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116-584: The Walter Bean Grand River Trail (also sometimes shortened as the Walter Bean Trail ) is a 76-kilometre (47 mi) multi-use trail that runs along the Grand River in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo , Ontario, Canada. The trail runs through the cities of Cambridge , Kitchener and Waterloo and is owned and maintained by the cities. It is considered part of the larger Grand Valley Trail ,

232-639: A 250-kilometre (160 mi) route that runs along much of the length of the river. A section of the trail is labelled the Economical Insurance Trailway, spanning from the Waterloo city limits in the north to the start of the Cambridge city limits in the south. The 76-kilometre (47 mi) long Walter Bean Grand River Trail runs along the Grand River . The Grand River serves as the eastern city limits for both Waterloo and northern Kitchener, so therefore

348-475: A Catholic mission settlement just south of Montreal that was occupied primarily by converted Mohawk who had migrated north from New York. In 1674 identifiable groups of Neutrals were recorded among its population. It can be presumed that many of their descendants are still living there today. In later wars between Britain and France, the Caughnawaga people, many of whom had converted to Catholicism, were allies of

464-504: A coastline is impossible to measure exactly . Canada borders approximately 5,200 miles (8,400 km) of coastline, while the remaining 5,300 miles (8,500 km) are bordered by the United States. Michigan has the longest shoreline of the United States, bordering roughly 3,288 miles (5,292 km) of lakes, followed by Wisconsin (820 miles (1,320 km)), New York (473 miles (761 km)), and Ohio (312 miles (502 km)). Traversing

580-516: A desirable canoeing location, especially the stretch between West Montrose and Paris . A number of conservation areas have been established along the river, and are managed by the Grand River Conservation Authority . The Grand Valley Trail stretches 275 km along the river's valley between the town of Dundalk and Lake Erie . In 1669 the indigenous name '' Tinaouatoua'' was recorded by Galinée . A 1945 book about

696-619: A habitat to many aquatic species in a region with much biodiversity . The surrounding region is called the Great Lakes region , which includes the Great Lakes Megalopolis . Major cities within the region include, on the American side, from east to west, Buffalo , Cleveland , Detroit , Chicago , and Milwaukee ; and, on the Canadian side, Toronto , Hamilton and Mississauga . Though

812-682: A high concentration of consecutively dated sites from that period. One especially significant site, the Johnson Flats site ( Borden AgGx-214), is located on a former bar in the Grand River near Caledonia. Discovered in 1994, the site contains materials dating to the Early, Middle, and Late Archaic periods, as well as the later Princess Point complex . The people of the Princess Point complex ( c.  500 CE – 1000 CE) are strongly associated with

928-523: A large watershed via many rivers and contain approximately 35,000 islands. There are also several thousand smaller lakes, often called "inland lakes", within the basin. The surface area of the five primary lakes combined is roughly equal to the size of the United Kingdom, while the surface area of the entire basin (the lakes and the land they drain) is about the size of the UK and France combined. Lake Michigan

1044-577: A local family who were displaced by filling of the dam's reservoir, Lake Belwood . With a watershed area of 7,000 square kilometres (2,700 sq mi), the Grand River flows from Dundalk to Lake Erie with numerous tributaries flowing into it: The Conestogo River joins the Grand at the village of Conestogo just north of Waterloo . The Eramosa River joins the Speed River in Guelph . The Speed River joins

1160-628: A loose confederacy of peoples who moved west in the 1720s, fleeing lands invaded by Iroquois, and settled in present-day Ohio . The Mingo were among tribes who later fought the Americans in the Northwest Indian Wars for the Ohio Valley (1774–95). During the 1840s, they were among the tribes removed to Oklahoma and Indian Territory west of the Mississippi River. Neutral descendants are among

1276-405: A national basis. The total surface area of the lakes is approximately 94,250 square miles (244,100 km )—nearly the same size as the United Kingdom, and larger than the U.S. states of New York , New Jersey , Connecticut , Rhode Island , Massachusetts , Vermont , and New Hampshire combined. The Great Lakes coast measures approximately 10,500 miles (16,900 km), but the length of

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1392-456: A nuisance to industries by clogging pipes. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimated in 2007 that the economic impact of the zebra mussel could be about $ 5 billion over the next decade. The alewife first entered the system west of Lake Ontario via 19th-century canals. By the 1960s, the small silver fish had become a familiar nuisance to beach goers across Lakes Michigan, Huron, and Erie. Periodic mass die-offs result in vast numbers of

1508-575: A patent under the Great Seal, issued by Lieutenant Governor Simcoe, and bearing date January 14, 1793 ... The original extent of the tract was 694,910 acres, but the greater part of this has been since surrendered to the Crown, in trust, to be sold for the benefit of these tribes. And some smaller portions have been either granted in fee simple to purchasers with the assent of the Indians, or have been alienated by

1624-681: A possible reason for a decrease in population of various whitefish , important because of their culinary desirability and, hence, economic consequence. Moreover, between 1879 and 1899, reported whitefish harvests declined from some 24.3 million pounds (11 million kg) to just over 9 million pounds (4 million kg). By 1900, commercial fishermen on Lake Michigan were hauling in an average of 41 million pounds of fish annually. By 1938, Wisconsin's commercial fishing operations were motorized and mechanized, generating jobs for more than 2,000 workers, and hauling 14 million pounds per year. The population of giant freshwater mussels

