Canadian Run 1000 Islands 2017

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Re: 2017 NGW Canadian Run, 1000 Islands, September 12, 13 and 14

#136

Post by Mark King »

Thousand Islands Moment – Fourth in a Series

The St. Lawrence River was named by Jacques Cartier in 1535.He arrived in the Gulf of St. Lawrence on August 10, the date on the ecclesiastical calendar which commemorated the martyrdom of Saint Lawrence. It is the 17th largest river in the world in terms of volume.

In the late 1990’s, Hal McCarney, the deceased owner of the Gananoque Boat Line, was instrumental in having a statue of Saint Lawrence placed along the north bank of the river just below the Thousand Islands Bridge at Ivy Lea, which is the geological beginning of the river ( see Third in a Series ).

It faces the water, but shore visitors can catch a glimpse of it by using the parking area on the Thousand Islands Parkway just east of the bridge and peering over the brush and trees to the east of the parking area.

Early explorers and fur traders planted poplar trees along the banks of the river and in the islands to mark stopping places. The voyageurs measured distance by the time it took to smoke a pipe. Distances were measured in “pipes.”

Depending on the current relations with the Natives the route was either, safe, mildly exciting, or very dangerous.

British Royal Navy Captain William Owen is credited with naming many of the Thousand Islands in 1816 following the War of 1812 (more about the war and the military role of the Thousand Islands in a future Thousand Islands Moment).

It was his job to chart and name the islands in the great inland waterway from the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean.

He divided the islands into groups – The Admiralty Islands, The Lake Fleet Group, The Brock Group and the Navy Fleet Group.

Then he assigned names that referenced the group.

For example, the Lake Fleet islands are named after British warships such as Deathdealer, Belabourer, Scorpion and Bloodletter.

The Navy Islands are named for distinguished Naval officers such as Mulcaster, Popham and Cunliffe.

The Brock Group are named for contemporaries of Sir Isaac Brock who gave his name to the City of Brockville (more about him and the city in future a Thousand Islands Moment) while the Admiralty Islands are named for British Lords of the Admiralty.

The islands, used mostly by Natives originally, were considered worthless real estate until a visit by US president Ulysses Grant in 1872 changed that.

He came to the islands aboard a Pullman railroad car to visit Castle Rest, the first of several "castles" built in the Thousand Islands region during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The castle was built in 1888 for George M. Pullman, the man who developed the Pullman railroad car.

The publicity and exposure brought recognition to the islands as an international playground – at least on the US side - and the newly built railroad brought people from New York and the eastern seaboard to Clayton and Alexandria Bay.

Sales of Canadian islands lagged and only 56 Canadian islands had been sold by 1891. Canada published “The Thousand Islands For Sale” booklet in 1894 and promptly sold 186 islands earning $32,110.

Municipal councils in Brockville and Gananoque petitioned the federal government to keep some islands, although locals wanted the development and caretaking jobs that came with islands when they were sold.

In 1894 island property per ace was about $127. In 1995 it was between $40,000 and $50,000 for undeveloped property.

Today, don’t come shopping for an island lot with a cottage on it with less than ten times that in your pocket. To be safe you should have access to about $1 million for you will need at least that for the property and to bring it up to modern standards – as judged by your neighbours.

Fortunately provincial, state, and federal governments saw fit to preserve some shore land and some islands as park land so today there is public access to selected portions of the Thousand Islands.

Visitors come from around the world to see the Thousand Islands today. In the spring, summer and fall bus tours fill the local hotels and boat lines with visitors from China, Europe, Asia, and other areas and in the summer visitors arrive by boat and car.
M King
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Re: 2017 NGW Canadian Run, 1000 Islands, September 12, 13 and 14

#137

Post by Rat »

Maybe we should take up a collection ....

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Re: 2017 NGW Canadian Run, 1000 Islands, September 12, 13 and 14

#138

Post by Fred Camper »

The NGW island would be special...
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Re: 2017 NGW Canadian Run, 1000 Islands, September 12, 13 and 14

#139

Post by Mark King »

Thousand Islands Moment – Fifth in a Series

Before the War of 1812 – Part 1 of 2

In the early 1600’s the Iroquois lived in the islands year-round raising corn and catching fish and game. They lived in a village named Tonionta on an island that has never been identified positively, where they could keep their enemies, the Huron, out of their territory.

