Excerpt from Wikipedia:

The Grand River (la rivière Grand) is a large river in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. It also lies along the western fringe of the Greater Golden Horseshoe region of Ontario which overlaps the eastern portion of southwestern Ontario, sometimes referred to as Midwestern Ontario, along the length of this river. From its source near Wareham, Ontario, it flows south through Grand Valley, Fergus, Elora, Waterloo, Kitchener, Cambridge, Paris, Brantford, Caledonia, and Cayuga before emptying into the north shore of Lake Erie south of Dunnville at Port Maitland. One of the scenic and spectacular features of the river is the falls and Gorge at Elora.

The Grand River is the largest river that is entirely within southern Ontario's boundaries. The river owes its size to the unusual fact that its source is relatively close to the Georgian Bay of Lake Huron, yet it flows southwards to Lake Erie, rather than to westward to the closer Lake Huron or northward to Georgian Bay (most southern Ontario rivers flow into the nearest Great Lake, which is why most of them are small), thus giving it more distance to take in more water from tributaries.

The river's mostly rural character (even when flowing through the edges of Waterloo and Kitchener), ease of access and lack of portages make it a desirable canoeing location, especially the stretch between West Montrose and Paris. A number of conservation areas have been established along the river, and are managed by the Grand River Conservation Authority.

The Grand Valley Trail stretches 275 km along the river's valley between the town of Dundalk and Lake Erie.

The Mohawk name for the Grand River, O:se Kenhionhata:tie means "Willow River," for the many willows in the watershed. During the 18th century, the French colonists named it Grande-Rivière. It was later renamed as Ouse River by John Graves Simcoe for the River Great Ouse near his childhood home in Lincolnshire on the east coast of England. The anglicized form of the French name has remained in common use.

Tags:   Grand River Caledonia Haldimand County Ontario Canada la rivière Grand Brant County

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Excerpt from ontariotrails.on.ca:

Rotary Riverside Trail

This 5.7 km linear trail runs parallel to the Grand River just downstream of Caledonia. Developed and managed by the Rotary Club of Caledonia, most of the trail is on land owned by Haldimand County, with the rest of the trail on private land.

The trail is open all year. It begins at the Seneca Park parking lot, on the east side of the Grand immediately below Caledonia, and ends at the town of York.

The trail surface is mostly fine hard gravel, with some of the newer sections being either dirt or stone dust. After a brief climb up a steep slope, the trail pathway opens out onto Sims Lock Road. At this point (about 4 km from the start), the route follows Sims Lock Road to Abbey Road, where the trail path resumes to the Village of York. In general this very scenic area consists of agricultural land mixed with small settlements.

The immediate trail habitat consists largely of Carolinian forest, e.g. black walnut, and high, dense undergrowth with goldenrod, ragweed, and many creeping vines. There are many opportunities to access or view scenic river vistas on the right, and there are significant stretches of field on the left. Both banks of the river are often in view, and most of the trail is shaded by mature trees During migration large numbers of waterfowl may be encountered along the river.

Many breeding birds may also be seen, some of them rare. They include the rare Least Bittern, Great Blue and Green Herons, Wood Duck, Northern Harrier, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Eastern Screech-Owl, Belted Kingfisher, Red-headed Woodpecker as well as other woodpeckers, Least Flycatcher and other flycatchers, Eastern Kingbird, Warbling Vireo and other vireos, Northern Rough-winged Swallow and other swallows, Gray Catbird, many warblers including Common Yellowthroat and American Redstart, as well as blackbirds and sparrows such as Field, Song and Chipping.

Of special note is the existence of a nesting pair of Bald Eagles located along the west bank of the river across from the trail head in Seneca Park. The pair successfully fledged young as recently as the summer of 2008.

Tags:   Grand River Seneca Park Rotary Riverside Trail 651 Caithness Street East Caledonia Haldimand County Ontario Canada Brant County

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Excerpt from haldimandcounty.ca:

McKinnon-Smith House: One of the first fine homes built in Caledonia; this brick house was built about 1850 by Neil McKinnon who was raised by Ranald McKinnon, the founder of Caledonia. Dr. Ranald McKinnon, who became the Medical Superintendent for the Six Nations Indians, was born in this house. Later it was the home of A.C Buck, the town chemist, and was illustrated on the Tremaine map of 1863. From 1884 to 1925 it was lived in by Dr. Forbes of prohibition fame.

Tags:   McKinnon-Smith House 156 Caithness Street East Caledonia Haldimand County Ontario Canada Level 1-Photography for Recreation Brant County

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Excerpt from Wikipedia:

Caledonia railway station was built in 1908 by the Grand Trunk Railway Company of Canada. The station was the third to be built in Caledonia, Ontario.

The first Caledonia railway station was located in the Slater Hotel located where a Tim Hortons restaurant stands (as of 2010) on the North Side of the Grand River. When railway traffic increased Grand Trunk realized the benefits of a full-sized station in Caledonia. Around 1877, a Station was built on the present location. This station burned down around 1906 and plans were made for a new, bigger station.

This new, bigger station was to include a passenger waiting room, men's and ladies' smoking rooms, freight room and two restrooms, as well as office spaces in the east end. The Ticket Wicket was said to be one of the finest in the Country.

Grand Trunk operated the station until the Canadian National Railway took over the building, and the entire Grand Trunk Operation, in 1923.

At this point, an extended freight and maintenance room was added to the west end of the building. Also at this time, the then popular red "insul-brick" was used to cover up the Grand Trunk colour Scheme of beige and park green. The Station operated under CN Rail until October 1957 when they canceled passenger service to Caledonia, Cayuga, Port Dover, Hagersville, and Jarvis. The last "Port Dover Granny" to stop at Caledonia was on October 26, 1957. Parcel and freight service continued until November 1977. CN used the station as a maintenance depot up to the mid-1980s after which it fell into disrepair.

In August 1996 CN filed notice to abandon and demolish the station, and subsequently sell off the land on which it stood. Ron Clark of Caledonia purchased the station and donated it to the Special Projects Committee of the Caledonia & Regional Chamber of Commerce, which then formed a Grand Trunk Station Society to maintain the building. Extensive work was done, including new foundations, roof, and restoring the original beige and park Green wooden siding from the Grand Trunk era. The official opening of the newly restored station was held November 27, 1997, fourteen months after work began.

The restored station now accommodates a Grand Trunk Railway Museum, offices for the Caledonia & Regional Chamber of Commerce, and a meeting room for community organizations.

Tags:   Caledonia Grand Trunk Station 1 Grand Trunk Lane Caledonia Haldimand County Ontario Canada Brant County

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Excerpt from haldimandcounty.ca:

Thompson-Colwell House: This two-story frame house was built circa 1860 as the manse for the Sutherland Street Presbyterian Church. This was the first Presbyterian Manse in Caledonia and is the oldest existing manse or parsonage in the town.

Tags:   Thompson Colwell House 86 Sutherland Street East Caledonia Haldimand County Ontario Canada Brant County

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