Eastern Ontario

The traditional definition of the region boundary can be traced back to early colonial districts in the British Province of Quebec and Upper Canada. The Midland and Eastern Districts, originally known as the Mecklenburg District and Lunenburg District, from 1788 to 1792,^[1] were originally designated as everything east of north-south lines intersecting the outlets of the Trent River into the Bay of Quinte (in the case of Mecklenburg/Midland) and the Gananoque River into the St. Lawrence River (in the case of Lunenberg/Eastern).^[2] The original boundary lines followed a straight north-south alignment, but were eventually changed to a northwest-southeast orientation, similar to how the modern county boundaries are aligned.

Some government sources may include Hastings County, Prince Edward (considered part of the Eastern Ontario extended area), and occasionally Northumberland County within the definition of Eastern Ontario, but are otherwise classified as part of Central Ontario.

The region is also occasionally referred to as Southeastern Ontario to differentiate it from Northeastern Ontario, a secondary region of Northern Ontario.

 

French explorers and fur traders were the first recorded Europeans to pass through this region. Samuel de Champlain, explorer, traversed the Ottawa River in 1615 on his way westward to the Great Lakes. The largest city in the region is the city of Ottawa, capital of Canada, which accounts for roughly 60% of Eastern Ontario's population. Kingston, itself once capital of the Province of Canada, is another city in the region outside of the National Capital Region.

Much of the remainder of the region relies on agriculture and tourism. Heavier reliance on recreation and tourism exists in the more rugged Renfrew county in the northwest of Eastern Ontario.

Of all Ontario's regions, parts of Eastern Ontario are the most heavily influenced by the United Empire Loyalists, American settlers who moved to Upper Canada out of loyalty to the British Crown during and after the American Revolutionary War. The Loyalist influence has a presence in the counties of Stormont, Dundas, Leeds and Grenville, Frontenac, Hastings, and Prince Edward.

In Ottawa, Prescott and Russell, Glengarry, and Renfrew, Eastern Ontario is home to the largest Franco-Ontarian community within Ontario.

Extensive immigration by Scottish Highlanders from the Highland land clearances also took place around the time of the United Empire Loyalist migration. After the Loyalist period, more waves of Highland emigration came primarily from Inverness-shire, Scotland to seek a better quality of life. The majority of these Scottish immigrants settled in the specific Highland community Glengarry County. Large numbers of Irish Catholics, mainly from Cork and surrounding counties also settled in the area in the decades following the War of 1812, the majority of them in or near present-day Ottawa in Carleton, Dundas, Grenville, and Renfrew Counties. Many arrived through government backed immigration schemes to settle unoccupied lands and fill labour shortages. Along with the Franco-Ontarians in particular, they made up the majority of canal builders on the large Rideau Canal project and were heavily employed in the area's extensive lumber industry.

Through the last century, newer immigrant groups, both Francophone and non-Francophone, have added to the cultural diversity, mostly in Ottawa. There are a large number of Francophones in Eastern Ontario, especially in Prescott and Russell United Counties. Following the Second World War, there was a massive influx of Dutch immigrants to Canada, with many settling in communities in Eastern Ontario, particularly in Dundas, Stormont, and Grenville.

• City of Ottawa

• City of Belleville*
• City of Brockville
• City of Cornwall
• City of Kingston
• City of Pembroke
• Town of Gananoque
• Town of Prescott
• Town of Smiths Falls

• Frontenac County
• Hastings County*
• Lanark County
• United Counties of Leeds and Grenville
• Lennox and Addington County
• United Counties of Prescott and Russell
• Prince Edward County*
• Renfrew County
• United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry

 