They became enemies with the French, forcing the French fur traders to use the Ottawa River route on their way out west.

By 1650 the Iroquois had mostly abandoned the islands and traders and explorers again were using the route.

Until the American Revolution, it was mainly the French fur traders and explorers who used the Thousand Islands region. There was some British settlement as well, but it was spotty and as often as not people claimed land and then moved on.

Still, there was unrest along this watery border, which was not yet a border.

British, French and Natives, along with soon-to-be Revolutionaries to the south, all jostled for some control of the region.

In 1760 the British Warship Onondaga was ambushed near the present day site of the Canadian span of the International Bridge. The current and shoals in this area make navigation tricky even today with buoys in place.

A small boat was lowered from the Onondaga to go and warn other British ships in the area. It disappeared.

Several years later the crew from a Bateaux found remnants believed to be from that lost boat between Constance and Georgina islands, but no trace of the crew was ever found.

That passage has been called The Lost Channel, ever since.

Some 50,000 United Empire Loyalists left the 13 Colonies of the US after the American Revolution and made their way north from 1783 until the after the turn of the Century. Many of them came to the Thousand Islands area. There were some soldiers among the many civilians.

They were given free land with the minimum being 100 acres for a civilian and up to 1,000 acres for a field officer.

There are still UEL (United Empire Loyalist) clubs functioning in the area today, particularly around Prescott.

Thus began an uneasy peace along the border with constant rumblings that the 13 breakaway colonies that formed the United States might attack and try to gain control of the British colony to the north. Security in the area, where you can see the neighbouring country across the river, and ice in the winter, became a prime concern.

The Loyalists cleared their free land, and farmed, fished, hunted, and logged, sending their trade goods to Montreal to be shipped overseas.

They used Bateaux, large flat bottomed boats that could slip easily over the rapids. A trip from Kingston to Montreal with the current, would take three to four days. Coming back with the Bateaux having to be pulled and rowed, took 10 to 12 days.

Durham boats eventually replaced the bateaux after 1801 – when the first recorded Durham boat left Kingston – and these in turn were eventually replaced by steam ships early in the 1800s which plied the waters between rapids.

Meanwhile, the British government debated how to protect this fragile border while rumblings continued in the US about launching an attack and capturing what would eventually become Canada.

Next – defence along the uneasy border.
M King
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1984 GL1200 Aspencade - Restored and Sold
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Re: 2017 NGW Canadian Run, 1000 Islands, September 12, 13 and 14

#140

Post by Mark King »

Thousand Islands Moment – Sixth in a Series

Part 2 of 2

Today’s Moment is more like a Monumental.

There is no way to briefly describe the lead up to, the actions during, and the results of, the War of 1812 and the Patriot War and the effects they had on the 1000 Islands.

Much of the cultural history of the area on both sides of the border, and indeed the roots of Canada, had their seeds in the War 0f 1812. Almost every community along the St. Lawrence and the eastern end of Lake Ontario on both sides of the border has something remaining from the War.

The people of the 1000 Islands region were not in favour of war. They had developed commerce back and forth and in fact northern New Yorkers carried out commerce in Montreal because it was closer and easier to reach than New York, and Boston. Border families, even to this day, intermingle and intermarry – and party and fish and boat and swim and picnic and play hockey, baseball and golf and smuggle together etc etc.

Looking back on it from the perspective of this Century, the War as it played out in the islands, except for the fact that real people died, almost seems like a Monty Python movie. Poorly trained militias fighting and farming at the same time, poorly supplied soldiers, in a land that was barely opened up to travel, led to some almost comical skirmishes and battles and some battles that never happened as soldiers abandoned their missions exhausted, hungry and cold.

The debate will rage about who won, which is closely tied to the debate about who started it, but the consensus opinion is that it was a draw. Neither side gained any territory or claimed any great victory – despite what Johnny Horton says – as the Battle of New Orleans, which the Americans won, took place after the Peace Treaty was signed. No cell phones, internet, or Instagram in those days and word traveled slowly.

