend along the St Lawrence River into Quebec. The most dramatic features of the Great Lakes Lowland are the east-facing cliffs of the Niagara escarpment, which extends from Niagara Falls through the Bruce Peninsula to Manitoulin Island.

The rivers and lakes of Ontario form two large drainage systems—one trending north to Hudson and James bays and one south to the Great Lakes and the St Lawrence River. The province’s principal rivers include the Severn, Winisk, Attawapiskat, Albany, Abitibi, Ottawa, French, Grand, and Thames. The Niagara River, between Lakes Erie and Ontario, flows over the Niagara Falls. The Rideau Canal connects Lake Ottawa at Kingston to the Ottawa River at Ottawa. Parts of four of the Great Lakes are located within Ontario’s borders.

B

Climate

Ontario covers a large area and has a wide range of climates, which can be grouped into two main regions—an arctic and subarctic climate area in the north and a humid continental zone in the south. Trout Lake, in the north, has a mean January temperature of -24.1° C (-11.4° F) and a mean July temperature of 15.9° C (60.6° F), and Toronto, in the south-east, has a mean January temperature of -4.4° C (24° F) and a mean July temperature of 21.8° C (71.2° F). The south-eastern part of Ontario gets about 915 mm (36 in) of precipitation per year, and the remainder of the province gets up to about 635 mm (25 in) annually.