Windsor, Ontario
| City of Windsor, Ontario | |||||
 | |||||
| |||||
| Nickname: "The City of Roses" | |||||
| Motto: The river and the land sustain us. | |||||
 | |||||
| Coordinates: | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country | Canada | ||||
| Province | Ontario | ||||
| County | Essex* | ||||
| Settled | 1748 | ||||
| Incorporated | 1854 | ||||
| Mayor | Eddie Francis | ||||
| Governing body | Windsor City Council | ||||
| Area | |||||
| - City | 120.6 km² (46.6 sq mi) | ||||
| - Metro | 1,022.5 km² (394.7 sq mi) | ||||
| Elevation | 190 m (622 ft) | ||||
| Population | |||||
| - City (2001) | 208,402** | ||||
| - Density | 1,727.7/km² (4,474.7/sq mi) | ||||
| - Metro | 307,877 | ||||
| - Metro Density | 301.1/km² (779.8/sq mi) | ||||
| Data Source: Stats Canada | |||||
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) | ||||
| - Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) | ||||
| Website: City of Windsor | |||||
Windsor is the southernmost city in Canada. It lies at the western end of the heavily populated Quebec City-Windsor Corridor, is the second largest city in Southwestern Ontario, and is the seat of Essex County. It sits across the Detroit River from Detroit, Michigan, to which Windsor is linked by the Ambassador Bridge and the Detroit–Windsor Tunnel for vehicles, and by the Michigan Central Railway Tunnel for rail traffic. Windsor is located south of Detroit and marks the only border crossing where entering the mainland United States from Canada involves travelling north. Because they are located directly across the river from each other, they form a metropolitan area, Windsor-Detroit. The current mayor of Windsor is Eddie Francis.
Contents |
History
Windsor was first settled in 1748 as a French agricultural settlement, making it the oldest continually inhabited city in Canada west of the Quebec border. The area was first named Petite Côte (Little Coast), and later became known as La Côte de Misère (Poverty Coast) because of the sandy soils near LaSalle. Windsor's French heritage is reflected in many French street names, such as Ouellette, Pelissier, Marentette and Lauzon. There is a significant French speaking minority in Windsor and the surrounding areas. Many of them are in the Lakeshore area. The current street system of Windsor (grid with elongated blocks) reflects the French method of agricultural land division where the farms were long and narrow, fronting along the river.
In 1794, after the American Revolution, the settlement of Sandwich was founded. It was later renamed to Windsor, after the town in Berkshire, England. The Sandwich neighbourhood on Windsor's west side is home to the oldest buildings in the city including Mackenzie Hall, originally built as the Essex County courthouse in 1855. Today, this building functions as a community centre. The oldest building in the city is the Duff-Baby House built in 1798. It is owned by Ontario Heritage Trust and houses government offices.
Windsor was established as a village in 1854 (the same year the village was connected to the rest of Canada, by the Grand Trunk Railway/CN Rail), then a town in 1858, and ultimately gained city status in 1892.
The city's growth in the twentieth century was spurred by annexations, which included Walkerville.
The Windsor Star Centennial Edition in 1992 covered the city's past, its heyday as a railroading centre, and its contributions to World War I and World War II. It also recalled the naming controversy in 1892, when the town of Windsor wanted to become a city.
Demographics
Image:Windsorriverfront.jpg
| Ethnic Origin | Population | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| French | 75,785 | 24.85% |
| English | 62,210 | 20.39% |
| Irish | 42,645 | 13.98% |
| Scottish | 38,545 | 12.63% |
| Italian | 30,685 | 10.06% |
[1]In the 2001 Canadian census, the city had a population of 208,402 and its official metropolitan area (consisting of Windsor, Tecumseh, Amherstburg, LaSalle and Lakeshore) had a population of 307,877 (see Metro Detroit). The 2005 projectory census indicated a population of 340,000 inhabitants growing at an average 1.4% annually. Windsor attracts many immigrants from around the world. It is the fourth most diverse city in Canada with over 20% of its residents being classified as foreign-born.
