Desjardins Canal - Early Manoeuvring

Early Manoeuvring

Access to Lake Ontario from the mainland was made more difficult by the topography of the area, which included a large sandbar, a natural sand and gravel barrier, across Burlington Bay. A water outlet to the lake through a depression in the sandbar existed but it was intermittent and quite near the water’s surface with clearance of two to three feet, allowing only small boats and bateaux to pass through. For any other type of craft it was necessary for the cargo to be unloaded, carried across the barrier, and then reloaded on another vessel for further handling.

Because of this obstacle to any commercial shipping entering the bay from Lake Ontario all parties had an interest in seeing the barrier breached. Restricted access to Burlington Bay was a concern for reasons other than the usual commercial ones. One involved vessel safety, as access to a protected harbor had obvious advantages in the event of lake storms. There were also military considerations. Since action on the Niagara Peninsula could be expected in any future war with the United States, warships sheltering in Burlington Bay could be protected by land-based guns.

An added incentive was the fact that the liberalization of the British Navigation Acts in the 1820s meant that certain U.S. products could be exported from Canada as though they had originated there, allowing the U.S. Midwest to share in Colonial preferences and attracting additional trade from this source. Improved access to the lake from the entrepôts at the limits of land transportation was required in order for the scheme to achieve its full potential. However, with the road network in the province at that time being dismal at best, improving water transportation, was seen as vital to economic growth.

It was in this context that the government of Upper Canada authorized in 1823 the construction of a canal through the sandbar. In 1826 the passage was completed, allowing schooners to sail right up to Hamilton’s doorstep. Hamilton then became a major port and quickly expanded as a center of trade and commerce. Access to the hinterland through Dundas was still easier as the Dundas Valley offered a natural route up the Niagara Escarpment, yet its major problem, difficult passage of goods and produce through the marsh, still existed. The two most influential people in the effort to ensure that Dundas got its share of increased trade with the interior were Richard Hatt and Peter Desjardins.