Morrisburg is an unincorporated community in the Municipality of South Dundas, located in Eastern Ontario, Canada.

History

On November 11, 1813, the Battle of Crysler's Farm, at which a British force repelled an invading American army, took place near what was later to be called Morrisburg. United Empire Loyalist settlers settled in Dundas County, creating West Williamsburg and was part of the Williamsburg Canal project. Between 1843 and 1856, canals were built on the north side of the St. Lawrence River. West Williamsburg was renamed Morrisburg in 1851 in honour of

Brockville, Ontario Brockville, formerly Elizabethtown, is a city in Eastern Ontario, Canada, in the Thousand Islands region. Although it is the seat of the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville, it is politically independent of the county. It is included with Le ...

, politician James Morris, who was named the first Postmaster General of the

United Province of Canada The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report on the ...

. Incorporated as a village in 1860, Morrisburg had a growing manufacturing base consisting of a gristmill, a carding mill and a fanning mill. The Grand Trunk Railway reached Morrisburg in 1855. Eventually a power station was built on the St. Lawrence River. During the 1950s, portions of Morrisburg were relocated because of expected flooding caused by the

St. Lawrence Seaway The St. Lawrence Seaway (french: la Voie Maritime du Saint-Laurent) is a system of locks, canals, and channels in Canada and the United States that permits oceangoing vessels to travel from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes of North Americ ...

project. Over 80 homes were moved and the entire downtown business district was demolished and relocated to a shopping plaza. The

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN i ...

line was moved 1.1 kilometers north of its original location. Much of the former railbed was used in the reconstruction of Ontario Highway 2. Buildings and other artifacts were moved and assembled to create

Upper Canada Village Upper Canada Village is a heritage park near Morrisburg, Ontario, which depicts a 19th-century village in Upper Canada. History Construction of Upper Canada Village began in 1958 as part of the St. Lawrence Seaway project, which required the ...

, a tribute to the area's pioneers.Mochoruk, Jim and Hinther, Rhonda
''Re-imagining Ukrainian Canadians: History, Politics, and Identity''
University of Toronto Press, 2011. A notable incident in the history of

high-speed rail in Canada Several plans have been proposed for high-speed rail in Canada, the only G7 country that does not have any high-speed rail. In the press and popular discussion, there have been two routes frequently proposed as suitable for a high-speed rail cor ...

took place near Morrisburg in 1979, when a UAC TurboTrain operated by Via Rail on westbound service from Montréal to Toronto caught fire after developing an oil leak. The train was quickly evacuated and ultimately a third of it was destroyed in the fire. The troubled Turbo Trains were retired a few years later, in 1982. In 1997, Morrisburg was amalgamated with the Village of Iroquois, along with

Matilda Matilda or Mathilda may refer to: Animals * Matilda (chicken) (1990–2006), World's Oldest Living Chicken record holder * Matilda (horse) (1824–1846), British Thoroughbred racehorse * Matilda, a dog of the professional wrestling tag-team The ...

and

Williamsburg Williamsburg may refer to: Places *Colonial Williamsburg, a living-history museum and private foundation in Virginia *Williamsburg, Brooklyn, neighborhood in New York City *Williamsburg, former name of Kernville (former town), California *Williams ...

Townships, into the Township of South Dundas.

References

External links

{{authority control Former villages in Ontario Communities in the United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry Ontario populated places on the Saint Lawrence River

History

References

Further reading

External links