Listing Type

Tours (Self Guided & Guided)

Niagara's Industrial Hydropower, Mills, and Manufacturing Tour

Top left image: William Rankine Power Station; Top right image:Welland Mills; Bottom left:Old Merritton Cotton Mill; Bottom right:Canada Hair Cloth Company

General Information

Waterpower and mills played a dynamic role in shaping Niagara as a leading industrial and electricity generating region.

This tour will show how influential water power was to the industrial development of mills and manufacturing over the course of history. The unique hydrological features of the falls and waterways of the region provided a unique opportunity for early entrepreneurs, and Niagara became an industrial leader.

The first part of the tour will take you from the most impressive of hydro-electric power generating stations to smaller more isolated facilities. You will see how the use of renewable resources promoted the prosperity, viability, and sustainability of industrial development in an historical context, on large and small scales.

The second part of the tour will take you through old industrial districts where mills played an integral role. These mills were powered by local water sources.

This is a two day tour travelling by car. You have the option to stay at the thematically relevant Old Stone Inn (a former mill itself), and continue with the tour the next day.

Photo Gallery

Points of interest include:

William Birch Rankine Power Station

Sir Adam Beck 1

Sir Adam Beck 2

Peter Secord Grist Mill

Old Stone Inn

Welland Mills

Old Merritton Cotton Mill

Lybster Mill

Canada Hair Cloth Company

Morningstar Mill

Tour Maps

From Toronto and points west:
Itinerary and map for Hydropower, Mills and Manufacturing tour

--> Your tour will begin at Morningstar Mill and end at the William Birch Rankine Power Station

From Buffalo and points east and south:
Itinerary and map for Hydropower, Mills and Manufacturing tour

--> Your tour will begin at William Birch Rankine Power Station and end at the Morningstar Mill

This page was prepared by Rob Munro and Ken Ho in December 2009

Google Paths

Below is the path

View interactive map and turn-by-turn directions

Address

GPS Co-ordinates

Latitude 43.074412
Longitude -79.078780
UTM easting 656408
UTM northing 4770869
Tour starts at William Birch Rankine Power Station, Niagara River Parkway, Niagara Falls, Ontario

Please register or login to add your review to this article.

© 2009, 2010, 2011. Unless otherwise indicated, all information contained on this website is the copyright property of Brock University and Tourism Niagara. All other information is the copyright property of its respective owner(s). Disclaimer.

POI Descriptions :	Brief	Full
Attach photo gallery images :	No	Yes
Attach multimedia files :	No	Yes

To :
Message :	Check out the great itinerary full of interesting stops I made at http://www.niagaragreenbelt.com.
Link :