According to the 2001 census, the Windsor metropolitan area had a population of 307,877 people, 49.3 % male and 50.7 % female. Children under five accounted for approximately 6.3% of the resident population of Windsor, compared to 5.8% in Ontario and almost 5.6% for Canada overall. Persons of retirement age (65 and over for males and female) accounted for 14.1% of the resident population in Windsor compared with 12.9% for Canada overall. The average age in Windsor is 36.0 years compared to 37.6 years for all of Canada. The population density of Windsor is 1728 people per square kilometre, compared with an average of 12.6 for Ontario. The religious profile of Windsor is as follows: 82.93% Christian, 3.52% Muslim, 2.49% other religions, and 11.06% non-affliliated.[2]
Economy
Windsor competes with Oshawa, Ontario for the title of automotive capital of Canada, with Windsor housing the Daimler-Chrysler Canadian Headquarters, and Oshawa housing the General Motors Canadian Headquarters. Industries include the DaimlerChrysler mini-van assembly plant, several Ford Motor Company engine and casting plants, the General Motors transmission plant and the Hiram Walker Canadian Club plant, along with a number of smaller parts manufacturers that supply the larger plants. Windsor is also known as a global leader in the building of molds for the plastic injection industry.
Labour union membership is very high in Windsor, and both of the city's current federal Members of Parliament are members of the New Democratic Party. The Canadian Auto Workers Union has a strong and influential presence in the city. Windsor is also home to the Great Lakes Regional Office of the International Joint Commission.
Transportation
Windsor is the western terminus of both Ontario Highway 401, Canada's busiest highway, and of VIA Rail's Quebec City-Windsor Corridor. The city is served by Windsor Airport with regular, scheduled commuter air service and heavy general aviation traffic. The Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport is located across the river in Michigan. Windsor is also located on the St. Lawrence Seaway, and is accessible to ocean-going vessels.
Local transportation is handled by Transit Windsor, the city-owned bus company, which shares its downtown depot with Greyhound Lines.
Windsor has completed a municipal highway, E.C. Row Expressway, running from east-west through the city. Consisting of 15.7 kilometres (10 mi) of highway and nine interchanges, the expressway is the fastest way for commuters to travel across the city.
The city is connected to Essex and Leamington via Highway 3, and is well connected to the other municipalities and communities throughout Essex County via its county road network.
Windsor is linked to the United States by the Ambassador Bridge, the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel, a Canadian Pacific Railway tunnel, and the Detroit-Windsor Truck Ferry. The Ambassador Bridge is North America's #1 international border crossing in terms of goods volume: 27% of all trade between Canada and the United States crosses at the Ambassador Bridge.
A current issue in Windsor is traffic around the Ambassador Bridge. The number of vehicles crossing the bridge has doubled in the past fifteen years and, since the September 11, 2001 attacks, travelling through customs on the U.S. side takes much longer. The only way to access the bridge or tunnel is from two municipal roads: Huron Church Road (Bridge) and Wyandotte Street(Tunnel). A large portion of the traffic is 18-wheeler trucks. There have been at times a wall of trucks up to eight kilometres (five miles) long on Huron Church Road. This road cuts through the west end of the city and the trucks are the source of many complaints about noise, pollution and pedestrian hazards. While in a very good state of repair, it had the distinction of being number 17 on a list of Canada's worst roads.
Windsor paid world famous traffic consultant Sam Schwartz to produce a proposal for a solution to this traffic problem. The city councillors have overwhelmingly endorsed the proposal and it was presented to the federal government as the solution that the city officially approves. Unfortunately, not all of the surrounding residents support the plan the city paid for. The problem with the plan is that the proposed roadway would cut through protected green space such as Ojibway Park. The federal government wasn't expecting the city to be able to agree upon a proposal of any sort and are now pushing for short term, cheaper solutions.