1740-707: A powerful alliance of five nations based around the Great Lakes in the present central and western New York state area. Caught in between, the Neutrals paid dearly for their refusal to ally. Historical accounts differ on exactly how the Neutral tribe was wiped out. The consensus is that the Seneca and the Mohawk nations of the Iroquois destroyed the smaller Neutral tribe in the 17th century, in

1856-560: A relatively small area of southeast Lake Michigan where savanna or prairie occasionally intruded). Logging, urbanization, and agriculture uses have changed that relationship. In the early 21st century, Lake Superior's shores are 91% forested, Lake Huron 68%, Lake Ontario 49%, Lake Michigan 41%, and Lake Erie, where logging and urbanization has been most extensive, 21%. Some of these forests are second or third growth (i.e. they have been logged before, changing their composition). At least 13 wildlife species are documented as becoming extinct since

1972-483: A season, and can survive poor water quality conditions. The influx of parasitic lamprey populations after the development of the Erie Canal and the much later Welland Canal led to the two federal governments of the United States and Canada working on joint proposals to control it. By the mid-1950s, the lake trout populations of Lakes Michigan and Huron were reduced, with the lamprey deemed largely to blame. This led to

2088-707: A second fault line, the Saint Lawrence rift , formed approximately 570 million years ago, the basis for Lakes Ontario and Erie was created, along with what would become the Saint Lawrence River. The Great Lakes are estimated to have been formed at the end of the Last Glacial Period (the Wisconsin glaciation ended 10,000 to 12,000 years ago), when the Laurentide Ice Sheet receded. The retreat of

2204-619: A small percid fish from Eurasia, became the most abundant fish species in Lake Superior's Saint Louis River within five years of its detection in 1986. Its range, which has expanded to Lake Huron, poses a significant threat to the lower lake fishery. Five years after first being observed in the St. Clair River, the round goby can now be found in all of the Great Lakes. The goby is considered undesirable for several reasons: it preys upon bottom-feeding fish, overruns optimal habitat, spawns multiple times

2320-503: A transitional area between Southwestern Ontario and the Golden Horseshoe region that surrounds the west end of Lake Ontario . Its headwaters are near Dundalk in the north. The Grand River flows south-south-east. Luther Marsh, a 52-square-kilometre wetland on the upper Grand, is one of the largest inland wetlands in southern Ontario and provides habitat for waterfowl, including least bittern and black tern , and amphibians . It

2436-414: Is "new" water, originating from rivers, precipitation, and groundwater springs. In the post-glacial period, evaporation , and drainage have generally been balanced, making the levels of the lakes relatively constant. Intensive human population growth began in the region in the 20th century and continues today. At least two human water use activities have been identified as having the potential to affect

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2552-484: Is a broad grouping of sites into warm-weather, lowland sites characterized by ground stone tools and fishing equipment, or cold-weather, upland sites with abundant scrapers and projectile points, possibly indicating fall and winter deer hunting activities. Evidence of Late Archaic fishing activities in Ontario is concentrated at lakeshore sites located at river mouths ; no known site of this type, however, has been located on

2668-446: Is also an important staging area during bird migrations . The importance of the watershed (7000 square kilometers or 2600 square miles) has been recognized by the designation of the Grand as a Canadian Heritage River . The Grand Valley Dam, located near the village of Belwood , helps to control the flow of water, especially during periods of spring flooding. The dam, completed in 1942, is commonly referred to as Shand Dam , named for

2784-621: Is flat according to the International Joint Commission. Reports about this issue on the U.S. side highlight five large municipal systems (those of Detroit, Cleveland, Buffalo, Milwaukee and Gary ) as being the largest current periodic sources of untreated discharges into the Great Lakes. The fish of the Great Lakes have anti-depressant drugs meant for humans in their brains, which has caused concerns. The number of American adults who take anti-depressant drugs rose from 7.7% of all American adults in 1999–2002 to 12.7% in 2011–2014. As

2900-546: Is heavy. Pleasure boats can enter or exit the Great Lakes by way of the Erie Canal and Hudson River in New York. The Erie Canal connects to the Great Lakes at the east end of Lake Erie (at Buffalo, New York ) and at the south side of Lake Ontario (at Oswego, New York ). The lakes were originally fed by both precipitation and meltwater from glaciers which are no longer present. In modern times, only about 1% of volume per year

3016-470: Is named after Walter Bean, who created the idea of a continuous trail through the Waterloo Region . The project was announced in 1999. It was constructed in phases and by 2004 was 70 percent completed. The basic construction cost was set to $ 6.4 million (U$ 5.12 million) or $ 9 million (U$ 7.2 million) adjusted for inflation. Ninety-nine percent of the total was fundraised by September 2006. After construction,

3132-401: Is the largest lake, by surface area, that is entirely within one country, the United States. The Great Lakes began to form at the end of the Last Glacial Period around 14,000 years ago, as retreating ice sheets exposed the basins they had carved into the land, which then filled with meltwater. The lakes have been a major source for transportation, migration, trade, and fishing, serving as

3248-459: Is the only one of the Great Lakes that is entirely within the United States; the others form a water boundary between the United States and Canada. The lakes are divided among the jurisdictions of the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. states of Michigan , Wisconsin , Minnesota , Illinois , Indiana , Ohio , Pennsylvania , and New York . Both the province of Ontario and the state of Michigan include in their boundaries portions of four of

3364-667: The Canada–United States border . The five lakes are Superior , Michigan , Huron , Erie , and Ontario . (Hydrologically, Michigan and Huron are a single body of water, as they are joined by Straits of Mackinac .) The Great Lakes Waterway enables modern travel and shipping by water among the lakes. The lakes connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River , and to the Mississippi River basin through

