Sault Ste. Marie ( ) is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is at the St. Mary's River on the Canada–US border. It is the third largest city in Northern Ontario, after

Sudbury Sudbury may refer to: Places Australia * Sudbury Reef, Queensland Canada * Greater Sudbury, Ontario (official name; the city continues to be known simply as Sudbury for most purposes) ** Sudbury (electoral district), one of the city's federal e ...

and Thunder Bay. The Ojibwe, the indigenous Anishinaabe inhabitants of the area, call this area , meaning "place of the rapids." They used this as a regional meeting place during whitefish season in the St. Mary's Rapids (the anglicized form of this name, Bawating, is used in institutional and geographic names in the area). To the south, across the river, is the United States and the Michigan city of the same name. These two communities were one city until a new treaty after the War of 1812 established the border between Canada and the United States in this area at the St. Mary's River. In the 20th century, the two cities are joined by the International Bridge, which connects Interstate 75 on the Michigan side, and Huron Street (and former Ontario Secondary Highway 550B) on the Ontario side. Shipping traffic in the Great Lakes system bypasses the Saint Mary's Rapids via the American Soo Locks, the world's busiest canal in terms of tonnage that passes through it, while smaller recreational and tour boats use the Canadian

Sault Ste. Marie Canal The Sault Ste. Marie Canal is a National Historic Site in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, and is part of the national park system, managed by Parks Canada. It includes a lock to bypass the rapids on the St. Marys River. The first canal near the s ...

. French settlers referred to the rapids on the river as and the village name was derived from that. The rapids and cascades of the St. Mary's River descend more than from the level of Lake Superior to the level of the lower lakes. Hundreds of years ago, this slowed shipping traffic, requiring an overland portage of boats and cargo from one lake to the other. The entire name translates to 'Saint Mary's Rapids' or 'Saint Mary's Falls'. The word is pronounced in French, and in the English pronunciation of the city name. Residents of the city are called ''Saultites''. Sault Ste. Marie is bordered to the east by the Rankin Reserve (of Batchewana First Nation) and Garden River First Nation reserves, and to the west by Prince Township. To the north, the city is bordered by an unincorporated portion of Algoma District, which includes the local services boards of Aweres, Batchawana Bay,

Goulais and District Goulais and District is a local services board in the Canadian province of Ontario. Located in the Algoma District north of Sault Ste. Marie, it encompasses and provides services to the unincorporated townships of Dennis North, Fenwick, Havillan ...

, Peace Tree and Searchmont. The city's

census agglomeration The census geographic units of Canada are the census subdivisions defined and used by Canada's federal government statistics bureau Statistics Canada to conduct the country's quinquennial census. These areas exist solely for the purposes of st ...

, including the townships of Laird, Prince and Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional and the

First Nations reserves In Canada, an Indian reserve (french: réserve indienne) is specified by the ''Indian Act'' as a "tract of land, the legal title to which is vested in Monarchy of Canada, Her Majesty, that has been set apart by Her Majesty for the use and benef ...

of Garden River and Rankin, had a total population of 79,800 in 2011. Native American settlements, mostly of Ojibwe-speaking peoples, existed here for more than 500 years. In the late 17th century, French Jesuit missionaries established a mission at the First Nations village. This was followed by development of a fur trading post and larger settlement, as traders, trappers and Native Americans were attracted to the community. It was considered one community and part of Canada until after the War of 1812 and settlement of the border between Canada and the US at the Ste. Mary's River. At that time, the US prohibited British traders from operating in its territory any longer, and the areas separated by the river began to develop as two communities, both named Sault Ste. Marie.

History

Early history

After the visit of Étienne Brûlé in 1623, the

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

called it ''Sault de Gaston'' in honour of

Gaston, Duke of Orléans '' Monsieur'' Gaston, Duke of Orléans (Gaston Jean Baptiste; 24 April 1608 – 2 February 1660), was the third son of King Henry IV of France and his second wife, Marie de' Medici. As a son of the king, he was born a '' Fils de France''. He lat ...

, the brother of King Louis XIII of France. In 1668, French

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

missionaries renamed it as Sault Sainte-Marie, and established a mission settlement (present-day Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan) on the river's south bank. Later, a fur trading post was established and the settlement expanded to include both sides of the river. Sault Ste. Marie is one of the oldest French settlements in North America. It was at the crossroads of the fur trade route, which stretched from Montreal to Sault Ste. Marie and to the North country above Lake Superior. A cosmopolitan, mixed population of Europeans, First Nations peoples, and

Métis The Métis ( ; Canadian ) are Indigenous peoples who inhabit Canada's three Prairie Provinces, as well as parts of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and the Northern United States. They have a shared history and culture which derives ...

lived at the village spanning the river. The city name originates from ''Saults de Sainte-Marie'', archaic French for "Saint Mary's Falls", a reference to the

rapid Rapids are sections of a river where the river bed has a relatively steep gradient, causing an increase in water velocity and turbulence. Rapids are hydrological features between a ''run'' (a smoothly flowing part of a stream) and a ''cascade''. ...

s of Saint Marys River. Etymologically, the word ''sault'' comes from an archaic spelling of ''saut'' (from ''sauter''), which translates most accurately in this usage to the English word ''cataract''. This in turn derives from the

word for "leap" or "jump" (similar to '' somersault''). Citations dating back to 1600 use the ''sault'' spelling to mean a cataract, waterfall or rapids. In modern French, however, the words ''chutes'' or ''rapides'' are more usual. ''Sault'' survives almost exclusively in geographic names dating from the 17th century. (See also

Long Sault, Ontario Long may refer to: Measurement * Long, characteristic of something of great duration * Long, characteristic of something of great length * Longitude (abbreviation: long.), a geographic coordinate * Longa (music), note value in early music mensur ...

, Sault St. Louis, Quebec, and Grand Falls/Grand-Sault, New Brunswick, three other place names where "sault" also carries this meaning.) Traders regularly interacted with tribes from around the Great Lakes, and Scots-British fur trader John Johnston, his Ojibwe wife and multi-racial children were prominent among all societies here in the late eighteenth century. Their daughter,

Jane Johnston Schoolcraft Jane Johnston Schoolcraft, also known as Bamewawagezhikaquay (January 31, 1800 – May 22, 1842) is the one of earliest Native American literary writers. She was of Ojibwa and Scots-Irish ancestry. Her Ojibwa name can also be written as ''O-bah-ba ...

married

Henry Rowe Schoolcraft Henry Rowe Schoolcraft (March 28, 1793 – December 10, 1864) was an American geographer, geologist, and ethnologist, noted for his early studies of Native American cultures, as well as for his 1832 expedition to the source of the Mississippi R ...

, a US Indian agent and early ethnographer, and they had children. She has been recognized as the first Native American poet and writer in the United States.

War of 1812 and aftermath

This fluid environment changed during and after the War of 1812 between Britain and the United States. Trade dropped during the war and on July 20, 1814, an American force destroyed the

North West Company The North West Company was a fur trading business headquartered in Montreal from 1779 to 1821. It competed with increasing success against the Hudson's Bay Company in what is present-day Western Canada and Northwestern Ontario. With great weal ...

depot on the north shore of the St. Marys River. Since the Americans were unable to capture Fort Mackinac, the British forces retained control of Sault Ste. Marie. As noted, after the war with a new border defined, the US closed its territory to British Canadian traders, shutting off much interaction. Red River Expedition cairn 2

In 1870, the United States refused to give the steamer ''Chicona'', carrying Colonel Garnet Wolseley, permission to pass through the locks at Sault Ste Marie. In order to control their own water passage, the Canadians constructed the

, which was completed in 1895.

