HomeMy WebLinkAbout557"Newspaper article copied from THE TORONTO STAR, Thursday, Sept.28. 1989.
Bay is a quiet harbor
Frenchman's Bay is a tranquil harbor filled with pleasure boats
One of the best known and most beautiful areas of Pickering is Frenchman's Bay,
now a tranquil harbor filled with pleasure boats.
It wasn't always thus.
For Frenchman's Bay is tied in with the history of the Town of Pickering and on and off its
shores lies the key to some of the economic development of the area.
In the early 1880s, shipping activities developed in Pickering because of the excellent
natural harbor at Frenchman's Bay and passage north was made possible up Duffin's
Creek for small craft.
Soon shipping became increasingly important at Frenchman's Bay and in 1845,
3 million feet of lumber was being exported from there, in addition to passengers and
supplies such as potash, grain, flour, salt, lime and luxury goods that had been ordered by
settlers.
But by 1875, Frenchman's Bay Harbor was almost redundant, so the township council gave
grants totaling $13,000 (a huge sum in those days) to the Frenchman's Bay Harbor Company
over a two-year period for improvements to their facilities.
With these funds, the harbor company constructed a lighthouse, a wharf and a 50,000
bushel elevator at Frenchman's Bay, thus bringing the harbor to life again. It began to be
used for the shipment of barley and wheat, along with the importation of coal from the U.S.
As the area became more prosperous, a small village developed at Frenchman's Bay with
two hotels and numerous houses. At one time, wagons lined the road from the bay up to the
Liverpool Community at Highway 2, waiting to load barley that would be stored on ships
bound for breweries in the U.S.
But because Frenchman's Bay is only 20 miles east of Toronto, it is considered prime
waterfront land ripe for development.
The marinas are now beginning to be renovated and plans are in the works for
redevelopment and the building of housing, a ""boatel"" and a waterfront walking area.
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