3480-884: The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal to the Gulf of Mexico via the Illinois River (from the Chicago River ) and the Mississippi River. An alternate track is via the Illinois River (from Chicago), to the Mississippi, up the Ohio, and then through the Tennessee–Tombigbee Waterway (a combination of a series of rivers and lakes and canals), to Mobile Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. Commercial tug -and- barge traffic on these waterways

3596-782: The Door Peninsula , the Peninsulas of Michigan , and the Ontario Peninsula . Some of these peninsulas even contain smaller peninsulas, such as the Bruce , Keweenaw , Leelanau , Niagara , and Thumb peninsulas. Population centers on the peninsulas include Grand Rapids , Flint , and Detroit in Michigan along with London , Hamilton , Brantford , and Toronto in Ontario. Although the Saint Lawrence Seaway and Great Lakes Waterway make

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3712-516: The Environmental Protection Agency have shown that when the mercury comes in contact with many of the bacteria and compounds in the fresh water, it forms the compound methyl mercury , which has a much greater impact on human health than elemental mercury due to a higher propensity for absorption. This form of mercury is not detrimental to a majority of fish types, but is very detrimental to people and other wildlife animals who consume

3828-669: The Finger Lakes region of New York, as well as in Prince Edward County, Ontario , on Lake Ontario's northeast shore. The Great Lakes have been observed to help intensify storms, such as Hurricane Hazel in 1954, and the 2011 Goderich, Ontario tornado , which moved onshore as a tornadic waterspout . In 1996, a rare tropical or subtropical storm was observed forming in Lake Huron, dubbed the 1996 Lake Huron cyclone . Rather large severe thunderstorms covering wide areas are well known in

3944-523: The Georgian Bay of Lake Huron , yet it flows southwards to Lake Erie, rather than westward to the closer Lake Huron or northward to Georgian Bay (most southern Ontario rivers flow into the nearest Great Lake , which is why most of them are small), thus giving it more distance to take in more water from tributaries . The river's mostly rural character (even when flowing through the edges of Waterloo and Kitchener), ease of access and lack of portages make it

4060-529: The Illinois Waterway . The Great Lakes are the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total area and the second-largest by total volume. They contain 21% of the world's surface fresh water by volume. The total surface is 94,250 square miles (244,106 km ), and the total volume (measured at the low water datum) is 5,439 cubic miles (22,671 km ), slightly less than the volume of Lake Baikal (5,666 cu mi or 23,615 km , 22–23% of

4176-513: The Niagara Escarpment precludes all natural navigation, the four upper lakes are commonly called the "upper great lakes". This designation is not universal. Those living on the shore of Lake Superior often refer to all the other lakes as "the lower lakes", because they are farther south. Sailors of bulk freighters transferring cargoes from Lake Superior and northern Lake Michigan and Lake Huron to ports on Lake Erie or Ontario commonly refer to

4292-696: The Seven Years' War , the Grand River Valley remained largely unoccupied and largely uncharted. An explorers' map in 1669 showed the River as being called the Tinaatuoa or Riviere Rapide. A 1775 map shows it as Urse, a name which also appeared on a 1708 map and on Bellin’s Carte des Lacs of 1744. The d’Anville map of 1755 shows the river Tinaatuoa but adds the words Grande River at its mouth. Other 18th Century names were Oswego and Swaogeh. In 1792, Simcoe tried to change

4408-497: The biosphere . Since the 19th century, an estimated 160 new species have found their way into the Great Lakes ecosystem; many have become invasive; the overseas ship ballast and ship hull parasitism are causing severe economic and ecological impacts. According to the Inland Seas Education Association, on average a new species enters the Great Lakes every eight months. Introductions into the Great Lakes include

4524-414: The zebra mussel , which was first discovered in 1988, and quagga mussel in 1989. Since 2000, the invasive quagga mussel has smothered the bottom of Lake Michigan almost from shore to shore, and their numbers are estimated at 900 trillion. The mollusks are efficient filter feeders, competing with native mussels and reducing available food and spawning grounds for fish. In addition, the mussels may be

4640-579: The " snowbelts " receive regular snow fall from this localized weather pattern, especially along the eastern shores of the lakes. Snowbelts are found in Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and Ontario. Related to the lake effect is the regular occurrence of fog, particularly along the shorelines of the lakes. This is most noticeable along Lake Superior's shores. The lakes tend to moderate seasonal temperatures to some degree but not with as large an influence as do large oceans; they absorb heat and cool

4756-774: The American War of Independence, the Crown purchased land from the Mississaugas in Upper Canada to award as grants to Loyalist refugees as compensation for their property losses in the colonies. Loyalists from New York, New England and the South were settled in this area, as the Crown hoped they would create new towns and farms on the frontier. In the 19th century, many new immigrants came to Upper Canada from England, Scotland, Ireland and Germany seeking opportunity. Settlements were popping up all over Southern Ontario, and many colonists coveted

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4872-531: The British Crown for help, as they had promised aid for allies. In gratitude for their assistance during the war, the Crown awarded the Iroquois land in Upper Canada. Brant led Mohawk from the Upper Castle and families of the other Six Nations to Upper Canada. They first settled at what is present-day Brantford, where Brant crossed, or ‘forded’ the Grand River. It was also called Brant's Town. Not all members of

4988-489: The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal in order to keep several species of invasive Asian carp out of the lakes. These fast-growing planktivorous fish have heavily colonized the Mississippi and Illinois river systems. Invasive species, particularly zebra and quagga mussels, may be at least partially responsible for the collapse of the deepwater demersal fish community in Lake Huron, as well as drastic unprecedented changes in