Canadian Pacific Railway

Sault Ste. Marie had been a target for railway expansion since the early 1880s, and there was considerable disagreement within the business consortium assembled to build the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

as to whether or not to route its

transcontinental line A transcontinental railroad or transcontinental railway is contiguous railroad trackage, that crosses a continental land mass and has terminals at different oceans or continental borders. Such networks can be via the tracks of either a single ...

through it. The symbolic "first spike" of the railway had been driven at Bonfield, Ontario in Nipissing District in 1881, and construction had been proceeding westward. The American railway magnate

James J. Hill James Jerome Hill (September 16, 1838 – May 29, 1916) was a Canadian-American railroad director. He was the chief executive officer of a family of lines headed by the Great Northern Railway, which served a substantial area of the Upper Midwes ...

, nicknamed the "Empire Builder", supported a route through Sault Ste. Marie, which would allow for both a "water bridge" to the head of Lake Superior at Thunder Bay and an all-rail connection to the west via American railways in the

Midwest The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...

, benefiting Hill's

St Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba Railroad The Great Northern Railway was an American Class I railroad. Running from Saint Paul, Minnesota, to Seattle, Washington, it was the creation of 19th-century railroad entrepreneur James J. Hill and was developed from the Saint Paul & Pacific ...

. Simultaneously, there were political considerations around the railway as a nation-building project coupled with fears of American expansionism. During the Red River Rebellion, the Wolseley expedition had left Toronto in May 1870 and only arrived at Fort Garry, Manitoba by August, with American control of the Sault Ste. Marie locks providing a potential impediment to future military transportation within Canada. An all-Canadian rail route would bypass this. A CPR line was surveyed and gradually constructed along the north shore of Lake Huron, cutting through the La Cloche Mountains, while the Central Ontario-based Midland Railway of Canada also surveyed its own line, but became insolvent and collapsed shortly after. The Northern Railway of Canada, which had pushed northward from Toronto to Lake Simcoe, sought to push further to North Bay and then cut west under a subsidiary called the Northern, North-Western, and Sault Ste. Marie Railway, competing directly with the CPR. It also collapsed and ultimately the line terminated at a junction with the CPR line south of North Bay, named Nipissing Junction. Throughout the abrupt rise and fall of these competing projects, CPR construction had slowly marched westward under engineer James Worthington. By 1884, however, changes had occurred in CPR management with the rise of William Cornelius Van Horne, who would later become the company's president. Both Hill and Worthington resigned from the company, and Hill became a bitter opponent of it. A new transcontinental mainline through Northern Ontario, passing directly through the interior and bypassing the lakeshore settlements along Lake Huron (including Sault Ste. Marie), was laid out and constructed from a point on the line which became known as Sudbury Junction. This junction point became a small CPR town, and with the discovery of vast mineral resources in the

Sudbury Basin The Sudbury Basin (), also known as Sudbury Structure or the Sudbury Nickel Irruptive, is a major geological structure in Ontario, Canada. It is the third-largest known impact crater or astrobleme on Earth, as well as one of the oldest. The cra ...

during the construction of this transcontinental line north of the junction, mining activity in the Sudbury area grew explosively, leading to the creation of Sudbury District in 1894 and shifting economic focus away from Sault Ste. Marie. The original CPR line (by then known as the CPR Algoma Branch), which had laid dormant until 1888, was finally reactivated and completed through to Sault Ste. Marie, joining with the

via the joint

Sault Ste. Marie International Railroad Bridge The Sault Ste. Marie Railroad Bridge was originally built in 1887 to facilitate rail traffic crossing St. Marys River (Michigan–Ontario), St. Marys River and the international border between Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan and Sault Ste. Marie, On ...

. Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario was incorporated as a town in 1888, but its economy stagnated toward the end of the 19th century with the decline of the fur trade.

20th century

The town gained brief international notoriety in 1911 in the trial of

Angelina Napolitano Angelina Napolitano (1882–1932) was an Immigration to Canada, immigrant to Canada who murdered her intimate partner violence, abusive husband in 1911, igniting a public debate about domestic violence and the Capital punishment, death penalty.Plat ...

, the first person in Canada to use the

battered woman defence Battered woman syndrome (BWS) is a pattern of signs and symptoms displayed by a woman who has suffered persistent intimate partner violence: whether psychological, physical, or sexual, from her male partner. It is classified in the ICD-9 (code ) a ...

for murder. It was incorporated as a city in the following year of 1912. During World War II, and particularly after the US was attacked at Pearl Harbor in 1941, government concern turned to protection of the locks and shipping channel at Sault Ste. Marie. A substantial military presence was established to protect the locks from a possible attack by Nazi German aircraft from the north. The recent development of long-range bombers increased fears of a sudden air raid. Military strategists studied polar projection maps, which indicated that the air distance from occupied Norway to the town was about the same as the distance from Norway to New York. That direct route of about is over terrain where there were few observers and long winter nights. A joint Canadian and US committee called the "Permanent Joint Board on Defence" drove the installation of anti-aircraft defence and associated units of the United States Army Air Forces and Royal Canadian Air Force to defend the locks. An anti-aircraft training facility was established north of Sault Ste. Marie on the shores of Lake Superior.

Barrage balloon A barrage balloon is a large uncrewed tethered balloon used to defend ground targets against aircraft attack, by raising aloft steel cables which pose a severe collision risk to aircraft, making the attacker's approach more difficult. Early barra ...

s were installed, and early warning radar bases were established at five locations in northern Ontario (

Kapuskasing Kapuskasing is a town on the Kapuskasing River in the Cochrane District of Northern Ontario, Canada, approximately east of Hearst. The town was known as MacPherson until 1917, when the name was changed so as not to conflict with another railw ...

Cochrane Cochrane may refer to: Places Australia *Cochrane railway station, Sydney, a railway station on the closed Ropes Creek railway line Canada * Cochrane, Alberta * Cochrane Lake, Alberta * Cochrane District, Ontario ** Cochrane, Ontario, a town wit ...

, Hearst, Armstrong (Thunder Bay District), and

Nakina Greenstone is an amalgamated town in the Canadian province of Ontario with a population of 4,636 according to the 2016 Canadian Census. It stretches along Highway 11 from Lake Nipigon to Longlac and covers . The town was formed in 2001, as part ...

) to watch for incoming aircraft. Military personnel were established to guard sensitive parts of the transportation infrastructure. A little over one year later, in January 1943, most of these facilities and defences were deemed excessive and removed, save a reduced military base at Sault Ste. Marie. The first ''Algerine''-class minesweeper in the Royal Canadian Navy was named HMCS ''Sault Ste. Marie'' (J334) after the city. It was laid down in 1942 and acted as a convoy escort in the

Battle of the Atlantic The Battle of the Atlantic, the longest continuous military campaign in World War II, ran from 1939 to the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, covering a major part of the naval history of World War II. At its core was the Allied naval blockade ...

