Wolfe Island is an island at the entrance to the

Saint Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connectin ...

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border ...

near

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the north-eastern end of Lake Ontario, at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River (south end of the Rideau Canal). The city is midway between To ...

. Wolfe Island is part of

Frontenac County, Ontario Frontenac County is a county and census division of the Canadian province of Ontario. It is located in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario. The city of Kingston is in the Frontenac census division, but is separated from the County of Front ...

and the Township of

Frontenac Islands Frontenac Islands is a township located in Frontenac County, Ontario, Canada, that encompasses a number of islands at the beginning of the Saint Lawrence River near the outlet of Lake Ontario, including: Arabella, Bayfield, Black Ant, Garden, G ...

. It is the largest of the

Thousand Islands The Thousand Islands (french: Mille-Îles) constitute a North American archipelago of 1,864 islands that straddles the Canada–US border in the Saint Lawrence River as it emerges from the northeast corner of Lake Ontario. They stretch for abo ...

. The largest community on the island is Marysville. The island is about long, with its width varying from around to a few hundred metres at some points; its area is about . The resident population is about 1400 people, but this can double or triple in summer. It is the site of the Wolfe Island Wind Project, a 197.8 MW

wind farm A wind farm or wind park, also called a wind power station or wind power plant, is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electricity. Wind farms vary in size from a small number of turbines to several hundred wind turb ...

consisting of 86 wind turbines, in operation since 2009.

History

The island was part of the traditional hunting lands of the Tyendinaga Mohawk people and the original name of the island is Kawehnóhkwes tsi kawè:note ("Long Island Standing"). The name is often given as "Ganounkouesnot", but this name makes no sense in the Tyendinaga Mohawk language. In 2021, the Township of Frontenac Islands voted officially to accept the name of Kawehnóhkwes tsi kawè:note and added it to the signs welcoming visitors to Wolfe Island. It was called ''Grand Island'' (''Grande île'') by the French. In a proclamation by the

Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada The following is a list of lieutenant governors of Ontario and the lieutenant governors of the former colony of Upper Canada. The office of Lieutenant Governor of Ontario was created in 1867, when the Province of Ontario was created upon Confed ...

John Graves Simcoe John Graves Simcoe (25 February 1752 – 26 October 1806) was a British Army general and the first lieutenant governor of Upper Canada from 1791 until 1796 in southern Ontario and the watersheds of Georgian Bay and Lake Superior. He founded Yor ...

on 16 July 1792, the island was renamed from Grand island to Wolfe island, after

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

General

James Wolfe James Wolfe (2 January 1727 – 13 September 1759) was a British Army officer known for his training reforms and, as a major general, remembered chiefly for his victory in 1759 over the French at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham in Quebec. ...

. A scheme to ship goods from Cape Vincent, New York to Kingston in the mid 19th century by connecting Canadian and American railway systems required a

canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flo ...

to be dug across the island. Since there was no direct railway link across the channels to the north and south of the island, boats were needed to ship the goods. A system of

steamships A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

towing barges carrying railway cars across the channels and through the canal was planned. Construction started in 1852. Although completed, the canal did not serve its intended purpose and stopped being used by 1892. It has been the site of various cheese factories, including one once operated by

Kraft Foods The second incarnation of Kraft Foods is an American food manufacturing and processing conglomerate, split from Kraft Foods Inc. in 2012 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. It became part of Kraft Heinz in 2015. A merger with Heinz, arran ...

Infrastructure

Wolfe Island has its own post office ( K0H 2Y0) and telephone exchange ( +1-613-385-). Wolfe Island can be reached by ferry from both Canada and the United States. The ferry from Kingston (''

Wolfe Islander III ''Wolfe Islander III'' is the ferry currently serving between Kingston, Ontario and Wolfe Island. She can hold approximately 55 cars, and is end-loading. The length of the car deck is 61 metres (200 feet). The vehicle height restriction ...

