The central part of the city is located between the
Cataraqui River to the east and the
Little Cataraqui Creek to the West, with outlying areas extending in both directions. Kingston is the county seat of
Frontenac County . According to the
2001 Canadian Census , the population of the city proper was 114,195.
Kingston is nicknamed the ''"Limestone City"'' because of the many historic buildings made from the local grey limestone.
Kingston is roughly half way between , Ontario Highway 401 (the
Macdonald-Cartier Freeway , which turns into
Quebec Autoroute 20), and
Canadian National Railways ' Windsor to Quebec City Corridor. Kingston also lies at the south end of the
Rideau Canal , originally built to connect Lake Ontario with the
Ottawa River in order to provide a safe transportation route to Montreal away from the
American border. Kingston's airport,
Norman Rogers Airport (CYGK), has regularly scheduled air service to Toronto.
Kingston is the site of two universities,
Queen's University and the
Royal Military College Of Canada (RMC), as well as
St. Lawrence College . One of the oldest
Radio Station s in the world,
CFRC , broadcasts from Queen's.
Canadian Forces Base Kingston (CFB Kingston) houses CFSCE (Canadian Forces School of Communications and Electronics), the
Canadian Armed Forces ' military communications training centre.
Canada's largest group of federal prisons, including
Kingston Penitentiary , is located within the immediate area of the city, and has been home to some of Canada's most notorious criminals, both past and present.
The
French originally settled upon a traditional
Mississaugas First Nation site called ''Katerokwi'' (Cataraqui in the common transliteration which uses French pronunciation rules, it is pronounced CAT - AH - RAH - KWAY) in
1673 and established
Fort Frontenac . The fort was captured and destroyed by the
British in the
Battle Of Fort Frontenac near the end of the
Seven Years' War in
1758 . A receiving centre for fleeing refugees from the
American Revolution , it became the primary community of south-eastern
Upper Canada .
New settlement from the
United Empire Loyalists (UEL) and
Mohawks from the
Six Nations in
New York , led by
Molly Brant , formed a significant part of an expanding population in the area at the end of the
18th Century .
During the
War Of 1812 , Kingston was the base for the Lake Ontario division of the
Great Lakes British Naval Fleet and engaged in a vigorous
Arms Race with the American fleet based at
Sackett's Harbor, New York for control of Lake Ontario. After the war, Britain built
Fort Henry and a series of distinctive
Martello Tower s to guard the entrance to the
Rideau Canal . Fort Henry still stands and is a popular tourist destination.
Kingston's location at the Rideau Canal entrance to Lake Ontario, after canal construction was completed in
1832 , made it the primary military and economic centre of Upper Canada. Kingston had the largest population of any centre in Upper Canada until the
1840s .
Kingston was one of the contenders for the capital of the united
Canadas before
Confederation , but after a brief stint as the capital from
1841 to
1844 (including the first meeting of the Parliament of the United Canadas on June
13 ,
1841 , it lost out to an alternating location of Montreal and Toronto, and then later to
Ottawa in
1857 . Kingston was the home of Canada's first
Prime Minister ,
Sir John A. Macdonald .
During the late
Nineteenth and early
Twentieth Centuries , Kingston was an important Great Lakes port and a center for
Shipbuilding and
Locomotive building, including the largest locomotive works in the
British Empire (the Canadian Locomotive Company - later Fairbanks-Morse - closed in
1969 ). Most heavy industry has now left the city and employment is now primarily in the institutional, military, and service/retail sectors.
The term "Cataraqui", from the original native name for Kingston, today applies to an area northwest of downtown Kingston.
According to the
Kingston Economic Development Corporation , in a 2004 report, the largest employers in Kingston in 2004 were:
Source: http://business.kingstoncanada.com/communityprofile/resources/Economic.pdf
Kingston is sufficiently far from any major city -- while being populated by many academics, students and other
people with cultural interests -- that it has developed a thriving artistic and entertainment life.
The city hosts several festivals during the year, including the Limestone City Blues Festival, the Kingston Canadian Film Festival, Fanfayr, Kingston Busker's Rendezvous, Kingston Sheep Dog Trials, Kingston Jazz Festival, Kingston Dragon Boat Festival, Canada DanceSport, the Festival of Trees, Feb Fest, the Limestone Classic, and the Chilifest.
The Kingston Symphony Orchestra performs at Kingston's Grand Theatre, as do several amateur and semi-professional theatre groups. (Following a successful fundraising campaign, the Grand Theatre has been closed for renovations and will reopen in the fall of 2006.
{Link without Title} ) Also in the city is
Theatre Kingston (formerly ''Theatre Beyond''), a professional company.