Eastern Ontario is located within both the Mixedwood Plains Ecozone (as classified by Environment and Climate Change Canada, further subclassified into the St. Lawrence Lowland, Frontenac Axis, Manitoulin-Lake Simcoe regions),^[6] and Boreal Shield Ecozone (further subclassified into the Algonquin-Lake Nipissing region).^[7] Surficial geology largely consists of glacial till, glaciolacustrine and glaciomarine silt/clay plains, and low-lying wetlands underlain by sedimentary limestone, dolostone, siltstone, sandstone, arkose, and shale bedrock, in addition to sections of plutonic igneous granite, quartz, gneiss, and conglomerate bedrock of the Canadian Shield, which is exposed at the surface in many locations. Eastern Ontario's geography is highly varied, with flat plains and rolling hills in the eastern section of the region, near the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario, and rugged highland areas in the sections that the Canadian Shield covers, including the Laurentian Highlands and Openogo Hills, ranging from Algonquin Provincial Park south toward Lake Ontario. The Thousand Islands region is a unique bedrock archipelago in the St. Lawrence River that consists of approximately 1,864 islands straddling the Canada-US border. Geological fault zones run through the region, including the Western Quebec Seismic Zone and the St. Lawrence Rift System. These fault zones result in a graben (Ottawa-Bonnechere Graben) that forms the Ottawa Valley, running the length of the Ottawa River and Mattawa River north to Lake Nipissing. Subsequently, the region is prone to sinkholes^[8] and earthquakes. More severe earthquakes (Richter Magnitude scale of 5-6 or greater) occur at a frequency of approximately 60 years on average. The most recent severe earthquake to occur, the 2010 Central Canada Earthquake, caused minor damage to power grid systems and buildings in Ottawa and other nearby areas.^[9] Additional major historical earthquakes include the 1944 Cornwall-Massena Earthquake.

 

Eastern Ontario maintains significant forest coverage, predominantly in the areas of the Canadian Shield that could not be cleared for agricultural purposes. A singular forest region is located in Eastern Ontario,^[10] known as the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence forest.^[11] The historical prominence of the logging industry has resulted in significant historical clearing of these forests, but the implementation of more sustainable forestry practices and governmental protections on certain areas has resulted in regrowth and retention of forests on areas not suitable for agriculture. One major federally protected area, Thousand Islands National Park, is located in Eastern Ontario. Multiple provincial parks are also located in the region, with the most significant of which being Algonquin Provincial Park, itself established to encourage sustainable forestry practices after being clearcut in the late 19th century.^[12]

 

Eastern Ontario's climate is heavily influenced by the proximity of the Great Lakes and its relative northern latitude compared to other parts of Southern Ontario. Winters in the region are typically severe, with regions experiencing low temperatures and significant amounts of snow and ice during winter months. Highland regions experience more severe winters due to their higher elevation. Significant snowfall is common in the area even into the spring.^[13] Summers are typically hot and humid in lower-lying areas, with milder and cooler summers occurring in the north. Eastern Ontario also experiences ice storms on a regular basis due to the presence of the arctic high-pressure system,^[14] heavily impacting the low-lying areas of the Ottawa Valley and St. Lawrence Valley, with significant events including the 1998 North American Ice Storm and the 2023 Canadian Ice Storm. Eastern Ontario also regularly experiences severe weather events, including tornadoes, and thunderstorms as a result of humid summer temperatures.

Under the Köppen climate classification, Eastern Ontario has a humid continental climate, with the entire area experiencing a warm-summer Dfb climate. Temperatures are warmer along the north shore of Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River, in areas such as Prince Edward County, in comparison to the more northern areas of the region.

 

The vast majority of the primary vehicular traffic network in Eastern Ontario is served mainly by the controlled-access 400-series highways. Highway 401, the main highway in the network, starts as a continuation of Autoroute 20 at the Quebec border in South Glengarry and runs southwest to Belleville, where it continues southwest through the Golden Horseshoe and Southwestern Ontario. Highway 416, another major highway, runs north from Highway 401 near Johnstown, where it connects with Highway 417 in Ottawa. Highway 417 starts as a continuation of Autoroute 40 at the Quebec border in East Hawkesbury and runs northwest through Ottawa toward Arnprior, after which it becomes Highway 17. Highways 401 and 417 carry Trans-Canada Highway designations throughout Eastern Ontario. Additional major provincial highways in the region include Highway 7, Highway 15, Highway 16, Highway 33, Highway 37, Highway 62, Highway 137, and Highway 138. An extension of Highway 417 toward Renfrew is under construction as of 2024.^[15] In 2024, the province announced that ownership of Highway 174 will be transferred to the provincial government from the city of Ottawa.^[16]