. On January 29, 1990, Sault Ste. Marie became a flashpoint in the Meech Lake Accord constitutional debate when council passed a resolution declaring English as the city's official language and the sole language for provision of municipal services. French speakers had already gained the use of French as an official language for government services. The city had a sizable French-speaking population and these residents objected strongly to the council's action. The

Sault Ste. Marie language resolution The Sault Ste. Marie language resolution was a government motion passed on January 29, 1990 by Sault Ste. Marie City Council, the governing body of the city of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada, which resolved that Englis ...

was not the first of its kind in Ontario, but the municipality was the largest to have passed such a resolution and the first to do so despite its sizable

Franco-Ontarian Franco-Ontarians (french: Franco-Ontariens or if female, sometimes known as ''Ontarois'' and ''Ontaroises'') are Francophone Canadians that reside in the province of Ontario. Most are French Canadians from Ontario. In 2016, the Government of On ...

population.

Climate

Sault Ste. Marie has a humid continental climate ( Köppen climate classification ''Dfb'') with cold, snowy winters and warm humid summers that are moderated to some extent by Lake Superior. Winters are cold and very snowy usually beginning in mid-late November and lasting until early April. Temperatures drop below just over 26 days per year. Summers are warm and humid with mild nights. Temperatures above occur 12 days per year. The average annual precipitation is , which is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year; The autumn months of September to November are the wettest months. The highest temperature ever recorded in Sault Ste. Marie was on 3 July 1921, while the record low was on 26 January 1927.

Economy

The city developed considerable industry before and after World War II, especially in steel-making. Algoma (formerly Algoma Steel; Essar Steel Algoma) is the largest single employer, with 3,500 employees at the main plant and approximately 553 (440 unionized and 113 non-unionized) at an adjacent tube mill operated by Tenaris. During the 1940s, the steel and chromium operations were of substantial importance to the war effort in Canada and the United States. Algoma Steel and the Chromium Mining and Smelting Corporation were key producers for transportation and military machines. The

Huron Central Railway The Huron Central Railway is a railway operating in northern Ontario, Canada. It is operated by Genesee & Wyoming Canada, the Canadian subsidiary of Genesee & Wyoming. The Huron Central Railway was established in July 1997 to operate a route ...

has been important into the 21st century to the steel operation, despite extensive railway restructuring elsewhere. Genesee & Wyoming, owner of the railway, announced its intention to discontinue operations. It continued to operate under an agreement which terminated on August 15, 2010. ESSAR Steel Algoma Inc

Sault Ste. Marie prospered during the 1960s and '70s, but as imported steel began to compete with domestic production, the local industry began to contract. Since the late 1980s, Algoma has declared bankruptcy twice and laid off large numbers of workers, adversely affecting the regional economy. Algoma was bailed out by the Ontario government with interest-free loans. The company had a swift turnaround in 2004 from its earlier financial troubles of the 1990s. China's increased demand for steel of the past decade has increased the price of steel.

Denis Turcotte Denis may refer to: People * Saint Denis of Paris, 3rd-century Christian martyr and first bishop of Paris * Denis the Areopagite, Biblical figure * Denis, son of Ampud (died 1236), baron in the Kingdom of Hungary * Denis the Carthusian (1402–14 ...

, CEO, was named "Canadian CEO of the year" in 2006 for his efforts. An offer to purchase ASI by the Essar Group (India) had been recommended by the ASI Board of Directors and was approved. The company was officially sold to the Essar Group in June 2007 for $1.6 billion. Forestry is also a major local industry. St. Mary's Paper has been closed and decommissioned, although it was reopened in June 2007 and operated for a time under new ownership. Also related to wood products is ARAUCO, which employs over 110 people in the community. An adjacent melamine factory manufactures products with ARAUCO's materials. Examples are furniture and cupboards where a finish is added to the product. Together both of ARAUCO's factories employ about 150 people. The

is important to these local industries as well. The business process outsourcing industry had three call centres in the city, which together employed about 1,500 people. The largest,

Sutherland Global Services Sutherland ( gd, Cataibh) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area in the Highlands of Scotland. Its county town is Dornoch. Sutherland borders Caithness and Moray Firth to the east, Ross-shire and Cromartyshire (later ...

, closed in 2019 and Agero closed in April 2020.

Nucomm Transcom WorldWide AB is a Swedish outsourcing company which provides customer care, sales, technical support Technical support (abbreviated as tech support) is a call centre type customer service provided by companies to advise and assist r ...

previously had a call centre here as well. The call centre industry became a major source of jobs and had contributed to the economic turnaround of the city in the late 1990s. Another large employer in the community is the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG). The OLG has a corporate office located on the waterfront. It employs a total of about 900 people in Sault Ste. Marie between the corporate office and

OLG Casino Sault Ste. Marie Gateway Casinos Sault Ste. Marie (formerly OLG Casino Sault Ste. Marie) is a casino in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. Owned an Operated by Burnaby based Gateway Casinos & Entertainment, it was Northern Ontario's first full-time casino when it open ...

. The prize centre used to be administered in the city but this operation was moved back to Toronto (York Mills) in 2009. The OLG is still the fourth-largest employer, after Algoma Steel,

Sault Area Hospital The Sault Area Hospital is a medical facility in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. History The hospital has its origins in the Sault Ste. Marie General Hospital founded by the Grey Sisters of the Cross in 1898 and the Plummer Memorial Public Hospital fou ...

, and the call centre industry. Sault Ste. Marie is one of only a few cities in Ontario where a municipal bylaw prevents stores from opening on December 26, the day after Christmas, which is a Commonwealth holiday known as

Boxing Day Boxing Day is a holiday celebrated after Christmas Day, occurring on the second day of Christmastide (26 December). Though it originated as a holiday to give gifts to the poor, today Boxing Day is primarily known as a shopping holiday. It ...

. Retail stores in Sault Ste. Marie begin their post-Christmas

sales on December 27. A municipal referendum to determine whether voters favour allowing stores to open on Boxing Day was held concurrently with the 2010 municipal election. Voter turnout was not high enough to make the referendum legally binding, but 60.77 per cent of voters opposed allowing stores to open on the holiday.

Alternative energy

The

Sault Ste. Marie Solar Park The Sault Ste. Marie Solar Park near Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada, in 2011 became Canada's second largest photovoltaic plant with an installed capacity of 68 MWp. In 2009, Ontario introduced a feed-in tariff for renewable energy paymen ...

(68 MW), co-generation plant (Brookfield Power), F. H. Clergue Hydroelectric Generating Station, nearby

Prince Township Wind Farm Prince Wind Farm is a large wind farm in northern Ontario. Prince Wind Farm is owned by Brookfield Power Prince Wind LP, a subsidiary of Brookfield Power. It is located north of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, mostly within the township of Prince but ...

(189 MW) and several nearby hydroelectric dams, form part of the city's push to develop alternative forms of energy and gain the title of 'Alternative Energy Capital of North America'. Two other wind farms are proposed for the area: the Goulais wind farm (25 MW) and the Bow Lake wind farm (58 MW), in partnership with the Batchewana First Nation of Ojibways to be built near Montreal River Harbour. Elementa Group has built a pilot waste-to-energy plant in Sault Ste. Marie, and the local Public Utilities Commission (PUC) collects methane gas from the city's landfill. The city's street lights fully utilize LED technology and as recently as 2021, there has been progress made as the city has begun to budget for the purchase of electric vehicles, starting in 2022, to replace their fleet of gasoline powered vehicles. Sault Ste. Marie is also the location of the headquarters o
Heliene
a solar energy equipment manufacturer. In 2021, Sault Ste. Marie and the PUC began construction and modification on the city's power grid, along with Overland Contracting Canada—the project is budgeted to cost $34m CAD and is called the Sault Smart Grid Project (SSG Project), the project is the first of its kind to be implemented on a community wide scale in Canada and utilizes new technologies which will optimize voltage, automate distribution, and will incorporate advanced metering infrastructure; the SSG Project is expected to reduce electricity costs for residential and commercial customers of the PUC and will assist in reducing the frequency and length of power outages through immediate location of outages and increased reliability of the power supply, it will also allow for efficient additions to the power grid in the future. The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2022.

