The Severn River is a river in central

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada. Its headwaters are located at the north end of Lake Couchiching. It drains Lake Couchiching and Lake Simcoe. The river flows generally northwest into

Georgian Bay Georgian Bay (french: Baie Georgienne) is a large bay of Lake Huron, in the Laurentia bioregion. It is located entirely within the borders of Ontario, Canada. The main body of the bay lies east of the Bruce Peninsula and Manitoulin Island. To ...

, a large bay of

Lake Huron Lake Huron ( ) is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. Hydrology, Hydrologically, it comprises the easterly portion of Lake Michigan–Huron, having the same surface elevation as Lake Michigan, to which it is connected by the , Strait ...

. The Severn forms part of the inland

canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flow un ...

system known as the Trent–Severn Waterway, which links

Port Severn Severn is a township in south-central Ontario, Canada, located between Lake Couchiching, and the Severn River (both are part of the Trent–Severn Waterway) in Simcoe County. Communities The township comprises the communities of Amigo Beach, Ar ...

with Trenton on

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border sp ...

via the Trent Canal. From the middle of the 19th century up until the completion of the canal in 1920, the Severn was used to transport logs to

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...

s down river. There are two

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and ...

stations at falls located on its course. The central Ontario Severn River is only long. The river services seasonal cottagers, as many of the properties are accessible only by boat. Some year-round residents live on the Severn. The river sees many yachts/cruisers travelling from Lake Couchiching to Georgian Bay, or vice versa. Located on the Severn River,

Big Chute Marine Railway Big Chute Marine Railway is a patent slip at lock 44 (in the township of Georgian Bay) of the Trent-Severn Waterway in Ontario, Canada. It works on an inclined plane to carry boats in individual cradles over a change of height of about . It is ...

is a rare operating marine-railway. The Elbląg Canal in Poland is similar. The Big Chute is a major tourist attraction, and provides access to and from Gloucester Pool, below the Severn. The River sees many overnight campers, although overnight camping is forbidden on many sections of the Severn, including Lost Channel (location of the old fire tower) and Pretty Channel. This law is enforced by police supervision. According to "Governor Simcoe's Visit in 1793," which can be found in the 1891 volume of the Transactions of the Canadian Institute, the river at that time was known as the River Matchetache.

References

See also