The original shipping canal ran down this channel. The present bridge was built as part of the fourth Welland canal, replacing a swing bridge over the 2nd and 3rd canals at the same site. The weir (dam), below the bridge deck, regulates the flow of water to the rest of the canal, including the other seven locks leading down to Lake Ontario, and the hydro-electric generating plant at Decew Falls. The cities of Welland, Thorold, and St. Catharines also take their drinking water from the canal.
Built in 1903, this was the first brick bank building erected in Humberstone. It is unique in having an apartment over the bank for the manager, who was frequently transferred. The apartment was still used by the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, the Imperial Bank's successor, up to the 1950s. It was closed as a bank in the 1980s.
Built by Elias Augustine circa 1860, this house displays a mixture of mid-nineteenth century detail. The gable front arrangement and symmetrical placement of doors and windows are drawn from the Greek Revival, while the semi-elliptical shape of the openings is Italianate in inspiration. Of particular interest is the detailed woodwork of the verandah, with its small pediment framing the double leaved front door. The land on which the house stands was owned by a number of early settlers of Humberstone (then known as Stonebridge, and later as Petersburg) before being purchased by Mr. Augustine, an owner of the carriage manufacturing firm of Augustine and Kilmer. Some production for the business was carried out in a blacksmith shop once located behind the house.
This handsome commercial building was built in 1885, and exhibits many of the details of the Italianate style. Note the deeply projecting eaves, elaborate cornice and brackets. Simple cornices on business blocks began appearing in the mid 1800's, becoming progressively more ornate towards the end of the century. The small centre gable is an unusual classical detail.
This hall, a good example of mid-nineteenth century rural public building, is made from cut stone taken from the Welland Canal. The oldest portion of the building, with its multi-paned, arched windows and doors of Palladian influence was designed by architect John Latshaw.It was built by A.K. Scholfield in 1852, at a cost of 258 pounds, and was the first town hall for Humberstone. The small addition to the rear (south) was used as a lockup for wayward travellers. The hall was designated in 1982.
This is one of the longest locks in the world, and here you can see ships from every corner of the earth. It's the first lift lock downstream from Lake Erie. It is also known as the guard lock, as it protects the rest of the canal from the changing levels of the Lake, rather than raising or lowering ships by a significant amount. When the fourth canal was built, the number of locks was reduced from 30 to 8. This was made possible by the invention of dynamite, which allowed builders to blast through the bedrock at this high point, rather than having to lock over it.
Opened in 1918, at one point it was INCO's largest facility outside of Sudbury. Originally lured here by cheap electrical rates from Niagara Falls, this facility still produces cobalt and precious metals, as well as acting as a nickel warehousing and distribution centre. The management building, the club house, and the recreation hall, located at the main entrance on Nickel Street, are all original buildings. The rec hall was used for sports and dances, and was the home of the Port Colborne Operatic Society for many years. The “ big stack ”, demolished in 1995 because of its poor condition, was the largest chimney in the British Commonwealth when it was built, and was a landmark used by sailors from around the world to guide them to the entrance of the Welland Canal.
Now offices for Hamilton Marine, this fine Georgian style house was built in 1852 by Jacob North, a second generation brewmaster who emigrated from Alsace Lorraine. It has changed little since it was home to the North family, retaining most of its balanced and symetrical facade, six-over-six windows, and central Georgian doorway (formerly surrounded by transom and side windows). The brewery itself, built at the same time, was located just behind the existing structure. In 1875 Jacob sold the brewery to Henry Cronmiller and Thomas White, whose famous Indian Head lager was shipped to all parts of the province. About 1898 the company began producing ginger ale and “whipped cream”, a white cream soda. Each week an excursion boat from Buffalo docked on the canal at Erie Park, a treed space with a dance pavilion, located just west of here. This was to allow the passengers to cap their trip with refreshments from the brewery. Prohibition forced the business to close in 1919.
This beach, owned by INCO and run by the city as a public park, is one of the few areas where the wooded sand dunes along Lake Erie may be easily seen in their nearly natural state. This area, at the far northern limits of the Carolinian forest, contains one of the widest varieties of plants anywhere in Ontario. Before Europeans came and drained the area for farming, the flat land north of the dunes was largely marshland. Aboriginal people had encampments on various rises around this marsh as far back as the era of the pyramids in Egypt.
Nickel Beach is miles of groomed sand beach, gently sloping into the lake and warm clean water. A concession booth and public washrooms allow for the perfect leisurely summer day. Parking is allowed on portions of the public beach.