The History of The Ottawa River

The Ottawa River is the traditional territory of the Algonquin peoples.

The large waterway was originally known as the ‘Grande Rivière des Algonquins’ or ‘Grande Rivière du Nord’ amongst the French, ‘Kichi Sibi’ amongst the Algonquin Peoples (translates to the ‘Great River’ or ‘La Grande Rivière’) and still holds its nickname as the ‘Original Trans Canada Highway’. Its nickname comes from its recognized trade route which was where the first Canadians and Europeans engaged in fur, timber, and lumber trade.

This Ottawa River is in East-Central Canada and is the principal tributary of the St. Lawrence River. Due to the flow of the river (it runs for 790 miles), and permanence, the Ottawa River is by default the “heart of one of Canada’s most ecologically and economically important watersheds”.

Exploration of the Ottawa River

In search of new territories, Samuel de Champlain traveled far and wide. In 1613, he came across the Ottawa River and travelled “as far as Allumette Island on the Ottawa River.” After Samuel, many more explorers sought lands along the iconic waterway, including explorers such as LaVerendrye, Simon Fraser, Sir John Franklin, and David Thompson.

It is recorded that the French explorer and cartographer Samuel de Champlain’s astrolabe – “a compact instrument used to observe and calculate the position of celestial bodies before the invention of the sextant” was found in Cobden, Ontario in 1867. The story goes that Champlain and his men journeyed through small lakes near Cobden to bypass rapids and on their path, were “forced to portage and climb over and under fallen logs at one particularly difficult point by Green Lake” (Green lake is now known as Astrolabe lake). Through this turn of events, many years later it had emerged and was confirmed by many 19th century authors that Samuel de Chaplain’s astrolabe was recovered there. It is somewhat “unearthly” that his astrolabe had been found as it is a profound finding within Canadian history. Today, it is housed within the Canadian Museum of Civilization in Hull, Quebec where it is a key artifact amongst a collection of historic valuables.

Trade on the Ottawa River

Fur was a “luxury article in Europe” so European settlers struck gold when they discovered the fur trade along The Ottawa River. The frenzy of having the material to make “broad-brimmed beaver hats” swept over the continent which further heightened the pursuit. In the 17th century, King Henry IV of France “focused on the fur trade to acquire the revenue required to establish a North American empire.” Acquiring many beaver pelts drove him to send expensive boats through the Atlantic. One can say that the demand and profit fur had at the time is likened to a modern-day person buying and selling land, as the value was significant and could increase over time. Additionally, “the First Nations Peoples were able to benefit from this trade from the acquisition of utilitarian items for cooking, hunting, building, and sewing.”

Human impact on The Ottawa River

For 8,500+ years, dating back to Algonquin ancestors, humans have impacted the Ottawa River by utilizing its natural resources, hunting, gathering, and “living along its banks”. The more recent construction of urban estates, resource extraction, area development, wetland destruction, river dams, and other manmade factors, its area and landscape has compromised the wetlands. Maintaining the ecological health of the Ottawa River and learning how our cumulative human impact affects the richness and quality of the river, is crucial to its generational livelihood and system. With that being said, we give a well-deserved THANK YOU to the Ottawa River Keepers as they contribute to the health of the river that the future generations can experience and appreciate.

Animal & Plant life of The Ottawa River

The “deep lakes and fast-flowing waters of the Ottawa River” is the perfect combination for biotic and abiotic life to thrive and multiply in. “It provides habitat for more than 85 fish species, 300 bird species, approximately 53 mammal species, and 33 species of amphibians and reptiles. You can also find at least 14 different species of freshwater mussels in the Ottawa River.” In the forests surrounding this “mother” of a river, the Ottawa River is largely “home to many other mammals such as squirrels, chipmunks, rabbits, raccoons, mice, bats, and white-tailed deer. Along more northerly boreal sections of the river are wolves, wolverines, lynx, marten, and moose.” The Ottawa River is simply full of life, richness, and beauty.

The next time you journey on the river, remember its rich and ancient history. Let’s make sure to protect it!

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Sources

The History of The Ottawa River