Transportation

Sault Ste. Marie is served by

Highway 17 Route 17, or Highway 17 can refer to the following roads: For the roads named "A17", see list of A17 roads. International * European route E17 * European route E017 Australia * Brisbane Valley Highway, Queensland * D'Aguilar Highway, Queenslan ...

, designated as a segment of the Trans-Canada Highway in the region. The highway connects the city to Thunder Bay to the northwest and

to the east; the northern and eastern entrances to the city via

are monitored by the

Sault Ste. Marie Police Service Sault may refer to: Places in Europe * Sault, Vaucluse, France * Saint-Benoît-du-Sault, France * Canton of Sault, France * Canton of Saint-Benoît-du-Sault, France * Sault-Brénaz, France * Sault-de-Navailles, France * Sault-lès-Rethel, Franc ...

with new cameras, scanning license plates upon entry/exit of the city—however as of April 2022, they are not yet fully operational. The International Bridge connects downtown Sault Ste. Marie to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, becoming Interstate 75 on the American side. Interstate 75 continues south to Saginaw, Flint, and Detroit before crossing into Ohio, eventually terminating in Hialeah, Florida, near Miami, and becoming toll roads SR 924 and SR 826. The International Bridge also directs traffic from the American side of the border via Sault Ste. Marie's transport route, which runs from the International Bridge, travels along Carmen's Way to Second Line East, and then meets with Great Northern Road (

), where transports can either turn left to go north, towards Thunder Bay, or continue straight to go east, towards

. The section from Second Line East to Great Northern Road is also known as

Ontario Highway 550 This is a list of secondary highways in Algoma District, most of which serve as logging roads or provide access to isolated and sparsely populated areas in the Algoma District of northeastern Ontario. Some of the shorter ones are also access route ...

, which runs from Great Northern Road and Second Line East to a roundabout in Gros Cap, the highway loops around the Sault Ste. Marie Public Utilities Commissions' water intake building. This newer limited-access roadway, known as "Carmen's Way" and named after the late MP

Carmen Provenzano Carmen Provenzano (February 3, 1942 – July 27, 2005) was a Canadian politician. He represented the Sault Ste. Marie electoral district in the House of Commons of Canada from 1997 to 2004. He was a member of the Liberal Party of Canada. C ...

, has made it easier for transport trucks to reach

and other major area roads. The route of Carmen's Way has a wide grassy right-of-way on both sides of the roadway, to facilitate future expansion of its lane capacity. Planning was underway to eventually connect the Second Line East and Black Road intersection to the new four-lane section of Highway 17, which opened east of the city in 2007—however as of 2022, there has been no environmental impact assessment initiated by the

Ministry of Transportation A ministry of transport or transportation is a ministry responsible for transportation within a country. It usually is administered by the ''minister for transport''. The term is also sometimes applied to the departments or other government ag ...

. The city plays an inherited role in marine transportation, with the locks in Michigan being an integral component of 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 ...

. The city operates its own small-scale lock which is used by small boats and other pleasure craft in the summer. Also recently opened is a multi-modal terminal designed to take advantage of the Sault as a rail, road, and water transportation hub. Cruise ships often dock a
Roberta Bondar Park
which includes a large pavilion, small farmers market, a BeaverTails outlet, a small canteen, a marina, public washrooms, a

Roberta Bondar Roberta Lynn Bondar (; born December 4, 1945) is a Canadian astronaut, neurologist and consultant. She is Canada's first female astronaut and the first neurologist in space. After more than a decade as head of an international space medicine r ...

statue, and green space; located to the right (looking at the city from the waterfront) is

Montana's Montana's BBQ & Bar (originally and in some cases, still branded as Montana's Cookhouse Saloon) is a Canadian restaurant chain known for smoked pork ribs, steaks, and burgers. It is headquartered in Vaughan, Ontario and is a subsidiary of Recipe ...

and the newly renovated City Hall, and to the left, Delta Sault Ste. Marie Waterfront and the Station Mall. Sault Ste. Marie is also served by

Sault Ste. Marie Airport Sault Ste. Marie Airport is an international airport located west-southwest of the city of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada at the far eastern end of Lake Superior and the beginning of the St. Mary's River. History The Canadian government o ...

and

Sault Transit Services Sault Ste. Marie Transit Services is a local public transportation service serving the city of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario providing seven major bus routes and two community bus routes serviced by a fleet of 27 buses and 2 minibuses. The Parabus se ...

. The city is no longer connected by passenger rail to any other major cities, but is part of the Algoma Central Railway network, which runs north from the city to the small town of Hearst. In 2006 the city's Member of Parliament, Tony Martin, called for passenger rail service to be reinstated between Sault Ste. Marie and Sudbury. In 2018,

Ontario Northland The Ontario Northland Transportation Commission (ONTC), or simply Ontario Northland, is a Crown agency of the Government of Ontario responsible for providing transportation services for passengers and goods in northern Ontario. It reports to ...

announced a major service expansion west of Sudbury, which includes multiple stops in Sault Ste. Marie. Passengers may board buses headed toward Hearst,

, or Manitoulin Island. ONTC currently has three stops in the city, with the main stop being along Trunk Road in the east end, and the other stops being at Sault College and the hospital. Sault Ste. Marie does not have Lyft or Uber, but has three ridesharing companies that focus on small communities called URide, EZ Ride and Driverseat. The city has taxi services offered by Hollywood Airport Shuttle & Limousines, Soo Yellow Cab, and UCab. Gros Cap ON

Tourism

Local area attractions include the

Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre (CBHC), located on the north bank of the St. Marys River in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada, is dedicated to preserving the history of bush flying and forest protection in Canada. It was founded in 1987 by a ...

Entomica Insectarium Entomica Insectarium is an insectarium located in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. First established in the Mill Market in 2014, Entomica is now located in the Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre. Entomica Insectarium is a charitable organization, an ...

, the

Sault Ste. Marie Museum Sault Ste. Marie Museum is a museum in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. Built as a post office from 1902 to 1906, this building became a museum in 1982 when it was purchased by the City of Sault Ste. Marie. It is operated by the Sault Ste. Mari ...

, the

National Historic Site, boat tours of the

Sault locks The Soo Locks (sometimes spelled Sault Locks but pronounced "soo") are a set of parallel locks, operated and maintained by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District, that enable ships to travel between Lake Superior and the lowe ...

(which connect Lake Superior with the lower Great Lakes), Whitefish Island, the

Ermatinger Clergue National Historic Site The Ermatinger Clergue National Historic Site is a historic site and museum located in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. Site There are three buildings on the site: the Ermatinger Old Stone House, the Clergue Blockhouse, and the Heritage Discov ...

, Casino Sault Ste. Marie, the Art Gallery of Algoma and the Algoma Central Railway's popular Agawa Canyon Tour Train. The MS ''Norgoma'', a Canadian passenger ship, was a

museum ship A museum ship, also called a memorial ship, is a ship that has been preserved and converted into a museum open to the public for educational or memorial purposes. Some are also used for training and recruitment purposes, mostly for the small numb ...

in the Great Lakes at Sault Ste. Marie. This ship is no longer docked in Sault Ste. Marie. Nearby parks include Pancake Bay Provincial Park, Batchawana Bay Provincial Park and Lake Superior Provincial Park. Winter activities are also an asset to Sault Ste Marie'
tourism
industry with the annual

Bon Soo Winter Carnival The Bon Soo Winter Carnival is an annual winter carnival in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. The carnival, held every February, began in , and has grown to become one of Ontario's top 50 festivals. The festival feature ...