5104-527: The French explorers and Coureurs de bois came to the region in search of fur and other items of value to Europeans, the Grand River Valley was among the last areas of southern Ontario to be explored. Since the French worked closely with their Native allies in the acquisition of fur and trading of European goods for it, they went only where the natives resided. Even after the English conquered New France in 1760 during

5220-615: The French. The Iroquois League in New York then was neutral or sided with the British. Because different nations were on different sides in this war, it was difficult for the Iroquois nations to adhere to the Great Law of Peace and avoid killing each other. They managed to avoid such bloodshed until the American Revolution (1775–83). Other descendants of the Neutrals may have joined the Mingo ,

5336-406: The Grand River , Caledonia , and Cayuga before emptying into the north shore of Lake Erie south of Dunnville at Port Maitland . One of the scenic and spectacular features of the river is the falls and Gorge at Elora . The Grand River is the largest river that is entirely within southern Ontario's boundaries. The river owes its size to the unusual fact that its source is relatively close to

5452-548: The Grand River by archaeologists. Princess Point sites cluster heavily along the river's length, where the focus and concentration of Princess Point people shifted from their earlier territory around Princess Point near Hamilton . Princess Point people were attracted to the fertile Grand River floodplains , in common with other peoples engaging in maize horticulture around the same time. Floodplains provided rich soils for cultivation, as well as easy access to riverine resources. Indeed, early evidence of lake sturgeon fishing on

5568-670: The Grand River has been discovered at the Cayuga Bridge site, which is also associated with the Princess Point complex and dated to AD 700–900. Thousands of fish remains were also unearthed at the Porteous and Holmedale sites near Brantford, which date to around AD 1000. By the 16th and 17th centuries, the Grand River valley was inhabited by the Neutral people . This was a name given to them by European settlers, as they refused to side with either

5684-621: The Grand River recorded the spelling ' Tinaatoua' and attributed it to the Seneca , though its sources are unclear. The Mohawk name for the Grand River, '' O:se Kenhionhata:tie'' means "Willow River," for the many willows in the watershed. During the 18th century, the French colonists named it '' Grande-Rivière . It was later renamed as Ouse River by John Graves Simcoe for the River Great Ouse near his childhood home in Lincolnshire on

5800-407: The Grand River. No evidence of fish at upland sites has been found, suggesting a pattern of seasonal upland hunting and lowland fishing. Tincombe points out, however, that fishing may still have occurred on the upper Grand River, notwithstanding a lack of surviving remains at sites. He further proposes areas around Caledonia and Brantford as persistent places of occupation in the Late Archaic, due to

5916-402: The Grand in Cambridge . The Nith River joins the Grand in Paris . Prior to the most recent glaciation—the Laurentide —an earlier river flowed through a gorge roughly parallel to the current Grand River. Evidence of the "buried gorge" of the previous river has been found when wells have been drilled. Rather than finding water-bearing bedrock at a depth of a dozen metres or less, the path of

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6032-407: The Great Lakes accessible to ocean-going vessels, shifts in shipping to wider ocean-going container ships —which do not fit through the locks on these routes—have limited container shipping on the lakes. Most Great Lakes trade is of bulk material, and bulk freighters of Seawaymax -size or less can move throughout the entire lakes and out to the Atlantic. Larger ships are confined to working within

6148-459: The Great Lakes during mid-summer; these Mesoscale convective complexes or MCCs can cause damage to wide swaths of forest and shatter glass in city buildings. These storms mainly occur during the night, and the systems sometimes have small embedded tornadoes, but more often straight-line winds accompanied by intense lightning. Historically, the Great Lakes, in addition to their lake ecology , were surrounded by various forest ecoregions (except in

6264-441: The Great Lakes each year. Plastics in the water break up into very small particles known as microplastics . Microplastics can also come from synthetic clothing washed down our drains. Plastic waste found in the lakes include single-use plastics , plastics used in packaging, takeout containers as well as pre-production pellets produced by plastics industry . High concentrations of microplastics were discovered in 100 percent of

6380-438: The Great Lakes region include: Plant lists include: Logging of the extensive forests in the Great Lakes region removed riparian and adjacent tree cover over rivers and streams, which provide shade, moderating water temperatures in fish spawning grounds. Removal of trees also destabilized the soil, with greater volumes washed into stream beds causing siltation of gravel beds, and more frequent flooding. Running cut logs down

6496-480: The Great Lakes. A number of self-operating floating devices called Seabin, were put in the Great Lakes to capture plastic trash as part of the Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup project. The project captured 74,000 pieces of trash using this technology between 2020 and 2021; however, it does not claim to catch up with 22 million pounds (10.0 kt) of plastic that ends up in Great Lakes every year. The production, consumption, and throwing away of plastics seems to remain

6612-400: The Iroquois or the Petun tribes during their conflicts in the area. An Iroquoian people, they had close trade and cultural relations with other Ontario Iroquoian societies such as the Huron and Petun . The Wyandot , another distinct Iroquoian-speaking nation, who resided northeast of the Grand River valley, had long competed to remain independent of their enemy the Iroquois Confederacy ,

6728-419: The Late Archaic were mobile hunter-gatherers who had not yet developed ceramics . While Late Archaic people in what is now southern Ontario used a variety of projectile point types, one distinct type, the Innes point, was associated with the Grand River drainage basin and took its name from a type site a few kilometres west of Brantford , which sits on the lower Grand River. Due to high water levels at