I will not re-open the who won or lost debate.

Instead I am deferring to Wikipedia and one other factual and extensive source.

The second last link in this list is to a well-documented and researched booklet written by the late George Stanley. Bear in mind as you are reading this that this is the same man who suggested to the Special Committee on the Canadian Flag in the mid 1960’s that Canada should adopt the red maple leaf as its flag.

Enough from me … enjoy … if you are so inclined … and I will be back in a couple of days with some other information about the fallout from the Wars and more history leading up to the 1900s as well as information on the Islands today.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Frontenac

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sackets_Harbor,_New_York

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Henry,_Ontario

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Wellington

http://www.oliverkilian.com/ecology/tho ... /wars.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Windmill
M King
1977 GL1000 - Under s l o w restoration
1981 CB900C - Rebuilt but stripped spark plug thread
2002 VTX 1800 -Current Rider
1984 GL1200 Aspencade - Restored and Sold
1980 Suzuki GS850G - Restoration on hold
1985 750 Nighthawk SC - Sold
1976 GL1000 - Yellow - Restored and Sold (regret the sale)
1981 GL1100 - Naked - Restored and Sold
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Re: 2017 NGW Canadian Run, 1000 Islands, September 12, 13 and 14

#141

Post by CYBORG »

Great, and interesting information. Keep it coming
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Re: 2017 NGW Canadian Run, 1000 Islands, September 12, 13 and 14

#142

Post by Halfnaked »

Just made a cabin reservation for Morgan and myself. We'll be in on the 11th, and out on the 14th. Looking forward to seeing my friends again this year. Thanks to those who are making the arrangements for this year's run. It was a lot of fun putting last year's run together, but also a good bit of work. See you in September!

Bob
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Re: 2017 NGW Canadian Run, 1000 Islands, September 12, 13 and 14

#143

Post by Mark King »

Thousand Islands Moment – Seventh in a Series

Joel Stone was born in Connecticut in 1749.

He was imprisoned after the American Revolution for his Loyalty to the British Crown but he escaped and came to what is now Canada and was granted a large tract of land where he founded the town of Gananoque.

He and his family were industrialists and merchants and developed a lumber mill among other commercial enterprises.

He represented the colonial government in various capacities.

What is believed to be the earliest US invasion of Canadian soil of the War of 1812 took place in Gananoque when troops came across the river to kill or capture Col. Stone and steal stores of military goods stockpiled in Gananoque.

Stone escaped, but his wife received a gunshot wound to the leg and the raiders took the stores they were after.

Stone died in 1833 aged 84 and was buried at a plot in town. Later he was moved to Willowbank cemetery west of Gananoque where his grave and those of his family members were cleaned up and re-dedicated just a few years ago.

For years after there were rumours that robbers had stolen his skull when the grave was moved and were displaying it in a tavern in Gananoque. Apparently it has since been re-united with the remainder of his bones, but no one knows for sure.

His original home site is now a small park on Main Street in Gananoque.


Sir Isaac Brock was killed on October 13, 1812 in an early War of 1812 battle. The City of Brockville is named for him. But it wasn’t always.

The location was first known as Buell’s Bay after the United Empire Loyalist who founded the village in 1785, William Buell.

As the community grew it was known by the area government as Elizabethtown. Residents didn’t want it to be confused with Elizabethtown Township so they looked for another name.

Some wanted Williamstown, others wanted Charlestown. It soon became known as Snarlingtown because of the bickering that was taking place over the name.

Charles Jones, whose name is immortalized at Jones Falls Lockstation on the Rideau Canal, eventually settled the argument by suggesting the name Brockville.

It was the first incorporated self-governing town in Ontario as of 1832, two years before Toronto.
Sir Isaac never got to see the town named after him. But some of his distant relatives did.