, Searchmont Resort as a great ski and snowboard destination, Stokely Creek Lodge (cross country ski resort) and Hiawatha a nearby cross country ski trails. The city also hosts a large snowmobile trail system that criss-crosses the province of Ontario. A new non-motorized HUB trail, named th
John Rowswell Hub Trail
was built around the city () so that walkers, rollerbladers and cyclists (snowshoeing and cross country skiing in winter) can enjoy the beautiful and convenient circle tour around town. The Voyageur Hiking Trail, a long-distance trail that will eventually span from

to Thunder Bay, originated in Sault Ste. Marie in 1973. The Roberta Bondar Park and Pavilion, most famous for its unique tent design, was created to commemorate the first Canadian female astronaut to go into space and regularly hosts community events; the parking lot has spaces for farmers market vendors and the pavilion also has a BeaverTails, a canteen, and overlooks the St. Mary's River. The park is often most active in the spring and summer and is located in between

and Delta Sault Ste. Marie Waterfront, with th
Roberta Bondar Place
directly to the North, which consists of the OLG headquarters and other provincial government offices. Sault Ste. Marie has an extensive mountain biking network and has invested in new trails in the Hiawatha area of the city. The Algoma Trail Network plans to add more trails to the existing network, with initial work being completed by September 2021. In August 2021, Sail Superior ran tours of their Zodiac Hurricane boat with tours departing from the Roberta Bondar marina. One of the major draws to the area from the months of June to October is th
Agawa Canyon Tour Train
This one-day wilderness excursion travels 114 miles north of Sault Ste. Marie, alongside pristine northern lakes and rivers and through the awesome granite rock formations and vast mixed forests of the Canadian Shield, eventually ending at the Agawa Canyon. The train departs at 8am and returns to Sault Ste. Marie by 6pm. In August 2021 a new train station was opened for the tour train, the Canal district of the city. The city is also home to the Station Mall, one of the largest shopping malls in Northern Ontario. In 2020, Sault Ste. Marie city council voted in favour of developing a downtown plaza, located between Spring and Brock Street—the plaza will eliminate Bingham Street and will eventually form a large common area with a fountain/skating surface, restrooms and changing rooms, a large screen, event space, a Tim Hortons (located in existing building), and th
Mill Market
with other businesses and attractions expected to open as a result of development. The plaza has already started to increase and stimulate development in the area, with a new $16 million office building being constructed nearby. The space will also include retail units and is largely modeled after similar concepts such as the Market Square in Guelph, or Pat Bayly Square in Ajax. Construction on the plaza is expected to start in Spring 2022 and will be completely likely by 2023. The plaza has been the subject of controversy throughout its planning stages as some citizens feel it isn't needed and is too costly; the plaza was part of the array of suggestions made by Roger Brooks—a tourism and city centre consultant hired through a conjoined effort between the city and downtown association in 2018.

Demographics

In the

2021 Census of Population The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sli ...

conducted by

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; french: Statistique Canada), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and cultur ...

, Sault Ste. Marie had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. The city's

had a total population of 76,731, down 1.8% from 78,159 in 2016 Sault Ste. Marie was at one time a haven for Italian immigrants. The city has a large concentration of ethnic Italians for a community its size, mostly descending from the southern region of

Calabria , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

. Those who are of European origin constitute 82% of the population, Aboriginals or Native Canadians, constitute 13.5%, and visible minorities make up 4.5%. In 2019, the Government of Canada began an immigration program, called th
Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot
which is designed to spread immigration of skilled workers throughout northern communities. North Bay, Sudbury, Timmins, and Thunder Bay are also included in the program, along with other northern communities in other provinces. File:Precious Blood Cathedral 14.JPG, Precious Blood Cathedral, Roman Catholic Diocese of Sault Sainte Marie File:St Luke's Anglican Cathedral 2.JPG, St. Luke's Cathedral,

Anglican Diocese of Algoma The Diocese of Algoma is a diocese of the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario of the Anglican Church of Canada. It comprises nearly 182,000 square kilometres of the Ontario districts of Algoma District, Ontario, Algoma (from which it takes its nam ...

File:Central United Church 6.JPG, Central United Church File:St Andrew's United Church 3.JPG, St. Andrew's United Church File:St. Mary's Ukrainian Catholic Church 3.JPG, St. Mary's Ukrainian Catholic Church File:Bishop Fauquier Memorial Chapel 11.JPG, Bishop Fauquier Memorial Chapel File:St. Mary's Cross 4.JPG, St. Mary's Cross, an illuminated 37 m summit cross File:Beth Jacob Synagogue 3.JPG, Beth Jacob Synagogue

Government

The Corporation of the City of Sault Ste. Marie is run by a city council of 10 councillors (representing five

wards Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a priso ...

) and a mayor. The most recent municipal election was held on October 22, 2018, and the mayoralty was won by incumbent Christian Provenzano, who garnered 70.15% of the vote. Provenzano's predecessor,

Debbie Amaroso Debbie Amaroso, née Jannison"Debbie Amaroso: OMG!"

Ojibwe language. The city is served by the

Sault Ste. Marie Sault Ste. Marie is a cross-border region of Canada and the United States located on St. Marys River, which drains Lake Superior into Lake Huron. Founded as a single settlement in 1668, Sault Ste. Marie was divided in 1817 by the establishment of ...

federal

electoral district An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other polity ...

and the Sault Ste. Marie provincial electoral district. The boundaries of these two districts are not identical; the provincial district encompasses the city alone, while the federal district includes the neighbouring Garden River and Rankin reserves, and extends northerly to the Montreal River. The city's current federal Member of Parliament is

Terry Sheehan Terry Sheehan (born 1970) is a Canadian politician presently serves as the Member of Parliament for Sault Ste. Marie in the House of Commons of Canada, first elected in the 2015 federal election.Liberal), and its seat in the provincial legislature is Ross Romano ( Conservative). See also

Neighbourhoods in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario {{Unreferenced, date=May 2008 The city of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada contains a significant number of named residential neighbourhoods, including Bayview, Broadview Gardens, Brookfield, Buckley, Carpin Beach, Cedar Heights, East Korah, East ...

Education

Superior Heights Collegiate and Vocational School

The city is home to

Sault College Sault College of Applied Arts and Technology is a publicly funded college in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. It began in 1965 as the Ontario Vocational Centre. Today, Sault College offers full-time and part-time opportunities for students in post-sec ...

, a college of applied arts and technology, and to

Algoma University Algoma University, commonly shortened to Algoma U or Algoma, is a public university with its main campus located in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. With a particular focus on the needs of Northern Ontario, Algoma U is a teaching-focused and s ...

. While the vast majority of programs at Algoma University and Sault College are delivered on the respective campuses, both institutions also offer joint programs with Lake Superior State University in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. On June 18, 2008, Algoma University became an independent university, ending its longtime affiliation with

Laurentian University Laurentian University (french: Université Laurentienne), officially the Laurentian University of Sudbury, is a mid-sized Bilingualism in Canada, bilingual public university in Greater Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, incorporated on March 28, 1960. Lau ...