6844-432: The Six Nations moved north. Remnants of the past confederacy live today throughout New York state, some on federally recognized reservations. In 1784 the British Crown awarded to the Six Nations the " Haldimand Tract ", a tract of land "six miles deep from each side of the river beginning at Lake Erie and extending in that proportion to the [source] of the said river." Much of this land was later sold or otherwise lost to

6960-543: The Six Nations. A portion of this tract near Caledonia, Ontario , is the basis for the 2006 Caledonia land dispute , in which the Six Nations filed a land claim with the government. The Six Nations reserve south of Brantford, Ontario, is what remains of the Haldimand Tract. Throughout the 19th century, many Anglo-Canadian settlements developed along the Grand within former Six Nations territory, including Waterloo , Berlin (now Kitchener ), Cambridge , Paris , Brantford , Caledonia , Dunnville and Port Maitland . After

7076-401: The Straits of Mackinac. The straits are five miles (8 km) wide and 120 feet (37 m) deep; the water levels rise and fall together, and the flow between Michigan and Huron frequently reverses direction. Dispersed throughout the Great Lakes are approximately 35,000 islands . The largest among them is Manitoulin Island in Lake Huron, the largest island in any inland body of water in

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7192-427: The U.S. A variety of steps taken to process industrial and municipal pollution discharges into the system greatly improved water quality by the 1980s, and Lake Erie in particular is significantly cleaner. Discharge of toxic substances has been sharply reduced. Federal and state regulations control substances like PCBs . The first of 43 " Great Lakes Areas of Concern " to be formally "de-listed" through successful cleanup

7308-508: The absence of ceramics, it is difficult to date Archaic sites. It is generally believed that sites were occupied seasonally, though there are notable exceptions to this. The archaeologist Chris Ellis argues that in the 1950s and 1960s, there was a tendency for archaeologists in eastern North America to identify sedentarization with progress on a conceptual level. Some sites may have had a number of distinct occupations, occurring in different seasons and for different purposes. Nevertheless, there

7424-495: The air in summer, then slowly radiate that heat in autumn. They protect against frost during transitional weather and keep the summertime temperatures cooler than further inland. This effect can be very localized and overridden by offshore wind patterns. This temperature buffering produces areas known as " fruit belts ", where fruit can be produced that is typically grown much farther south. For instance, western Michigan has apple orchards, and cherry orchards are cultivated adjacent to

7540-459: The anti-depressant drugs pass out of human bodies and through sanitation systems into the Great Lakes, this has resulted in fish in the Great Lakes with twenty times the level of anti-depressants in their brains than what is in the water, leading to the fish being exceedingly happy and hence less risk-averse, to the extent of damaging the fish populations. Researchers have found that more than 22 million pounds (10.0 kt) of plastic end up in

7656-432: The arrival of Europeans, and many more are threatened or endangered. Meanwhile, exotic and invasive species have also been introduced. While the organisms living on the bottom of shallow waters are similar to those found in smaller lakes, the deep waters contain organisms found only in deep, cold lakes of the northern latitudes. These include the delicate opossum shrimp (order mysida ), the deepwater scud (a crustacean of

7772-435: The buried gorge can be found with overburden of dozens of metres. The Laphroaig site ( AgHa-54 ) on the lower Grand River shows evidence of occupation in the latter part of the Early Archaic period . During the Late Archaic period ( c.  4500 RCYBP to c.  2800 RCYBP), water levels in Lake Erie and Lake Ontario were higher due to drainage reasons as the land continued to deglaciate . The people of

7888-440: The chiefs upon leases; which, although legally invalid, the government did not at the time consider it equitable or expedient to cancel." 42°51′19″N 79°34′40″W  /  42.85528°N 79.57778°W  / 42.85528; -79.57778 Great Lakes The Great Lakes ( French : Grands Lacs ), also called the Great Lakes of North America , are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning

8004-427: The core of Great Lakes trash problem. Algae such as diatoms , along with other phytoplankton , are photosynthetic primary producers supporting the food web of the Great Lakes, and have been affected by global warming . The changes in the size or in the function of the primary producers may have a direct or an indirect impact on the food web. Photosynthesis carried out by diatoms constitutes about one fifth of

8120-466: The course of attacking and severely crippling the Huron /Wyandot. The Iroquois were seeking to dominate the lucrative fur trade with the Europeans. It was during this warfare that the Iroquois attacked the Jesuit outpost of Sainte-Marie among the Hurons . The Jesuits abandoned the mission after many Wyandot and numerous priests were killed here. To survive, remnants of The Neutral tribe migrated in 1667 to La Prairie ( Caughnawaga or Kahnawake ),

8236-555: The cyanobacteria ... will produce toxins", said Michael McKay, of the University of Windsor. Water quality testing was underway in August 2019. Until 1970, mercury was not listed as a harmful chemical, according to the United States Federal Water Quality Administration. In the 21st century, mercury has become more apparent in water tests. Mercury compounds have been used in paper mills to prevent slime from forming during their production, and chemical companies have used mercury to separate chlorine from brine solutions. Studies conducted by

8352-516: The east coast of England. The anglicized form of the French name has remained in common use. The Ojibwe name for Grand River is Owaashtanong-ziibi . A. Jones, the General Surveyor of Upper Canada reported the name of the river among the Mississaugas to be ' O-es-shin-ne-gun-ing' , and he wrote "the one that washes the timber down and carries away the grass and the weeds" as the meaning of