In 2012, to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the war and his death, the city erected a bust of the town’s namesake on the Courthouse Green. Distant relatives of Sir Isaac traveled from England to attend the ceremonies.
M King
1977 GL1000 - Under s l o w restoration
1981 CB900C - Rebuilt but stripped spark plug thread
2002 VTX 1800 -Current Rider
1984 GL1200 Aspencade - Restored and Sold
1980 Suzuki GS850G - Restoration on hold
1985 750 Nighthawk SC - Sold
1976 GL1000 - Yellow - Restored and Sold (regret the sale)
1981 GL1100 - Naked - Restored and Sold
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Re: 2017 NGW Canadian Run, 1000 Islands, September 12, 13 and 14

#144

Post by Mark King »

An addendum to yesterday's Moment that completely slipped my mind for some reason.

Brockville recently revealed that its Snarlingtown designation remains.

Some folks in that city, several years ago, claimed that the Brockville is the Birthplace of the Canadian Flag.

They claim this because John Matheson, who was their Member of Parliament in the Lester Pearson government that developed the flag, was instrumental in bringing the maple leaf design suggested by George Stanley to the committee table.

Brockvillians claim that even though the committee met in Ottawa and Stanley was from Kingston and Matheson wasn't even chair of the committee, that Matheson must have done some of the work on his dining room table at his home in Brockville so therefore Brockville must be the Birthplace of the Flag.

Matheson, who died a couple of years ago, never made any such claim. In fact in his book, "Canada's Flag" he credits Stanley with the design and the committee with the work.

This claim by some folks in Brockville, set off a Canada-wide row a couple of years ago but the Snarlingtown residents got the last laugh. A mall in that city now has a large muraled rotunda naming Brockville as the Birthplace of the Canadian Flag. A large flag now flies within eyesight of Highway 401 and a street in front of the courthouse was re-named for John Matheson just before he died.
M King
1977 GL1000 - Under s l o w restoration
1981 CB900C - Rebuilt but stripped spark plug thread
2002 VTX 1800 -Current Rider
1984 GL1200 Aspencade - Restored and Sold
1980 Suzuki GS850G - Restoration on hold
1985 750 Nighthawk SC - Sold
1976 GL1000 - Yellow - Restored and Sold (regret the sale)
1981 GL1100 - Naked - Restored and Sold
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Re: 2017 NGW Canadian Run, 1000 Islands, September 12, 13 and 14

#145

Post by gargoyle »

Please add me to the list. I just reserved a cabin from in on the 11th and out on the 14th. anim-cheers1

Here's the initial planned route which I'm sure will change several times...
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Re: 2017 NGW Canadian Run, 1000 Islands, September 12, 13 and 14

#146

Post by Mark King »

Thousand Islands Moment – Eighth in a Series

If you read through George Stanley’s epistle on the War of 1812 and the Patriot War you will recall that a young Kingston lawyer, John Macdonald, represented the conspirators who were captured following the Battle of the Windmill.

While it wasn’t a popular position to have, even then the justice system required a fair defence.

The entire episode is outlined in a locally written book called “Bluebloods and Rednecks” published by a Brockville lawyer in the 1990s.

Macdonald, as Canadians know, went on to become the champion of Confederation, the act that formed Canada out of several provinces.

Kingston, Ontario, at the start of the Thousand Islands is considered his home as he represented the area in provincial and federal legislatures and practised law.

Today there are plaques on buildings in Kingston where he had his offices.

There is a “Sir John’s Public House” which is a quaint little bar in an old stone building where he was said to live or practise.

One of his houses, Bellevue House, is a living museum to his memory and the time that he lived there.

Macdonald was instrumental in getting the capital of Canada moved to Ottawa when the country was founded, as there had been a battle between Upper Canada which wanted it in Toronto and Lower Canada which wanted it in Montreal or Quebec.

Kingston was initially chosen, but the Queen was convinced to move it to Ottawa which was originally Bytown (more about this later) as it was on the Ottawa River in Upper Canada but right beside Lower Canada.

In Ottawa, the recently renovated Bank of Montreal Building – one of the first bank buildings in Ottawa - was renamed the Sir John A Macdonald building and is now used for meetings and functions by Parliamentarians.

There are many stories about Sir John and it was no secret that he liked his drink. Once, upon throwing up in the House of Commons, he calmly looked at the Speaker and advised him that what he was hearing from the Opposite Bench made him sick.

I personally have a three by two foot framed picture of Sir John above my desk in Ottawa.

And here is where the fun begins.