. A new school, ''

Shingwauk Kinoomaage Gamig ''Shingwauk Kinoomaage Gamig'' is an Indigenous led institute, with Algoma University in Sault Ste. Marie as one of its main partners. Shingwauk Kinoomaage Gamig is one of nine Indigenous Institutes in Ontario's post-secondary system and colla ...

'' (University), is poised to launch as a federated school of Algoma University. It will offer courses in Anishinaabe culture and language. Sault Ste. Marie is home to the Algoma District School Board and to the

Huron-Superior Catholic District School Board The Huron-Superior Catholic District School Board (HSCDSB, known as English-language Separate District School Board No. 31 prior to 1999) is a Separate school, separate school board for Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada ...

. It is part of the Conseil scolaire de district du Grand Nord de l'Ontario and the Conseil scolaire de district catholique du Nouvel-Ontario. It is also home to the following high schools: * Korah Collegiate & Vocational School (''English, public, offers the International Baccalaureate Programme'') * École Notre-Dame-du-Sault (''French, Catholic'') *

St. Mary's College Saint Mary's College (in French, ''Collège Sainte-Marie''), is the name of several colleges and schools: Australia *St Mary's College, Ipswich, an all-girls Catholic school in Queensland *St Mary's College, Maryborough, a co-educational school i ...

(''English with French Immersion Program, Catholic, offers

Advanced Placement Advanced Placement (AP) is a program in the United States and Canada created by the College Board which offers college-level curricula and examinations to high school students. American colleges and universities may grant placement and course ...

programs'') * Superior Heights Collegiate & Vocational School (''English and French Immersion, public, offers

programs'') * White Pines Collegiate & Vocational School (''English, public'') Sault Ste. Marie is also home to the

Ontario Forest Research Institute Ontario Forest Research Institute (OFRI) is a division of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) located in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Sault Ste. Marie ( ) is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is at the St. Mary's River on the Ca ...

and the federal

Great Lakes Forestry Centre The Great Lakes Forestry Centre is a federal forestry research institute in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. Natural Resources Canada Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Forest research institutes Forestry in Canada {{Ontario-stub ...

. Sault Ste. Marie has over 30 elementary schools.

Sports

The

Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds The Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (often shortened to Soo Greyhounds) are a Junior ice hockey#Major junior, major junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League. The Greyhounds play home games at the GFL Memorial Gardens. The present team was ...

are the city's most recognized sports team having existed since the formation of the

Northern Ontario Hockey Association The Northern Ontario Hockey Association (NOHA) is an ice hockey governing body for minor, junior and senior ice hockey. The NOHA is sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Federation and Hockey Canada. The major league run by the NOHA is the Northern ...

in 1919. The Hounds won national championships twice including the 1993 Memorial Cup and the 1924 Allan Cup. The Greyhounds play in the

GFL Memorial Gardens The GFL Memorial Gardens, formerly the "Essar Centre", is a 4,928 seat sports and entertainment centre in downtown Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. It opened on September 29, 2006, replacing the now demolished Sault M ...

, a state-of-the-art downtown arena that replaced the

Sault Memorial Gardens The Sault Memorial Gardens was a former ice hockey arena in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, for 57 years from 1949 to 2006. It was located in the heart of the downtown district at 169 Queen Street. The Gardens was one of the first Northern Ontario aren ...

in 2006. The current Hounds have retired five jerseys since joining the Ontario Hockey League in 1972: #1

John Vanbiesbrouck John Vanbiesbrouck (born September 4, 1963), nicknamed "the Beezer" and "JVB", is an American professional ice hockey executive and former player. As a goaltender, he was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 2007. Vanbiesbrouc ...

, #4 Craig Hartsburg, #10

Ron Francis Ronald Michael Francis Jr. (born March 1, 1963) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre. He is the general manager of the Seattle Kraken that inaugurated its first season in 2021. Drafted fourth overall in the 1981 NHL Entry Draft, F ...

, #5

Adam Foote Adam Foote (born July 10, 1971) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman, the current Assistant Coach of the Vancouver Canucks of National Hockey League, and the former head coach of the Kelowna Rockets of the Western Hockey League ...

, and #99 Wayne Gretzky. Sault Ste. Marie also had a team in hockey's first professional league. The

Sault Ste. Marie Marlboros The Sault Ste. Marie Marlboros, also known as the Canadian Soo and Soo Algonquins, was a professional ice hockey team from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. It was the lone Canadian entry in the International Hockey League of 1904–1907, and ...

or 'Canadian Soo' team played in the International Professional Hockey League from 1904 to 1907. Sault Ste. Marie hockey teams have boasted a number of

Hockey Hall of Fame , logo = Hockey Hall of Fame Logo.svg , logo_upright = 0.5 , image = Hockey Hall of Fame, Toronto.jpg , caption = The Hall's present location on Yonge Street since 1992 , map_type = , former_name = , established = 1943 , location = 30 Y ...

members, including Sault natives or residents Phil Esposito,

Tony Esposito Anthony James "Tony O" Esposito (April 23, 1943 – August 10, 2021) was a Canadian-American professional ice hockey goaltender, who played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL), 15 of those for the Chicago Black Hawks. He was one of t ...

, and Didier Pitre, as well as Sault team members Gerry Cheevers,

Paul Coffey Paul Douglas Coffey (born June 1, 1961) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played for nine teams over 21 seasons in the National Hockey League. Known for his speed and scoring prowess, Coffey ranks second all-time among ...

, Bill Cook, Bun Cook, Wayne Gretzky, Newsy Lalonde,

George McNamara George Andrew McNamara (August 26, 1886 – March 10, 1952) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. He was a member of the 1914 Toronto Blueshirts Stanley Cup champions. His brothers Harold and Howard also played professional ice hockey. ...

, and Marty Walsh. National Hockey League All-Stars

Joe Thornton Joseph Eric Thornton (born July 2, 1979) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre who is currently an unrestricted free agent. He has previously played for the Boston Bruins, San Jose Sharks, Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers of the ...

& Jeff Carter played their entire OHL careers as members of the Greyhounds. Current NHL players from the Sault Ste. Marie area include

New Jersey Devils The New Jersey Devils are a professional sports, professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. The Devils compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern ...

centre

Tyler Kennedy Tyler Kennedy (born July 15, 1986) is a Canadian-American former professional ice hockey centre who played nine seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Pittsburgh Penguins, San Jose Sharks, New York Islanders, and New Jersey Devils. ...

, Buffalo Sabres centre

Jordan Nolan Jordan Nolan (born June 23, 1989) is a Canadian actor and former professional ice hockey forward. He was selected by the Los Angeles Kings in the seventh round (186th overall) of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. Nolan won the Stanley Cup twice with ...

St.Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the s ...

centre

Chris Thorburn Chris Thorburn (born June 3, 1983) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey right winger. He played over 800 games in the National Hockey League (NHL). Thorburn was known for his physical play and capabilities as a fighter. Early life Thorbu ...

and Vegas Golden Knights defense Colin Miller Sault Ste. Marie native

Paul Maurice Paul Maurice (born January 30, 1967) is a Canadian former ice hockey player and coach. He is the head coach of the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League (NHL). At age 43, Maurice became the youngest coach in NHL history to coach 1,000 g ...

is the current coach of the NHL's Winnipeg Jets, and has been a head coach for parts of 16 seasons with the Hartford/Carolina franchise, Toronto Maple Leafs, and the Jets, becoming the league's youngest ever coach at the age of 28 in

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...

