Ontario
"Loyal She Began, Loyal She Remains"
Ontario is a magnet for industry, the arts and science. The population is made up of many cultural backgrounds drawn to this vibrant province. Ontario is a study of contrasts. In summer, the temperatures can soar above 86 degrees fahrenheit, while in the winter they can drop to below 40 degrees fahrenheit. The varied landscape includes the vast, rocky and mineral-rich Canadian Shield, which separates the fertile farmland in the south and the grassy lowlands of the north. There are over 250,000 lakes in Ontario - they make up about 1/3 of the world's fresh water. Ontario's industries range from cultivating crops, to mining minerals, to manufacturing automobiles, to designing software and leading edge technology. Cultures from around the world thrive and are celebrated in Ontario with festivals such as Caribana (West Indian) and Oktoberfest (German).
Some Facts...
-Ontario is one of the provinces in Eastern Canada
-It is the second-largest province.
-Quebec is east, Manitoba is west, Great Lakes are south, Hudson Bay and James Bay are north.
-Ontario's capital city is Toronto. Toronto has a large financial district and the stock exchange.
-Ottawa, the capital of Canada, is in southern Ontario.
-flower - Trillium, tree - Eastern White Pine, bird -Common Loon
-The Iroquoians called Ontario "Kanadario" meaning "sparkling water."
-Ontario's motto is "Loyal she began, loyal she remains".
Picture: Common Loon- Ontario's Provincial Bird
by Robert Scholl 2006
www.schollphoto.com/
Flag
Act of Legislature assented to April 14, 1965
Queen Elizabeth II's approval of use of Royal Union flag given on May 11, 1965
Flag raised on May 21, 1965
www.canadianheritage.gc.ca/.../atc-ac/on_e.cfm
The People
-The first people were the Huron, Iroquois, Neutral, Ojibwa, Cree, Ottawa, Nipissin, and Algonquin.
-Ontario is the home of over 12 million people. (12,541,400 in 2005)
-Most of the people live in the southern part of the province.
-The largest city is Toronto with 5.3 million people.(2005)
-Over half of the people in Toronto were born in other countries.
-Many are of Italian, German, Chinese, Portuguese, Indian, Polish and Caribbean origin.
-Some other cities are Ottawa, London, Thunder Bay and Hamilton.
Picture: Toronto Skyline
onfooddrinkandmeat.blogspot.com/2008/07/toron...
Resources/Industry
-mining: zinc, nickel, platinum, uranium, oil, natural gas, copper, gold, silver, iron ore
-main producer of nickel, cobalt, salt, and magnesium in Canada
-steel mills; factories make automobiles and auto parts
-large pulp and paper industry (the second largest in Canada)
-Newsprint is sold to other parts of the world.
-grain farms, fruit and vegetable farms, livestock and dairy farms
-Canada's leading producer of fruit and vegetables
-vineyards and wineries
Picture: Pouring Slag. Dofasco Mill. Burlington, Pntario. February, 2005
www.luminous-landscape.com/galleries/featured...
Water and Land
-Four of the five Great Lakes are in Ontario. (Superior, Huron, Erie, Ontario)
-St. Lawrence River and the Ottawa River are names of two long rivers.
-Water covers about one-sixth of the province. There are 250,000 lakes.
-Forests cover two-thirds of Ontario.
-Ontario is divided into three regions :
Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Lowlands, Canadian Shield and Hudson Bay Lowlands:
-Hudson Bay Lowlands : wetlands and small bushes
-Candian Shield : rocky with forests, minerals and water (hyrdo-electric power)
-Hudson Bay Lowlands and the Shield cover 90 percent of Ontario.
-Great Lakes-St.Lawrence Lowlands : good soil for farming
-Niagara Falls (a part of the Niagara River) is in Ontario.
-In one second Niagara Falls pours out enough water to fill two large swimming pools.
-In 1959, the St. Lawrence Seaway was opened. The seaway links the Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean.
Picture: Resort on Lake of the Woods, Ontario
www.indianheadlodge.com/
Important People and Events
-Dr.Roberta Bondar became Canada's first female astronaut. She spent 8 days in orbit on the space shuttle Discovery (1992).
-Banting and Best developed insulin, a drug for people with diabetes. They received the Nobel Prize in 1923.
-J.Naismith invented the game of basketball. He used peach baskets at first.
-Emily Stow became the first woman doctor in Canada in 1867.
-Wayne Gretsky the famous hockey player came from Brantford.
-Barbara Ann Scott (born in Ottawa) won an Olympic gold medal in figure skating (1948).
-Marilyn Bell (born in Toronto) was the first to swim Lake Ontario at age 16 (1954). She was also the youngest to swim the English Channel.
-Pauline Johnson, a native poet, was born near Brantford.
-Karen Kain, a famous ballerina, was born in Hamilton.
-Actors/comedians Dan Aykroyd and Jim Carrey were born in Ontario.
-Singer/songwriter Alanis Morissette was born in Ottawa.
Picture:Wayne Gretzky skating for the Canadian ice hockey team during the 1998 Winter Olympic Games, Nagano, Japan.© Doug Pensinger—Allsport/Getty Images
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History
-The Ojibwa, Nipissing and Algonquin lived in the north.
-The Huron, Neutral, Petun and Mississauga lived in the south.
-French explorer named Brule lived with the Hurons.
-Jesuit missionaries came in 1639 and set up missions.
-Forts were build by the French.
-Loyalists fled the U.S. in 1781 and settled on the north shore of Lake Ontario.
-The land was divided into Upper Canada (Ont.) and Lower Canada (Que.).
-York (now Toronto) became the capital of Upper Canada.
-Ontario became a province in 1867.
-During WW1 manufacturing grew in Ontario.
-After WWII the automobile industry grew.
Picture: Ojibwa individuals wearing traditional regalia, c. 1875–1900.
Marilyn Angel Wynn/Nativestock Pictures
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