On November 14, 2005, the joint Canadian-American committee studying the options for expanding the border crossing announced that its preferred option was to directly extend Highway 401 westward, using a new bridge or tunnel to cross the Detroit River and interchange with Interstate 75 somewhere between the existing Ambassador Bridge span and Wyandotte. The exact route of this new highway connection has not yet been determined. [3]
Education
Windsor is home to the University of Windsor, which is Canada's southernmost university. It is a research oriented, comprehensive university. It has a student population of over 15,000 full-time and part-time undergraduate students and over 1000 graduate students. The university is just east of the Ambassador Bridge, south of the Detroit River. Windsor is also home to St. Clair College, a community college.
Windsor is also home to two International Baccalaureate recognized schools, Assumption College School, a catholic high school, and St Cecile's, a private school.
Attractions
Windsor tourist attractions include Casino Windsor, a lively downtown, the Capitol Theatre, Little Italy, the Art Gallery of Windsor, the Odette Sculpture Park, Ojibway Park, and nearby Point Pelee National Park. Windsor was a major entry point into Canada for refugees from slavery via the Underground Railroad and a major source of liquor during American Prohibition.
Windsor's nickname is the "City of Roses" and the city is noted for its several large parks and gardens found on its waterfront. The Queen Elizabeth II Sunken Garden is located at Jackson Park in the central part of the city. A WWII era Lancaster Bomber was displayed on a stand in the middle of Jackson Park for over four decades, but has since been removed for restoration. This park is now home to a mounted Spitfire replica and a Hurricane replica.
Of the parks along Windsor's waterfront, the largest is the five-kilometre (three mile) stretch overlooking the Detroit skyline. It stretches from the Ambassador Bridge to the Hiram Walker Distillery. The western portion of the park contains the Odette Sculpture Park which features over 30 large-scale contemporary sculptures for public viewing, along with the Canadian Vietnam Veterans Memorial. The central portion contains Dieppe Gardens, Civic Terrace and Festival Plaza, and the eastern portion is home to the Bert Weeks Memorial Gardens. Further east along the waterfront is Coventry Gardens, across from Detroit's Belle Isle. The focal point of this park is the Charles Brooks Memorial Peace Fountain which actually floats in the Detroit River and has a coloured light display at night. The fountain is the largest of its kind in North America and symbolizes the peaceful relationship between Canada and the United States.
Every summer Windsor co-hosts the two-week-long Windsor-Detroit International Freedom Festival, which culminates in a gigantic fireworks display that celebrates Canada Day and the American Independence Day. The fireworks display is among the world's largest and is held on the final Wednesday in June on the Detroit River between the two downtowns. Each year, the event attracts over a million spectators to both sides of the riverfront.
Windsor has also been the place where many Detroiters find what is forbidden in the United States. With the minimum legal drinking age at twenty-one in Michigan and nineteen in Ontario, a number of nineteen and twenty year-old Americans frequent Windsor's bars. The city also became a gaming attraction with Casino Windsor's opening in 1994, five years before casinos opened in Detroit. In addition, one can purchase Cuban cigars, less-costly prescription drugs, certain imported foods, and other items not available in the US.
A complete listing of local events and festivals can be found in The Windsor & Essex County Events Directory.
Parks and recreation
Windsor's Department of Parks and Recreation maintains 3,000 acres of green space, 180 parks, 64 kilometres (40 mi) of trails, 35 kilometres (22 mi) of sidewalk, 60 parking lots, vacant lands, natural areas and forest cover within the city of Windsor, as well as the bike trails, bike lanes, and bike-friendly streets. The largest park is Mic Mac Park, which can accommodate many different activities including baseball, soccer, biking, playground for children, and even a couple of water slides. Windsor has numerous bike trails that criss-cross the city.
Climate
Windsor has a humid continental climate (Koppen climate classification Dfa) with four distinct seasons pronounced with high humidity year round as it is surrounded by fresh water. The winters are cold and wet with an average of 107 cm (42 inches) of snow and temperatures consistently below 0°C (32°F), with temperatures dipping on rare occasions as low as -25°C (-13°F). Windsor receives the least amount of snow in eastern and central Canada[4] and the snow cover is not continuous; it comes and goes in the winter.