, and taking Carolina to the Stanley Cup Finals in

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

. Notably, former Greyhound player and coach

Ted Nolan Theodore John Nolan (born April 7, 1958) is a Canadian former professional hockey left winger, former head coach of the Buffalo Sabres and Latvia men's national ice hockey team. From July 2017 until May 2018 he was head coach of the Poland men' ...

coached parts of 5 seasons in the NHL with the Buffalo Sabres & the

New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ( ...

, winning the

Jack Adams Trophy The Jack Adams Award is awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) coach "adjudged to have contributed the most to his team's success." The league's Coach of the Year award has been presented 47 times to 39 coaches. The winner is selecte ...

as the NHL Coach of the Year in 1998 with the Sabres. Sault Ste. Marie was the host of the 1990

Brier Briar, Briars, Brier, or Briers may refer to: * Briar, or brier, common name for a number of unrelated thorny plants that form thicket People * Brier (surname) * Briers, a surname * Briars (surname) Places * Briar, Missouri, U.S. * Bri ...

, the Canadian men's curling championship. In 2010, it hosted the Scotties Tournament of Hearts, which serves as Canada's women's curling championship. At the

2013 Tim Hortons Brier The 2013 Tim Hortons Brier, the Canadian men's national curling championship, was held from March 2 to 10 at Rexall Place in Edmonton, Alberta. This edition of the Brier marked the thirteenth time that Alberta has hosted the Brier, and the sixth ti ...

held in Edmonton, Alberta, Brad Jacobs and his team from the Soo Curlers Association won the Tim Hortons Brier, and the honour of representing Canada in the

2013 Ford World Men's Curling Championship The 2013 World Men's Curling Championship (branded as the Ford World Men's Curling Championship 2013 for sponsorship reasons) was held from March 30 to April 7, 2013 at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. This m ...

, where they won silver. The team later won the

2013 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials The 2013 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials (branded as the 2013 Tim Hortons Roar of the Rings for sponsorship reasons) were held from December 1 to 8 at the MTS Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The winners of the men's and women's events were chosen to ...

, earning them the right to represent Canada at the

2014 Winter Olympics , ''Zharkie. Zimnie. Tvoi'') , nations = 88 , events = 98 in 7 sports (15 disciplines) , athletes = 2,873 , opening = 7 February 2014 , closing = 23 February 2014 , opened_by = President Vladimir Putin , cauldron = , stadium = Fisht Olympic ...

, where they won gold. The local curling clubs are the Soo Curlers Association and the Tarentorus Curling Club. Sault Ste. Marie also has a rich history in Canadian football. For nearly four decades, Sault Ste. Marie high schools have consistently won Northern Ontario honours (NOSSA) and are regular participants in provincial finals. Sault Ste. Marie has also had men's semi-pro football since 1972. The Sault Steelers are 4x National Semi-Pro champions in the Canadian Major Football League, winning the honours in 1972, 2007, 2009, and 2010. The Steelers failed to field a team in the early 1990s before returning for 4 seasons as the Sault Storm, later going back to their original name in the 2000s on their way to forming a Dynasty between 2007 and 2010. Notable names associated with the team are Len Monico (builder and coach), Don McBain (owner/president), Barry Rushon (championship coach), and Brandon Lewis (League MVP and 20x All-Star). Other notable athletes from Sault Ste. Marie include

Canadian Football Hall of Fame The Canadian Football Hall of Fame (CFHOF) is a not-for-profit corporation, located in Hamilton, Ontario, that celebrates great achievements in Canadian football. It is maintained by the Canadian Football League (CFL). It includes displays about t ...

inductee Rocky Dipietro, Paralympic swimmer

Jessica Tuomela Jessica Tuomela (born August 3, 1983) is a Canadian paralympic competitive swimmer who was born in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. Tuomela was born in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, to a Portuguese mother and Finnish Canadian father. Although blinded b ...

, softball pitcher Darren Zack, and mixed martial artist

Antonio Carvalho Antonio Carvalho (born May 30, 1979) is a retired Canadian mixed martial artist. A professional from 2002 until 2013, he fought in the UFC and Shooto. Mixed martial arts career Early career Carvalho made his professional MMA debut in September 2 ...

. The Sault has been host to many national and international sporting events, including the 2003 Eco-Challenge North American Championship, an expedition-length ()

adventure race Adventure racing (also called expedition racing) is typically a multidisciplinary team sport involving navigation over an unmarked wilderness course with races extending anywhere from two hours up to two weeks in length. Some races offer solo co ...

through unmarked wilderness by biking, trekking, paddling and using ropes.

Walk of Fame

The Walk of Fame was created in 2006 as a joint project between the city of Sault Ste. Marie and its Downtown Association, and honours those from the city or the Algoma District who have made outstanding contributions to the community or significant contributions in their chosen field of work. Inductees are added on an annual basis.

Culture

Sault Ste. Marie is home to the

Bon Soo The Bon Soo Winter Carnival is an annual winter carnival in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. The carnival, held every February, began in , and has grown to become one of Ontario's top 50 festivals. The festival features a diverse program of outd ...

winter carnival, held every February. The city also hosts the annual Algoma Fall Festival which draws local and international performing artists. The Kiwanis Community Theatre and the landmark Central United Church are used for the performances. Both venues hold approximately 1,000 people. The Art Gallery of Algoma features an extensive collection of local and international artists' work and presents regular exhibitions. Residents celebrate Community Day on the third weekend of July. The local

Rotary International Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, prof ...

club organizes a three-day event called Rotaryfest. Sault Ste. Marie was the focus of Kalle Mattson's "A Love Song to the City", whose music video premiered on USA Today.

Notable people

Brigitte Acton Brigitte Acton (born November 30, 1985) is a Canadian alpine skier. Acton competed at the 2006 Winter Games, where she finished 11th in the giant slalom, 17th in the slalom, and 10th in the combined. She also competed at the 2010 Winter Games. S ...

, two-time Olympian alpine skier *

Michael Amadio Michael Amadio (born May 13, 1996) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre for the Vegas Golden Knights of the National Hockey League (NHL). Amadio was selected by the Los Angeles Kings, 90th overall, in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft. Playing c ...

NHL player for the Vegas Golden Knights *

David Amber David Amber (born April 21, 1971) is a Canadian anchor for Sportsnet as a host and reporter. He is best known for his time doing ''NHL On the Fly'' on the NHL Network and as the anchor for ''Gate 5 Live'', ''Raptors Pregame'', and ''Raptors Po ...

, NHL on Sportsnet reporter and anchor * Ivan Boldirev, retired NHL centre and 1978 NHL All-Star *

, neurologist and the first Canadian female astronaut in space *

, mixed martial artist and UFC veteran * Treble Charger, Juno Award-nominated alternative rock band *

Kerry Diotte Kerry Thomas Diotte (born 1956) is a Canadian journalist and former politician who was the member of Parliament (MP) for Edmonton Griesbach from 2015 to 2021 and sat on the Edmonton City Council from 2010 to 2013. A Conservative, Diotte was el ...

, journalist and member of parliament *

Kyle Dubas Kyle Dubas (born November 29, 1985) is a Canadians, Canadian ice hockey executive who is currently the general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL). Dubas spent his youth in various roles with the Sault Ste. Ma ...

