You have already found this cache! Master Index    Nearest Caches Old Kenora 1 - Harbourfront by moonsocket (2.5/1.5) N49° 46.042  W94° 29.445 (WGS84) UTM  15U   E 392650  N 5513832 Use waypoint: GC2NP0Z Size: Micro    Hidden on 2/11/2011 In Ontario, Canada Difficulty:     Terrain:

This is the first cache in the Old Kenora Series

Kenora Harbourfront

Pre History of Kenora:
Kenora's future site was in the territory of the Ojibway when the first European, Jacques De Noyon, sighted Lake of the Woods in 1688. Pierre La Vérendrye established a secure French trading post, Fort St. Charles, to the south of present-day Kenora near the current Canada/U.S. border in 1732, and France maintained the post until 1763 when it lost the territory to the British in the Seven Years' War — until then, it was the most northwesterly settlement of New France.

Birth of Kenora's "Harbourfront"
In 1836 the Hudson's Bay Company established a post on Old Fort Island, and in 1861, the Company opened a post on the mainland at Kenora's current location.In 1878, the company surveyed lots for the permanent settlement of Rat Portage ("portage to the country of the muskrat")— the community kept that name until 1905, when it was renamed to Kenora. The name, "Kenora," was coined by combining the first two letters of Keewatin, Norman (two nearby communities) and Rat Portage.

Kenora's "Manitoba roots"
Kenora was once claimed as part of the Province of Manitoba, and there are early references to Rat Portage, Manitoba. There was a long lasting argument between the two provinces known as the Ontario-Manitoba boundary dispute. Each province claimed the town as part of their territory and the dispute lasted from 1870-1884. Although Ottawa had ruled the town part of Manitoba in 1881, the issue was finally taken up with the Privy Council of England whom eventually decided in Ontario's favour. Kenora officially became part of the province of Ontario in 1889. Boundaries were drawn up for the provinces and the Northwest Angle on Lake of the Woods which definitively drew the borders between Ontario, Manitoba, Canada, and Minnesota, U.S.A.

Kenora: Central to Canada.
Gold and the railroad were both important in the community's early history: gold was first discovered in the area in 1850, and by 1893, 20 mines were operating within 24 km (15 mi) of Rat Portage, and the first Canadian ocean-to-ocean train passed through in 1886 on the Canadian Pacific Railway. Later, a highway was built through Kenora in 1932, becoming part of Canada's first coast-to-coast highway in 1943, and then part of the Trans-Canada Highway, placing the community on both of Canada's major transcontinental transportation routes. The original barrier to the completion of the highway concerned the crossing of the Winnipeg River at two locations. The single span arch bridges are among the longest of their type in North America.

Kenora's Resource to Tourism Transition.
Gold, minerals, wood, fish, and many 'resource aplenty'; Kenora began as a hub of resource trade. The logging industry, which was important earlier, declined in the second part of the 20th century as the tourist industry grew, and the last log boom was towed into Kenora in 1985. In 2010, the two largest mills in the community closed, and we demolished. 700 people, roughly 5% of the entire population, were laid off. Kenora currently pursues and aggressive transition toward of tourism and lifestyle economy.

Transformation of the Harbourfront:
Always a tourist and recreation location, and famous for sporting events like sailing, rowing: the Kenora harbourfront has always been a launch pad for exploring Canada's wilderness, by boat, and then plane. The harbourfront has undergone many redevelopments over the years. Most recently, major reconstruction of the entire infrastructure has been undertaken. Phase 1 occurred in 1986, and included the construction and upgrades to the docking, parking, and the pavilion. Phase 2 is currently underway, and is set to expand the docking ability of the harbor, and create a more permanent infrastructure for the dozens of events that occur down at the harbourfront each year. As well, and more pedestrian friendly route from the harbourfront to the tunnel island trails will be crated, among other upgrades,. Kenora's harbourfront thrives, and will continue to do so long into the future.

- Portions of text adapted from Wikipedia.org listing for "Kenora"

Phase 2 development plans