8468-455: The fish that were studied by researchers from the Rochman Lab. About 50 million pounds (23 kt) of fish is harvested each year from Great Lakes which has raised concerns on how this might affect human health. Microscopic pieces of plastic have also been found in drinking water coming from Great Lakes. It is estimated that nearly 40 million people in the region rely on drinking water from

8584-443: The fish washing up on shore; estimates by various governments have placed the percentage of Lake Michigan's biomass which was made up of alewives in the early 1960s as high as 90%. In the late 1960s, the various state and federal governments began stocking several species of salmonids, including the native lake trout as well as non-native chinook and coho salmon; by the 1980s, alewife populations had dropped drastically. The ruffe ,

8700-443: The fish. Mercury has been known for health related problems such as birth defects in humans and animals, and the near extinction of eagles in the Great Lakes region. The amount of raw sewage dumped into the waters was the primary focus of both the first Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement and federal laws passed in both countries during the 1970s. Implementation of secondary treatment of municipal sewage by major cities greatly reduced

8816-548: The five lakes lie in separate basins, they form a single, naturally interconnected body of fresh water, within the Great Lakes Basin . As a chain of lakes and rivers, they connect the east-central interior of North America to the Atlantic Ocean. From the interior to the outlet at the Saint Lawrence River, water flows from Superior to Huron and Michigan, southward to Erie, and finally northward to Lake Ontario. The lakes drain

8932-458: The frontier of the Mohawk Valley had resulted in massacres and atrocities on both sides, aggravating anti-Iroquois feelings among the colonists. Without consultation or giving the Iroquois a place in negotiations, the British ceded their land in New York to the new United States. The Iroquois were unwelcome in the newly created nation. After the war, Six Nations leader Joseph Brant appealed to

9048-417: The glaciers "rebounded" as it was uncovered. Since the glaciers covered some areas longer than others, this glacial rebound occurred at different rates. The Great Lakes have a humid continental climate, Köppen climate classification Dfa (in southern areas) and Dfb (in northern parts) with varying influences from air masses from other regions including dry, cold Arctic systems, mild Pacific air masses from

9164-410: The historical average level. Although "true tides—changes in water level caused by the gravitational forces of the sun and moon—do occur in a semi-diurnal (twice daily) pattern", such changes are quite small and generally obscured by other forces. The lake levels are affected primarily by changes in regional meteorology and climatology. The outflows from Lakes Superior and Ontario are regulated, while

9280-488: The ice sheet left behind a large amount of meltwater ( Lake Algonquin , Lake Chicago , Glacial Lake Iroquois , and Champlain Sea ) that filled up the basins that the glaciers had carved, thus creating the Great Lakes as they are today. Because of the uneven nature of glacier erosion , some higher hills became Great Lakes islands. The Niagara Escarpment follows the contour of the Great Lakes between New York and Wisconsin. Land below

9396-545: The key indicators even in the current era of sophisticated analyses and measuring instruments. According to the bi-national (U.S. and Canadian) resource book, The Great Lakes: An Environmental Atlas and Resource Book : "The largest Great Lakes fish harvests were recorded in 1889 and 1899 at some 67,000 tonnes (66,000 long tons; 74,000 short tons) [147 million pounds]." By 1801, the New York Legislature found it necessary to pass regulations curtailing obstructions to

9512-597: The lake and causing blooms," said Michael McKay, executive director of the Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research (GLIER) at the University of Windsor . The largest Lake Erie bloom to date occurred in 2015, exceeding the severity index at 10.5 and in 2011 at a 10. In early August 2019, satellite images depicted a bloom stretching up to 1,300 square kilometres on Lake Erie, with the heaviest concentration near Toledo, Ohio . A large bloom does not necessarily mean

9628-634: The lake shore as far north as the Grand Traverse Bay . Near Collingwood, Ontario , commercial fruit orchards, including a few wineries, exist near the shoreline of southern Nottawasaga Bay . The eastern shore of Lake Michigan and the southern shore of Lake Erie have many successful wineries because of the lakes' moderating effects, as do the large commercial fruit and wine growing areas of the Niagara Peninsula located between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. A similar phenomenon allows wineries to flourish in

9744-525: The lakes has been observed since records began in 1918. The water level of Lake Michigan–Huron had remained fairly constant over the 20th century. Recent lake levels include record low levels in 2013 in Lakes Superior, Erie, and Michigan-Huron, followed by record high levels in 2020 in the same lakes. The water level in Lake Ontario has remained relatively constant in the same time period, hovering around

9860-464: The lakes' levels: diversion (the transfer of water to other watersheds) and consumption (substantially done today by the use of lake water to power and cool electric generation plants, resulting in evaporation). Outflows through the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal is more than balanced by artificial inflows via the Ogoki River and Long Lake/ Kenogami River diversions. Fluctuation of the water levels in

9976-454: The lakes. Only barges can access the Illinois Waterway system providing access to the Gulf of Mexico via the Mississippi River. Despite their vast size, large sections of the Great Lakes freeze over in winter, interrupting most shipping from January to March. Some icebreakers ply the lakes, keeping the shipping lanes open through other periods of ice on the lakes. The Great Lakes are connected by

10092-415: The lakes. The province of Ontario does not border Lake Michigan, and the state of Michigan does not border Lake Ontario. New York and Wisconsin's jurisdictions extend into two lakes, and each of the remaining states into one of the lakes. As the surfaces of Lakes Superior, Huron, Michigan, and Erie are all approximately the same elevation above sea level, while Lake Ontario is significantly lower, and because

