St. Marys River (Michigan-Ontario)
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The St. Marys River (sometimes spelled as the St. Mary's River) drains Lake Superior, starting at the end of Whitefish Bay and flowing 120 km (74.5 miles) southeast into Lake Huron. For its entire length it is an international border, separating Michigan in the United States from Ontario, Canada. See here for a Map.
The most important area along the river are the rapids and the twin cities of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario and Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. The rapids of the St. Mary's (Sault Sainte Marie in French) are just below the river's exit from Lake Superior. Before Europeans arrived, native Americans fished, traded, and maintained a portage around the rapids. French explorer Étienne Brûlé was the first european to travel up the rapids in about 1621. In 1641 Jesuit priests Isaac Jogues and Charles Raymbault ventured the same route as Brûlé finding many Ojibwa at the rapids and named it Sault Ste. Marie (sault meaning rapids in French)
Fort St. Joseph was built on the Canadian shore in 1796 to protect a trading post, and ensure continued British control of the area. The fort fulfilled its role in the War of 1812. The first modern lock was completed in May 1855 by Erastus Corning's St. Mary's Falls Ship Canal Company, and is known as the American Lock. Competitive pressure led to the construction of a Canadian Lock in 1895. The locks were made a part of the Great Lakes Waterway system in 1959 known as the Soo Locks.
The Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge takes road traffic across the river. Just to the west is the Sault Ste. Marie Bridge, carrying rail traffic.
Tributaries of this river include the:
[edit] See also
Including these other Canadian rivers: Root River, Garden River, Little Carp River, Big Carp River, Lower Echo River Desbarats River, and the Two Tree River. The American tributaries to the St. Mary's River are: Gogomain River, Munuscong River, Little Munuscong River, Brimley River, and the Charlotte River.
