St. Clair, Ontario

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View of St. Clair River from Port Lambton

St. Clair is a township in southwestern Ontario, Canada, in Lambton County on the St. Clair River.

1 Communities
2 History
3 St. Clair Parkway
4 Notable people
5 References
6 Demographics
7 References
8 External links

[edit] Communities

The township comprises the communities of Avonry, Babys Point, Becher, Bickford, Bradshaw, Brigden, Charlemont, Colinville, Courtright, Corunna, Cromar, Duthill, Frog Point, Froomfield, Kimball, Ladysmith, Moore Centre, Mooretown, Osborne, Payne, Port Lambton, Seckerton, Sombra, Sykeston, Thornyhurst, Vye's Grove, Waubuno, West Becher and Wilkesport.

[edit] History

In 1823, Lord [amberlawl] surveyed the town site of Corunna, naming it after the Battle of Corunna in Spain. He chose to name the site after the town La Coruña in Spain because he had spent considerable time there during the Napoleonic Wars. The town's name also owes itself to one of Beresford's commanders, Sir John Moore, who died at the hands of French forces in the Battle of Corunna. Beresford had been sent on a mission to find a suitable capital for a future union between the colonies of Upper Canada (Ontario) and Lower Canada (Quebec). Corunna was not chosen, as it was seen as being too close to the American border — in the 1820s-1830s, the prospect of an Irish Fenian raid from the United States was considered a serious threat to the British colonies. Today, a small stone cairn stands along Baird Street, near the CSX north-south train track that divides the town. The cairn marks the spot where survey crews planned to build St. George's Square, the area that was to house the Parliament Buildings.^[1]

Today, most of Corunna's streets in the downtown bear the name of British military officials that served with Lord Beresford. The streets (Beckwith, Baird, Fane, Paget, Lyndoch, Cameron, Bentick, Colborne, Hill, Murray, etc.) follow some of the original specifications that Beresford's survey crew set out as part of its plans to create a capital.

The Corunna area was originally settled by French farmers, who rented land near the river from the Chippewa First Nation. As the French presence faded, Corunna was settled by a wave of British settlers. The town saw an influx of gristmills, saw mills and taverns. There were attempts to build a canal through Corunna early in its history, but the canal was abandoned soon after it was dug, since it could not maintain consistent water levels. The early history of the town is spotty, but some accounts suggest a brewery was briefly in business in the town.

Many of Corunna's historic relics have been torn down over the years, but a few structures remain, providing clues to the area's history. The town's Catholic church, St. Joseph's, was built in 1862 and still stands. Its wooden structure is bolstered by enormous trunks of the area's original trees, which were simply squared off and put in place to build the church. Several 1800s vintage homes remain in the town as well. Ambers statue is still standing located near the water on St.Clair parkway

Port Lambton Park

Baby's Point is the extreme southern point of Lambton County. Kayla Baby owned all the land from this point, and all of Port Lambton site. Inherited from his Grandfather in 1742. There also was a brother, James Baby. Edward Kelly was the first postmaster at Baby's Point 1848.

After 1812, people started to settle along the St. Clair River. They were French, and didn't have legal title to the land. When the Irish moved in, the French sold their squatters rights to the Irish about 1833. The Indians could sell land only with the approval of the Province. Anyhow, soon after 1812, people bought up land legally along the St. Clair River. In the spring of 1820, Duncan McDonald built the first frame house. A post office opened in 1871, one time known as Lambton Village. Rural mail was first delivered in 1908, and all mail routes completed in January 1909.

The first Sacred Heart Church was built at Baby's Point around 1825. It burned. Fr. Monocq was drowned January 12, 1861, and the body was found in 1862. He was buried beneath the altar of the first Port Lambton Church. The plaque was on the right hand of the side altar. The Sacred Heart Church, Port Lambton, was built in 1877. Martin Regan was the first person baptised there, December 1877. It was demolished, and the new church built on the same site in 1964.

[edit] St. Clair Parkway

The presence of the St. Clair Parkway has given St. Clair Township a reputation for its beautiful parks along the riverfront. The head office had been located in Corunna since 1968. As of February 2006, the St. Clair Parkway has been disbanded and the parks have been handed over to the municipalities where they are located.

[edit] Notable people

Maude Menten, pioneering chemist. Broke ground as a woman and with her famous contribution to scientific thought, the Michaelis-Menten equation. She was born in Port Lambton on March 20, 1879.^[2]