Murray Canal

Introduction

The Murray Canal lies in Northumberland County, Ontario and is approximately 5 miles in length running from the western end of the Bay of Quinte to Presqu’ile Bay which opens into Lake Ontario. The canal shortens the trip by boats by avoiding having to go around the whole of the isthmus of Prince Edward County. The canal was proposed as early as 1796 and land was set aside by the government of Upper Canada. However, the Welland Canal and the Rideau Canal were seen as more important and construction was delayed. Construction was begun in 1882 and because of problems with unstable banks it took till 1889 to complete the canal. The canal is crossed by two swing bridges (Highway 33 and County Rd 26) and an unused railway bridge still exists but is kept permanently open. The canal saw many years of use with coal and other commercial boats but with the advent in the 1950’s of the St Lawrence Seaway the traffic declined. Since then there has been a steady rise in recreational use and today the Murray Canal is used by boaters who visit the Trent-Severn Waterway. ^{Wiki n.p.}