'') is operated by the Ministry of Transportation and is free of charge. This ferry operates from two locations: the Summer Dock located in Marysville and the Winter Dock located at Dawson Point. This route includes an underwater air bubbler system that stretches to the Barrack Street Dock in Kingston, Ontario, whose purpose is to prevent ice buildup along the ferry's route in winter. This ferry service is currently being examined in an ongoing transportation study. The seasonal Horne's Ferry (May to October) toll ferry to

Cape Vincent, New York Cape Vincent is a town in Jefferson County, New York, United States. The population was 2,777 at the 2010 census. The town is in the northwestern part of the county. In the town is a village also called Cape Vincent. Both town and village a ...

, first licensed in 1802, is still operated by the descendants of the first licence-holder and is one of the rare Canada-US international border crossings to be privately operated (the others are the

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

- Detroit's

Ambassador Bridge The Ambassador Bridge is a tolled international suspension bridge across the Detroit River that connects Detroit, Michigan, United States, with Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Opened in 1929, it is the busiest international border crossing in North ...

and Sombra–Marine City (Bluewater) Ferry). A third ferry runs seasonally to join Wolfe Island to Simcoe Island. Wolfe Island is the site of most Kingston radio transmitters; CKWS TV and

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmi ...

, CKLC, CIKR and CFRC transmit from the island.

Flora and fauna

Snowy owl The snowy owl (''Bubo scandiacus''), also known as the polar owl, the white owl and the Arctic owl, is a large, white owl of the true owl family. Snowy owls are native to the Arctic regions of both North America and the Palearctic, breeding m ...

s are frequently seen on the island during winter. It is also an important stopover location for migrating waterfowl including swans in spring and fall. Wolfe Island is also home to a growing population of wild turkeys, and well as deer and other fauna. It is designated an Important Bird Area. The Big Sandy Bay Management Area on Wolfe Island is a 404-hectare property, classified as a provincially significant life sciences ''

Area of Natural and Scientific Interest Area is the quantity that expresses the extent of a region on the plane or on a curved surface. The area of a plane region or ''plane area'' refers to the area of a shape or planar lamina, while '' surface area'' refers to the area of an o ...

''. Sand dunes and wetlands allow rare plant species to flourish here. Rare trees and birds deemed to be significant either regionally or provincially are also found here. The environmental area is protected and no motorized vehicles are allowed, though there is ample free parking provided at the entrance. A well-marked and level walking trail leads to a large, secluded sand beach with shallows reaching out well into Lake Ontario. The beach is safe and family-friendly, but there are no services, so visitors are encouraged to bring their own refreshments and must carry out all garbage and recyclables to dispose of at home.

Recreation and other facilities

There is one golf course on Wolfe Island, a

corn maze A corn maze or maize maze is a maze cut out of a corn field. Originally, the first full-size corn maze was believed to be created in Annville, Pennsylvania in 1993; however, similar corn mazes were highlighted in newspapers as early as 1982. C ...

and three marked bicycle routes and country roads. The town of Marysville includes a bakery, restaurants and various other shops and services, as well as the largest church in the Thousand Islands (Sacred Heart of Mary Church). A new medical clinic opened in the spring of 2010. There is a volunteer fire and ambulance service on the island. Additionally, Wolfe Island has Big Sandy Bay Management Area. During the summer months in Marysville the Old House Museum is in operation. There are two elementary schools on the island: Marysville Public School that is part of the Limestone District School Board and Sacred Heart Catholic School that is part of the Algonquin and Lakeshore Catholic District School Board. In Marysville, the Township operates a tourist information centre seasonally. The limestone Wolfe Island Town Hall is a

National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of Canada (french: Lieux historiques nationaux du Canada) are places that have been designated by the federal Minister of the Environment on the advice of the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (HSMBC), as being ...

Notable residents

* Fr. Raymond de Souza

References

External links

Wolfe Island

Kingston to Marysville year-round ferry schedule

Seasonal ferry to USA schedule
{{Authority control Landforms of Frontenac County Islands of the Thousand Islands in Ontario Islands of Lake Ontario in Ontario Important Bird Areas of Ontario Canada–United States border crossings