Summers are warm and humid with temperatures regularly reaching highs of 30°C (86°F) and sudden, short term thunderstorms often occurring. Windsor is Canada's leader in lightning days, haze, humidity, and days over 30°C (86°F). The summer high temperature reaches as high as 38°C (100°F) from time to time.
The strongest tornado to hit Windsor was an F4 in 1946. It was also the deadliest. Windsor was also the only Canadian city to be hit by a tornado during the Super Outbreak of 1974, an F3 which killed nine people at the Windsor Curling Club. Windsor was also grazed in 1997 by the Southeast Michigan Tornado Outbreak, with one tornado (an F1) forming east of the city, and caused some local street flooding. The waters of Lake Erie, The Detroit River, and Lake St. Clair act as a slight natural deterrent to tornadoes but also add humidity and instability in the warm summer air, to fuel strong thunderstorms. Tornadoes have been recorded to cross the Detroit River (in 1946 and in 1997), and waterspouts are regularly seen over Lake St. Clair and Lake Erie in the fall.
For the weather records that have been set in Windsor, see Weather Records in Windsor, Ontario.
Media
Because of Windsor's proximity to the Detroit media market, radio and television broadcasters in Windsor are accorded a special status by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission exempting them from many of the Canadian content ("CanCon") requirements most broadcasters in Canada are required to follow. The CanCon requirements are sometimes blamed in part for the decline in popularity of Windsor radio station CKLW, a 50,000 watt AM radio station that in the late 1960s (prior to the advent of CanCon) had been the number one radio station not only in Detroit and Windsor, but also in the Toledo and Cleveland markets.
Windsor is also exempt from concentration of media ownership rules: all of its commercial broadcast outlets are owned by a single company, CHUM Limited.
Radio
- 540 AM - CBEF, La Première Chaîne
- 580 AM - CKWW, oldies
- 800 AM - CKLW, news/talk
- 1550 AM - CBE, CBC Radio One
- 88.7 FM - CIMX, 89X modern rock
- 89.9 FM - CBE, CBC Radio Two
- 91.5 FM - CJAM, University of Windsor campus radio
- 93.9 FM - CIDR, The River 93.9 adult contemporary
- 95.1 FM - CKUE, The Rock active rock (co-channel rebroadcaster of a station from Chatham-Kent. Recently received CRTC approval to move to 100.7)
- 103.9 FM - CJBC-2, Espace Musique
See also AM and FM radio stations in the Detroit market.
Television
- Channel 9 - CBET, CBC
- Channel 32 - CICO-32, TVOntario
- Channel 54 - CBEFT, SRC
- Channel 60 - CHWI, A-Channel
See also TV stations in the Detroit, Toledo, and Cleveland markets.
Windsor and most of Essex County, Ontario also receive television stations from Toledo, Ohio (WTOL, WTVG, WNWO, WGTE, and WUPW), and the southern part of the county receives some of Cleveland, Ohio's television stations (WKYC-TV, WEWS, WJW-TV, and WOIO). Only WTOL, WTVG, and WNWO are carried on cable services. There are times that WILX-TV from Grand Ledge, Michigan (near Lansing) can be seen, albeit weakly, in Windsor, much in the same manner as CKCO-TV's translator in Sarnia, and CIII-TV, CHCH-TV, and CFMT-TV, all from London.
Windsor and its surrounding area is served by the Windsor Star, a daily newspaper operated by CanWest Global Communications. Alternatively, upfront magazine, established in 1995 by Anis Elkassem, provides a voice to the underground arts, music and culture scene. Other newspapers available in Windsor include:
Film
The 2000 film Borderline Normal, featuring Robin Dunne, Stephanie Zimbalist, Corbin Bernsen and Michael Ironside, is set in Windsor. Many exterior locations, such as Ouellette Avenue, Dieppe Park and the Ambassador Bridge were featured.