10208-468: The latter as the lower lakes and Lakes Michigan, Huron, and Superior as the upper lakes. This corresponds to thinking of lakes Erie and Ontario as "down south" and the others as "up north". Vessels sailing north on Lake Michigan are considered "upbound" even though they are sailing toward its effluent current. Lakes Huron and Michigan are sometimes considered a single lake, called Lake Michigan–Huron, because they are one hydrological body of water connected by

10324-494: The launch of the bi-national Great Lakes Fishery Commission . Several species of exotic water fleas have accidentally been introduced into the Great Lakes, such as the spiny waterflea, Bythotrephes longimanus , and the fishhook waterflea, Cercopagis pengoi , potentially having an effect on the zooplankton population. Several species of crayfish have also been introduced that may contend with native crayfish populations. More recently an electric fence has been set up across

10440-676: The name of Grande Riviere to Ouse, after a river in England and the Thomas Ridout map of 1821 shows "Grand R or Ouse". Simcoe failed because the name Grand River had been in common usage for some time by then. Apart from large numbers of Tuscarora and Oneida , who mainly allied with the American colonists, the other four nations of the Iroquois Confederacy sided with the British during the American War of Independence . Warfare throughout

10556-457: The name. The Grand River watershed consists of all the land that drains into the Grand River through tributary creeks and rivers such as the Conestogo , Speed , Eramosa , Irvine and Nith rivers. The Grand River has Southern Ontario's largest watershed. Because the watershed is an ecosystem with natural borders, it includes and crosses many municipal boundaries and can be considered

10672-476: The natural migrations of Atlantic salmon from Lake Erie into their spawning channels. In the early 19th century, the government of Upper Canada found it necessary to introduce similar legislation prohibiting the use of weirs and nets at the mouths of Lake Ontario's tributaries. Other protective legislation was passed, but enforcement remained difficult. On both sides of the Canada–United States border,

10788-463: The order amphipoda ), two types of copepods , and the deepwater sculpin (a spiny, large-headed fish). The Great Lakes are an important source of fishing . Early European settlers were astounded by both the variety and quantity of fish; there were 150 different species in the Great Lakes. Throughout history, fish populations were the early indicator of the condition of the Lakes and have remained one of

10904-506: The outflows of Michigan-Huron and Erie are not regulated at all. Ontario is the most tightly regulated, with its outflow controlled by the Moses-Saunders Power Dam , which explains its consistent historical levels. The Great Lakes contain 21% of the world's surface fresh water: 5,472 cubic miles (22,810 km ), or 6.0×10 U.S. gallons, that is 6 quadrillion U.S. gallons, (2.3×10 liters). The lakes contain about 84% of

11020-626: The people now known as the Seneca in Oklahoma. After the desolation of the Neutral tribe, the Iroquois Confederacy used the Grand River Valley as a hunting ground and trapping territory. Though the Six Nations (by then including the Tuscarora ) held the territory by right of conquest, they did not settle it, apart from a limited presence on the northern and western shores of Lake Ontario . When

11136-516: The prize Grand River Valley. The 1846 Gazetteer relates the history of the First Nations of the area as follows: "In 1784, Sir F. Haldimand ... granted to the Six Nations and their heirs for ever, a tract of land on the Ouse, or Grand River, six miles in depth on each side of the river, beginning at Lake Erie, and extending to the head of the river. This grant was confirmed, and its conditions defined, by

11252-507: The proliferation of dams and impoundments have multiplied, necessitating more regulatory efforts. Concerns by the mid-19th century included obstructions in the rivers which prevented salmon and lake sturgeon from reaching their spawning grounds. The Wisconsin Fisheries Commission noted a reduction of roughly 25% in general fish harvests by 1875. The states have removed dams from rivers where necessary. Overfishing has been cited as

11368-428: The routine discharge of untreated sewage during the 1970s and 1980s. The International Joint Commission in 2009 summarized the change: "Since the early 1970s, the level of treatment to reduce pollution from waste water discharges to the Great Lakes has improved considerably. This is a result of significant expenditures to date on both infrastructure and technology, and robust regulatory systems that have proven to be, on

11484-436: The shoreline of all the lakes would cover a distance roughly equivalent to travelling half-way around the world at the equator. A notable modern phenomenon is the formation of ice volcanoes over the lakes during wintertime. Storm-generated waves carve the lakes' ice sheet and create conical mounds through the eruption of water and slush. The process is only well-documented in the Great Lakes, and has been credited with sparing

11600-583: The southern shorelines from worse rocky erosion. It has been estimated that the foundational geology that created the conditions shaping the present day upper Great Lakes was laid from 1.1 to 1.2 billion years ago, when two previously fused tectonic plates split apart and created the Midcontinent Rift , which crossed the Great Lakes Tectonic Zone . A valley was formed providing a basin that eventually became modern day Lake Superior. When

11716-665: The start of the Late Archaic, sites which are today located inland up the river may once have been true shoreline sites, similarly to the phenomenon of site stratification observed on Lake Huron. This phenomenon is also observable in reference to Lake Erie. For example, the Canada Century site (located on the Welland River ) lies 17 kilometres (11 mi) north of the Lake Erie shore, but may once have been significantly closer. Due to

11832-414: The surface freshwater of North America; if the water were evenly distributed over the entire continent's land area, it would reach a depth of 5 feet (1.5 meters). This is enough water to cover the 48 contiguous U.S. states to a uniform depth of 9.5 feet (2.9 m). Although the lakes contain a large percentage of the world's fresh water, the Great Lakes supply only a small portion of U.S. drinking water on

