Wellesley Island in

Jefferson County, New York Jefferson County is a county on the northern border of the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 116,721. Its county seat is Watertown. The county is named after Thomas Jefferson, third President of the United Stat ...

, United States is partially in the Town of Orleans and partially in the Town of Alexandria.

History

The island was named Wells Island but during his 1815 survey of the US-Canada border renamed by

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

William Fitzwilliam Owen Vice Admiral William Fitzwilliam Owen (17 September 1774 – 3 November 1857), was a Kingdom of Great Britain, British naval officer and explorer. He is best known for his exploration of the west and east African coasts, discovery of the Sea ...

to the current name to honor

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of 19th-century Britain, serving twice as prime minister o ...

. Several prominent points in and around the island were named after the Duke's victorious battles. None of those names stuck. The large bay around which the island folds is called Lake of the Isles, not Lake Waterloo.Smith, Susan Weston, The First Summer People: the Thousand Islands 1650-1910. Stoddart Publishing, Toronto, 1993.

Geography

The island is located in the

St. Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connecting ...

, which surrounds Wellesley Island on three sides. The island bounds an internal body of water, the Lake of the Isles, which nearly doubles its waterfront. The easternmost peninsula of the island lies across the Upper (American) Narrows from the Village of Alexandria Bay. Cove on Wellesley Island in northwestern New York

Cove on Wellesley Island in northwestern New York

An arterial highway,

Interstate 81 Interstate 81 (I-81) is a north–south (physically northeast–southwest) Interstate Highway in the eastern part of the United States. Its southern terminus is at I-40 in Dandridge, Tennessee; its northern terminus is on Wellesley Island ...

, crosses Wellesley Island. Five segments composing the

Thousand Islands International Bridge The Thousand Islands International Bridge (french: Pont des Mille-îles) is an American-maintained international bridge system over the Saint Lawrence River connecting northern New York in the United States with southeastern Ontario in Canada. C ...

link the island to the opposite shores of the river. One of the bridges crosses a narrow channel, the International Rift, which separates Wellesley Island in the United States from

Hill Island Hill Island is a Baffin Island offshore island located in the Arctic Archipelago in the territory of Nunavut. The uninhabited island lies in Frobisher Bay, approximately southwest of Iqaluit. Bishop Island and Faris Island Faris Island (alternat ...

in the

United Counties of Leeds and Grenville The United Counties of Leeds and Grenville, commonly known as Leeds and Grenville, is a county in Ontario, Canada, in the Eastern Ontario subregion of Southern Ontario. It fronts on the Saint Lawrence River and the international boundary between ...

, Ontario, Canada. The United States border-crossing facility at the

port of entry In general, a port of entry (POE) is a place where one may lawfully enter a country. It typically has border security staff and facilities to check passports and visas and to inspect luggage to assure that contraband is not imported. Internati ...

is located on the northeastern part of the island. Wellesley, one of the largest of the

Thousand Islands The Thousand Islands (french: Mille-Îles) constitute a North American archipelago of 1,864 islands that straddles the Canada–US border in the Saint Lawrence River as it emerges from the northeast corner of Lake Ontario. They stretch for abo ...

in the St. Lawrence River, is home to a growing number of full-time residents. Population increases dramatically during the summer months. The island has two State Parks, a nature center, and three golf courses. Located on its southern tip is

Thousand Island Park 1000 or one thousand is the natural number following 999 and preceding 1001. In most English-speaking countries, it can be written with or without a comma or sometimes a period separating the thousands digit: 1,000. A group of one thousand th ...

, listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1982. In addition to Interstate 81, which connects two portions of the

Thousand Islands Bridge The Thousand Islands International Bridge (french: Pont des Mille-îles) is an American-maintained international bridge system over the Saint Lawrence River connecting northern New York in the United States with southeastern Ontario in Canada. Co ...

, Jefferson County Routes 100 and 191 serve the island.

Geographic features

*Barnett Marsh—A

swamp A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...

in the south part of the island. *Densmore Bay—A bay on the south shore of the southeast peninsula. *Eel Bay—A large bay between Wellesley Island and Grindstone Island. *Lake of the Isles—A body of water connected to the St. Lawrence River, lying between the northeast and southeast peninsulas. *South Bay—A bay on the southwest part of the island.

Communities on the island

*Grandview *Moore Landing *Fineview *

*Westminster Park

Parks on the island

Wellesley Island State Park Wellesley Island State Park is a state park located on Wellesley Island in the St. Lawrence River in the Town of Orleans in Jefferson County, New York. The park is divided into sections that are on different parts of the island. It has the lar ...

—In several locations on the island. *

Dewolf Point State Park Dewolf Point State Park is a state park on Wellesley Island in the St. Lawrence River. The park is situated within the Town of Orleans in Jefferson County, New York. The park was established in 1898 as part of the St. Lawrence Reservation. P ...

—Along Lake of the Isles on the southeast side of the northern peninsula. *

Waterson Point State Park Waterson Point State Park is a state park located on Wellesley Island in the St. Lawrence River in the Town of Orleans in Jefferson County, New York. It is near Wellesley Island State Park. The park was established in 1898 as part of the St ...

—On the northern edge of the island near the Canada–US border. *

Mary Island State Park Mary Island State Park is a state park located in the St. Lawrence River in Jefferson County, New York. The park is situated in the Town of Alexandria on the east end of Wellesley Island, and is accessible only by boat. History Mary Island S ...

—Not actually on Wellesley Island but accessible only by water, this park is separated by a small channel from the easternmost tip of Wellesley Island

References

{{authority control Islands of Jefferson County, New York Islands of the Thousand Islands in New York (state)