Sports teams
Windsor's sports fans tend to support the major professional sports league teams in nearby Detroit, but the city itself is home to the following minor league, post-secondary and youth teams:
- Windsor Spitfires (Ontario Hockey League Major Junior "A")
- Windsor AKO Fratmen (Ontario Lacrosse Association Junior "B")
- Windsor AKO Fratmen (Canadian Junior Football League)
- Windsor Border Stars (Canadian Soccer League)
- Windsor Mariners (Ontario Australian Football League)
- Windsor Lancers (Canadian Interuniversity Sport)
- St. Clair Saints (Canadian Colleges Athletic Association)
In addition to these teams, Windsor has been lobbying for a Canadian Football League franchise. This franchise (if awarded) would play its regular-season home games in Windsor and possibly their playoff games in Pontiac, a suburb of Detroit. Current CFL commissioner Tom Wright met with Windsor mayor Eddie Francis about possible expansion to Windsor during the run-up to Super Bowl XL, in which Windsor played a major role although the game itself was held in Detroit. Shortly thereafter, media in the Windsor Star and other local news sources criticized this as an unrealistic pipe dream.
Notables
Sports
- Aaron Ward, NHL hockey player
- Oshiomogho Atogwe, NFL football player
- Reno Bertoia, MLB baseball player
- Hank Biasatti, MLB baseball player, NBA basketball player
- Bob Boughner, former NHL hockey player
- Sean Burke, NHL hockey player
- Stubby Clapp, MLB player
- Sharon Creelman, field hockey player
- Ken Daneyko, former NHL hockey player
- Andy Delmore, NHL hockey player
- Tie Domi, NHL hockey player
- Dan Jancevski, NHL hockey player
- Ed Jovanovski, NHL hockey player
- Killer Kowalski, Professional Wrestler
- Tim Kerr, former NHL hockey player
- Steve Moore, NHL hockey player
- Bob Probert, former NHL hockey player
- Joel Quenneville, NHL hockey coach and former player
- Larry Shreve, NWA Professional Wrestler
- Joe Siddall, MLB baseball player
- John Tucker, former NHL hockey player
- Kyle Wellwood, NHL hockey player
- Ron Wilson, NHL hockey coach
- Petey Williams TNA Wrestling superstar
Culture
- James Bondy, entertainer, star of the children's show Ribert and Robert's Wonderworld
- Jeff Burrows, drummer of The Tea Party
- Stuart Chatwood, bass player of The Tea Party/composer Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
- Ashley Coulter, Canadian Idol 2006 Finalist
- Colm Feore, actor
- Marty Gervais, poet and publisher
- Barbara Gowdy, novelist
- Richie Hawtin, techno musician
- Jeff Martin, former guitarist and lead vocalist of The Tea Party
- Terry Pickford, award-winning Hollywood producer/editor
- Oliver Platt, television and film actor
- Jack Scott, rockabilly singer
- Alec Somerville singer. songwriter
- Alexander 'Skip' Spence, composer, multi-instrumentalist, member of Jefferson Airplane, Moby Grape
- Shania Twain, singer and songwriter
- Tamia, R&B singer
- Chris G. Vaillancourt, poet, artist
- Daniel Wnukowski, concert pianist
Politics
- Ernie Eves, former premier of Ontario
- Herb Gray, former Liberal Member of Parliament and former Deputy Prime Minister of Canada
- Paul Martin, Liberal former Prime Minister of Canada
- Paul Martin, Sr., longtime federal cabinet minister and father of the former PM
- John Swainson, Governor of Michigan 1961-1963
Sciences
- David H. Hubel, research scientist and Nobel Prize winner.
- Mike Lazaridis, research scientist and CEO of Research in Motion
- Mike Marin,zoology,biology
External links
- University of Windsor
- City of Windsor website
- Department of Parks and Recreation (Windsor)
- Windsor on WikiTravel
- Windsor Public Library historic site tour
- Street photographs of Windsor
- University of Windsor
- St. Clair College
- The Windsor Star
- A-Channel Windsor
- CBC Windsor
- Cycle Windsor (Also has free online Map of bike network, in PDF format
- Windsor BUMP: Bike User Master Plan
- Trans-Canada Trail
- Community Portal
- Windsor Board
- Capitol Theatre
- upfront magazine
- Arts Council - Windsor & Region
- Katelyn Bedard Bone Marrow Association
- Huron Church Road at WorstRoads.ca