11948-692: The trail mostly runs on the eastern edge of both cities. The trail is between Woolwich Township and North Dumfries . A 6.2-kilometre (3.9 mi) section of the trail in Cambridge is part of the Trans Canada Trail , therefore providing access to the rest of the Trans Canada Trail. The route varies, either using 2-metre-wide (6 ft 7 in) gravel trails located on the river banks or travelling along residential roads to bypass private properties and unbuilt trail. The Walter Bean Grand River Trail

12064-512: The trail was further supported by donors, whom received recognition and plaques in various public spaces. Later, the ownership and management of the trail was transferred to the cities of Waterloo , Kitchener , and Cambridge . In June 2017, the Kitchener portion of the trail was temporarily closed due to flooding from the river. Beginning in 2020, a municipal initiative called Trail Mix, consisting of signs with QR codes linking to songs and poems,

12180-551: The treatment plant, are temporarily overwhelmed by heavy rainstorms. Local sewage treatment authorities then must release untreated effluent, a mix of rainwater and sewage, into local water bodies. While enormous public investments such as the Deep Tunnel projects in Chicago and Milwaukee have greatly reduced the frequency and volume of these events, they have not been eliminated. The number of such overflow events in Ontario, for example,

12296-522: The tributary rivers into the Great Lakes also dislocated sediments. In 1884, the New York Fish Commission determined that the dumping of sawmill waste (chips and sawdust) had impacted fish populations. The first U.S. Clean Water Act , passed by a Congressional override after being vetoed by U.S. President Richard Nixon in 1972, was a key piece of legislation, along with the bi-national Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement signed by Canada and

12412-416: The warmer and shallower portions of the system such as Lake Erie, Saginaw Bay , Green Bay , and the southernmost portion of Lake Michigan. By the mid-1980s, most jurisdictions bordering the Great Lakes had controlled phosphate detergents . Blue-green algae, or cyanobacteria blooms, have been problematic on Lake Erie since 2011. "Not enough is being done to stop fertilizer and phosphorus from getting into

12528-430: The west pick up the air and moisture from the lake surface, which is slightly warmer in relation to the cold surface winds above. As the slightly warmer, moist air passes over the colder land surface, the moisture often produces concentrated, heavy snowfall that sets up in bands or "streamers". This is similar to the effect of warmer air dropping snow as it passes over mountain ranges. During freezing weather with high winds,

12644-427: The west, and warm, wet tropical systems from the south and the Gulf of Mexico. The lakes have a moderating effect on the climate; they can also increase precipitation totals and produce lake effect snowfall . The Great Lakes can have an effect on regional weather called lake-effect snow , which is sometimes very localized. Even late in winter, the lakes often have no icepack in the middle. The prevailing winds from

12760-480: The whole, quite effective." The commission reported that all urban sewage treatment systems on the U.S. side of the lakes had implemented secondary treatment, as had all on the Canadian side except for five small systems. Though contrary to federal laws in both countries, those treatment system upgrades have not yet eliminated combined sewer overflow events. This describes when older sewerage systems, which combine storm water with sewage into single sewers heading to

12876-413: The world's surface fresh water). Because of their sea-like characteristics, such as rolling waves, sustained winds, strong currents, great depths, and distant horizons, the five Great Lakes have long been called inland seas . Depending on how it is measured, by surface area, either Lake Superior or Lake Michigan–Huron is the second-largest lake in the world and the largest freshwater lake. Lake Michigan

12992-601: The world. The second-largest island is Isle Royale in Lake Superior. Both of these islands are large enough to contain multiple lakes themselves—for instance, Manitoulin Island's Lake Manitou is the world's largest lake on a freshwater island. Some of these lakes even have their own islands, like Treasure Island in Lake Mindemoya in Manitoulin Island. The Great Lakes also have several peninsulas between them, including

13108-523: The zooplankton community of the lake. Scientists understand that the micro-aquatic life of the lakes is abundant but know very little about some of the most plentiful microbes and their environmental effects in the Great Lakes. Although a drop of lake water may contain 1 million bacteria cells and 10 million viruses , only since 2012 has there been a long-term study of the lakes' micro-organisms. Between 2012 and 2019 more than 160 new species have been discovered. Native habitats and ecoregions in

13224-546: Was Ontario's Collingwood Harbour in 1994; Ontario's Severn Sound followed in 2003. Presque Isle Bay in Pennsylvania is formally listed as in recovery, as is Ontario's Spanish Harbour. Dozens of other Areas of Concern have received partial cleanups such as the Rouge River (Michigan) and Waukegan Harbor (Illinois). Phosphate detergents were historically a major source of nutrient to the Great Lakes algae blooms in particular in

13340-517: Was eliminated as the mussels were harvested for use as buttons by early Great Lakes entrepreneurs. The Great Lakes: An Environmental Atlas and Resource Book (1972) notes: "Only pockets remain of the once large commercial fishery." Water quality improvements realized during the 1970s and 1980s, combined with successful salmonid stocking programs, have enabled the growth of a large recreational fishery. The last commercial fisherman left Milwaukee in 2011 because of overfishing and anthropogenic changes to

13456-809: Was implemented on the Walter Bean Trail. Grand River (Ontario) The Grand River , formerly known as the River Ouse , is a large river in Ontario , Canada. It lies along the western fringe of the Greater Golden Horseshoe region of Ontario which overlaps the eastern portion of southwestern Ontario, sometimes referred to as Midwestern Ontario, along the length of this river. From its source near Wareham, Ontario , it flows south through Grand Valley , Fergus , Elora , Waterloo , Kitchener , Cambridge , Paris , Brantford , Ohsweken , Six Nations of

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