, general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs * Phil Esposito, Hockey Hall of Fame inductee, 10th all-time NHL goal scorer, and winner of two Stanley Cups *

, Hockey Hall of Fame inductee and winner of one Stanley Cup *

Aaron Fiacconi Aaron Fiacconi (born November 12, 1979, in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario) is a retired professional Canadian football offensive lineman. He announced his retirement on June 2, 2012. He most recently played for five seasons for the Edmonton Eskimos of t ...

, retired CFL offensive lineman *

, 5th All-Time leading scorer in the NHL and winner of two Stanley Cups *

William Howard Hearst Sir William Howard Hearst, (February 15, 1864 – September 29, 1941) was the seventh premier of Ontario from 1914 to 1919. Hearst was born in Bruce County, Ontario. He practiced law in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario before being voted to provin ...

, seventh

premier of Ontario The premier of Ontario (french: premier ministre de l'Ontario) is the head of government of Ontario. Under the Westminster system, the premier governs with the Confidence and supply, confidence of a majority the elected Legislative Assembly of On ...

* Kevin Hodson, retired NHL goalie and winner of one Stanley Cup & one Memorial Cup * Brad Jacobs,

E. J. Harnden Eric "E. J." Harnden, Jr. (born April 14, 1983) is a Canadian curler. He currently throws second stones for the Canadian champion Brad Gushue rink. Career Early career Harnden is the son of three-time Northern Ontario champion Eric Harnden, S ...

Ryan Harnden Ryan Harnden (born June 28, 1986) is a Canadian curling, curler. He is the former lead (curling), lead for the Brad Jacobs (curler), Brad Jacobs rink. The team represented Canada at the 2014 Winter Olympics, winning a gold medal. Career Early ca ...

, Canadian curlers, 2014 Winter Olympic gold medalists and

champions. * Bill Johnson, Sault Ste. Marie resident unjustly convicted of murder; acquitted in 2007 * The Right Honourable David Johnston CC CMM COM CD FRSC(''hon'') FRCPSC(''hon''), 28th Governor General of Canada *

Sharon Johnston Sharon Johnston (born 1943) is a Canadian author who was the 55th viceregal consort of Canada, due to being the wife of David Johnston, the 28th Governor General of Canada. Life and career A native of Sault Ste. Marie, she completed her st ...

DStJ The Order of St John, short for Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (french: l'ordre très vénérable de l'Hôpital de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem) and also known as St John International, is a British royal order of c ...

, Viceregal Consort to The Right Honourable David Johnston & Honorary Captain of the Royal Canadian Navy * Lila Kedrova, Academy Award winning actress *

, retired

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

player * Keith Knight, film actor * Jerry Korab, retired defenceman for the National Hockey League from 1971 to 1985 * Chico Maki, retired

player *

Wayne Maki Wayne may refer to: People with the given name and surname * Wayne (given name) * Wayne (surname) Geographical Places with name ''Wayne'' may take their name from a person with that surname; the most famous such person was Gen. "Mad" Anthon ...

, former

player *

Mac Marcoux Macmilton "Mac" Marcoux (born 20 June 1997) is a Canadian Paralympic alpine skier who won three titles at the IPC Alpine Skiing World Cup at the age of 15. With guide Robin Femy, he won three medals in alpine skiing at the 2014 Winter Paral ...

, visually-impaired alpine skier and gold medal winner at the

2014 Winter Paralympics The 2014 Winter Paralympics (russian: Зимние Паралимпийские игры 2014, Zimniye Paralimpiyskiye igry 2014), the 11th Paralympic Winter Games, and also more generally known as the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games, were an ...

* Kalle Mattson, folk rock musician *

, current head coach of the NHL's Winnipeg Jets * Bob McKenzie,

TSN TSN may refer to: Science and technology * Translin, DNA binding protein involved in microRNA function * Taxonomic serial number, a stable and unique taxonomic serial number issued by the Integrated Taxonomic Information System * The Science Netwo ...

hockey broadcaster & analyst * Colin Miller, NHL player currently playing for the Dallas Stars * Will Morin, politician and former leader of First Peoples National Party *

, NHL player currently playing for the St. Louis Blues *

, former NHL player and head coach *

John Parco John Parco (born August 25, 1971) is an Italian-Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played most of his professional career with Asiago HC in the Serie A. He is formerly the head coach of the Soo Thunderbirds in the Northern Ontario ...

, retired hockey player and member of the Italian men's hockey team at the

2006 Winter Olympics The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially the XX Olympic Winter Games ( it, XX Giochi olimpici invernali) and also known as Torino 2006, were a winter multi-sport event held from 10 to 26 February 2006 in Turin, Italy. This marked the second t ...

* Didier Pitre, Hockey Hall of Fame inductee and winner of one Stanley Cup *

Crystal Shawanda Crystal Shawanda (born July 26, 1983) is a Canadian blues and country music artist. CMT documented her rise to fame in the six-part series ''Crystal: Living the Dream'', which was broadcast in February 2008. Signed to RCA Nashville in 2007, she re ...

Juno Award The Juno Awards, more popularly known as the JUNOS, are awards presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. New members of the Canadian Music Hall of ...

winning country singer * Ray Smillie, bronze medal-winning boxer at the

1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics ( nl, Olympische Zomerspelen 1928), officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad ( nl, Spelen van de IXe Olympiade) and commonly known as Amsterdam 1928, was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from ...

Lyndon Slewidge Lyndon Slewidge (born 1954 in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario) Indicates age 38 and birthplace of Sault Ste. Marie. Indicated age 42. is a retired Ontario Provincial Police officer. He is also a singer who specializes in national anthems. He was the o ...

, anthem singer for the Ottawa Senators & retired policeman *

, retired NHL player *

, visually impaired swimmer and silver medallist at the

2000 Summer Paralympics The 2000 Summer Paralympic Games or the XI Summer Paralympics were held in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, between 18 and 29 October. The Sydney Paralympics was last time that the Summer Paralympics which were organized by two different ...

Marty Turco Marty Vincent Turco (born August 13, 1975) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played 11 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL). He played nine seasons with the Dallas Stars and one season each with the Chicago Blackha ...

, retired NHL goalie and member of the 2006 Winter Olympics men's hockey team *

Gene Ubriaco Eugene Stephen Ubriaco (born December 26, 1937) is a Canadian professional ice hockey executive and former player. He is currently the Director of Hockey Operations for the Chicago Wolves of the American Hockey League (AHL). As a player, Ubriaco p ...

, retired NHL player, former AHL coach and coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins and current Senior Advisor/Director of Hockey Operations for the Chicago Wolves of the American Hockey League *

Brian Vallée Brian Michael Vallée (1940–2011) was a Canadian author, journalist, documentary film producer, screenwriter, and public speaker. He is best known for his work reflecting on domestic violence and his role with CBC's award-winning documentary prog ...

, author, journalist, filmmaker *

Dennis Vial Dennis Vial (born April 10, 1969) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. Vial played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the New York Rangers, Detroit Red Wings, and Ottawa Senators. He also played in the North American minor l ...

, retired NHL player who mainly played for the Ottawa Senators

Media

Sister cities

County Louth County Louth ( ; ga, An Lú) is a coastal county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. Louth is bordered by the counties of Meath to the south, Monaghan to the west, Armagh to the north and Down to the ...

, IrelandCity of Sault Ste Marie
/ref> * Forssa, Finland * Maia, Portugal * Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, United States (also twin city)

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1668 establishments in New France Cities in Ontario Hudson's Bay Company trading posts Populated places on the Great Lakes Single-tier municipalities in Ontario *