rapid
Rapid(s) or RAPID may refer to:
Hydrological features
* Rapids, sections of a river with turbulent water flow
* Rapid Creek (Iowa River tributary), Iowa, United States
* Rapid Creek (South Dakota), United States, namesake of Rapid City
Sport ...
in the
St. Lawrence River
The St. Lawrence River (, ) is a large international river in the middle latitudes of North America connecting the Great Lakes to the North Atlantic Ocean. Its waters flow in a northeasterly direction from Lake Ontario to the Gulf of St. Lawren ...
upstream and west of
Cornwall, Ontario
Cornwall is a city in Eastern Ontario, Canada, situated where the provinces of Central Canada, Ontario and Quebec and the U.S. state of New York (state), New York converge. It is Ontario's easternmost city. Although it is the seat of the United ...
. ''Sault'' is the archaic spelling of the French word ''saut'', meaning rapids.
The Long Sault created a navigation barrier along the river for much of its history, motivating the construction of the Moses-Saunders Power Dam, part of the St. Lawrence Seaway, in the 1950s as the size of
ships
A ship is a large vessel that travels the world's oceans and other navigable waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished from boats, ...
and the volume of shipping traffic along the river began to exceed the capacity of the area's
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 ...
locks.
The construction required the flooding of a large swath of land near the rapids to facilitate a
hydroelectric
Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...
dam
A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aqua ...
and to make the rapids area more navigable. The flooded region includes Ontario's Lost Villages.
The Long Sault Parkway takes its name from the rapids.