Sir John had to travel from Kingston to Ottawa to attend sittings of the House of Commons. It is not uncommon to run into someone along the two major routes from Kingston to Ottawa, who claims to own a piece of furniture that John A owned, or who has a bed that he slept in on his travels. Be aware – they command big dollars – even without proof.

He is buried in a heavily visited grave in Kingston and a statue of him graces a Kingston park. Each year his birthday is celebrated in Kingston. But it is in January and it is usually cold.

To read more about Sir John …

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_A._Macdonald
M King
1977 GL1000 - Under s l o w restoration
1981 CB900C - Rebuilt but stripped spark plug thread
2002 VTX 1800 -Current Rider
1984 GL1200 Aspencade - Restored and Sold
1980 Suzuki GS850G - Restoration on hold
1985 750 Nighthawk SC - Sold
1976 GL1000 - Yellow - Restored and Sold (regret the sale)
1981 GL1100 - Naked - Restored and Sold
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Re: NEW NEWS .... 2017 NGW Canadian Ride Shaping Up .... 1000 Islands in September

#147

Post by Rat »

RAT wrote:
RAT wrote:OK .... starting a list of those coming .... let me know if I've missed anyone .... this will help with planning a place to stay and eat and such .... I'll update as info comes in

Ascot
RAT
CYBORG
Ken L (if it's warm)
gltriker
Sandy
HOTT
Mike C
KYpondman
Track T 2411
Mark King
Redwood and friend .... NOPE .... crying1
Fred (and Pepper) Camper
bstuebing
Halfnaked and friend (he has friends ?) anim-cheers1
gargoyle
Alarmdoc

LINK TO 1000 ISLANDS KOA (talk to DAVE) http://koa.com/campgrounds/ivy-lea/

Thanks Gord
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Re: 2017 NGW Canadian Run, 1000 Islands, September 12, 13 and 14

#148

Post by CYBORG »

Looks like a good crowd
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Re: 2017 NGW Canadian Run, 1000 Islands, September 12, 13 and 14

#149

Post by Alarmdoc »

Hey Rat I will be there . May not stay over night . I am only about 90 minutes away.Will be nice to talk GL to some of the experienced guys.

If anyone is interested Canada's 150 birthday here is a link to a free pass to our National Parks.

http://www.commandesparcs-parksorders.c ... tId=524528

Alarmdoc.
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Re: 2017 NGW Canadian Run, 1000 Islands, September 12, 13 and 14

#150

Post by Mark King »

Thousand Islands Moment – Ninth in a Series

Another person mentioned in George Stanley’s impressive recounting of the early days and wars in the Thousand Islands is Bill Johnston. The self-styled pirate.

His life story is twisted and complex so I will defer to Wikipedia to pick up the true story.

The fun here is that Alexandria Bay, New York each summer holds “Bill Johnston Pirate Days” - sometimes just known as Pirate Days.

It is a tourist success and great fun but lacks much relation to history.

During the Festival, Johnston’s pirate ship attacks A-Bay as it is known. Something he never did. He was a British subject who turned American, fought with the US in the War of 1812 and helped the US side in the Patriot War.

The Pirates in the Festival dress like Pirates of the Caribbean while in real life Bill Johnston always wore modest homespun garments in neutral colors. And unlike the grog-soaked Festival, Johnston only had the occasional drink.

He spent the summer of 1838 hiding from a combined British and American manhunt and some claim he stayed inside the small cave on Devil’s Oven Island. His daughter Kate ran supplies to him.

The cave entrance is in plain sight of A Bay, making it a poor hideout. It is also narrow and claustrophobic, an unlikely dwelling for a large, active man.

Kate later said the cave story was a fabrication but you will still hear locals swear by it.

His real story – still interesting - is here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Johnston_(pirate)
M King
1977 GL1000 - Under s l o w restoration
1981 CB900C - Rebuilt but stripped spark plug thread
2002 VTX 1800 -Current Rider
1984 GL1200 Aspencade - Restored and Sold
1980 Suzuki GS850G - Restoration on hold
1985 750 Nighthawk SC - Sold
1976 GL1000 - Yellow - Restored and Sold (regret the sale)
1981 GL1100 - Naked - Restored and Sold
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