Eastern Ontario also has multiple road connections with the United States. These include the Thousand Islands Bridge near Gananoque, the Odgensburg-Prescott International Bridge in Johnstown, and the Seaway International Bridge in Cornwall, all of which cross the St. Lawrence River. Multiple bridges also connect the region with Quebec, including the Champlain Bridge, Chaudiere Bridge, Portage Bridge, Alexandra Bridge, and the MacDonald-Cartier Bridge in Ottawa, and the Long-Sault Bridge in Hawkesbury, all of which cross the Ottawa River. Additional major bridges include the Norris Whitney Bridge in Belleville and the Quinte Skyway near Desoronto, which cross the Bay of Quinte.

Eastern Ontario is home to only one major airport; Ottawa MacDonald-Cartier International Airport (YOW), in addition to multiple minor airports in either Ottawa or various smaller communities, such as Kingston Norman Rogers Airport (YKR), Pembroke & Area Airport (YTA), and Rockliffe Airport (YRO). Ottawa International Airport is a major airport in the Canadian transportation network and offers flights to many major cities across Canada, in addition to select cities in the United States and the Caribbean.^[17] Additionally, a major Canadian Forces base, CFB Trenton (YTR), is located in Trenton and is operated by the Royal Canadian Air Force.

 

Eastern Ontario has multiple tertiary education institutions in the form of both universities and colleges. Two universities, University of Ottawa and Queen's University, are part of the U15 Group, the association of Canada's dominant research universities.

• Carleton University, founded in 1942 in Ottawa;
• Queen's University, founded in 1841 in Kingston;
• Royal Military College of Canada, founded in 1876 in Kingston;
• University of Ottawa, founded in 1848 in Ottawa;
  • Saint Paul University, founded in 1848 in Ottawa;

• Algonquin College, founded in 1967 in Ottawa;
  • Additional campuses in Carleton Place, Hawkesbury, Perth, Pembroke, and Renfrew;
• Collège La Cité, founded in 1989 in Ottawa;
  • Additional campus in Hawkesbury;
• Loyalist College, founded in 1967 in Belleville;
  • Additional campuses in Bancroft and Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory;
• St. Lawrence College, founded in 1967 in Kingston;
  • Additional campuses in Brockville and Cornwall.

Eastern Ontario has a rich professional sports scene, largely centred on Ottawa, where two "Big Six" teams (MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL, MLS, and CFL) currently play - the Ottawa Senators of the NHL, and the Ottawa Redblacks of the CFL, in addition to multiple other additional professional franchises from other leagues, including the PWHL, AHL, CEBL, CPL, and NLL. Additional professional hockey teams were previously located in the region, including in the NHA's (the predecessor of the modern NHL) Renfrew Creamery Kings, and the WHA's (which later merged with the modern NHL) Ottawa Civics and Ottawa Nationals. Historical Canadian football teams from the ORFU and QRFU included the Brockville Football Club, Kingston Granites, and Ottawa Trojans. The history of professional sports in the Ottawa region has long been tumultuous and saw professional franchises leave the city on multiple occastions, including the original Ottawa Senators of the NHL, being founded in 1883 and relocating in 1934, the Ottawa Rough Riders of the CFL, being founded in 1876 and folding in 1996, and the Ottawa Renegades of the CFL, being founded in 2002 and folding in 2008.

A bid for a Major League Soccer franchise was made by former Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk in 2010,^[18] with intention of constructing a new stadium in Kanata.^[19] The Ottawa bid was ultimately rejected in favour of the Portland Timbers and Vancouver Whitecaps expansion teams.^[20]

•   Eastern Ontario travel guide from Wikivoyage

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