The city has spawned several musicians and musical groups, most of whom are known mainly within Canada, but few of whom have achieved international success. These include members of
The Tragically Hip ,
The Mahones , jazz singer
Andy Poole ,
Bedouin Soundclash ,
Sarah Harmer ,
The Arrogant Worms ,
The Headstones ,
The Inbreds ,
The Orange Alabaster Mushroom ,
David Usher (formerly of Moist), and Kingston is the birth place of
Bryan Adams . Singer
Avril Lavigne , from nearby
Napanee , began her career after gaining notice singing at a Kingston fair and bookstore. The first winner of the television series ''
Canadian Idol '' was Kingston native
Ryan Malcolm .
Poet
Michael Andre was raised in Kingston, and actor
Dan Aykroyd makes his home near Kingston.
In addition to local outlets,
radio and television stations from
New York (especially the
Watertown market) are readily available in Kingston.
- 960 AM - CFFX , ''Oldies 960''
- 1380 AM - CKLC , Standards
- 91.9 FM - CKVI , Kingston Collegiate And Vocational Institute
- 92.9 FM - CBBK , CBC Radio Two
- 96.3 FM - CFMK , ''Joe FM'' Adult Variety
- 98.3 FM - CFLY , ''Fly FM'' CHR
- 99.5 FM - CJBC-2 , La Première Chaîne
- 101.9 FM - CFRC , Queen's University Campus Radio
- 105.7 FM - CIKR , ''K-Rock'' Active Rock
- 107.5 FM - CBCK , CBC Radio One
The city's main newspaper is the ''
Kingston Whig-Standard '', owned by
Osprey Media . Smaller local publications include ''Kingston This Week'', ''Kingston Eye-Opener'' and ''
Independent Voice ''.
Although debatable, Kingston lays claim to being the birthplace of ,
Montreal Canadians and
Ottawa Senators .
Kingston is represented in the
Ontario Hockey League by the
Kingston Frontenacs . There have also been several other defunct franchises known as the
Kingston Frontenacs .
The
International Hockey Hall Of Fame , established in 1943 and erected in 1965, is located in Kingston.
Several , Bill Cook, Bun Cook, Flat Walsh, Lorne Ferguson, Bob Murray, Wayne Cashman, Rick Smith, Ken Linseman, Dick &
Don Cherry , Fred O'Donnell,
Doug Gilmour ,
Kirk Muller ,
Jay McKee and
Bryan Allen .
The city is famous for its fresh-water sailing (it hosted the sailing events for the
1976 Summer Olympics ). CORK —
Canadian Olympic-training Regatta, Kingston — now hosted by CORK/Sail Kingston Inc. is still held every August. Kingston is listed by a panel of experts among the
best yacht racing venues in the USA , even though Kingston is, of course, in Canada.
Here's a
list of major regattas hosted by Kingston over the years.
Kingston sits amid great cruising and boating territory, with easy access to
Lake Ontario , the
St. Lawrence River , and the
Thousand Islands including the
St. Lawrence Islands National Park .
Kingston is a well-known destination for fresh-water
Wreck Diving . Some of Kingston's wrecks can be classed among the best fresh water wrecks in the world. Kingston's wrecks are well preserved by its cool fresh water, and the recent
zebra mussel invasion has caused a drastic improvement in water clarity that has enhanced the quality of diving in the area.
Here's a
catalog of diveable wrecks in the Kingston region , another source is
here .
According to the mid-2001 census, there were 146,838 people residing in the greater Kingston area, of whom 49.1 % were male and 50.9 % were female. Children under five accounted for approximately 5.1 % of the resident population of Kingston. This compares with 5.8 % in Ontario, and almost 5.6 % for
Canada overall.
In mid-2001, 14.1 % of the resident population in Kingston were of retirement age (65 and over for males and females) compared with 13.2 % in
Canada . As a result, the average age is 38.1 years of age as compared to 37.6 years of age for all of Canada. Kingston has a reputation as a suitable place for retirees to settle.
In the five years between 1996 and 2001, the population of Kingston grew by 1.6 %, compared with an increase of 6.1 % for
Ontario as a whole. Population density of Kingston averaged 77.0 people per square kilometre, compared with an average of 12.6, for
Ontario altogether.
The
Limestone District School Board serves students in the counties of Frontenac and Lennox and Addington. Along with the Limestone School of Community Education, which provides adult education and training programs, approximately 23,000 students attend 56 elementary and 12 secondary schools. The
Algonquin And Lakeshore Catholic District School Board serves students of the
Roman Catholic faith. Approximately 15,000 students attend 36 elementary schools and 5 secondary schools in this school district.
Kingston is home to
Queen's University , one of the most distinguished universities in the country.
The
Royal Military College Of Canada is also located in Kingston. RMC is Canada's only military university and is where many of the Canadian Forces' future officers go, not only to receive a fully accredited university diploma, but also to become bilingual, develop stringent physical fitness habits and receive training for their future military careers.
Local secondary schools:
Kingston has a rich and beautiful waterfront. Major features include
Flora MacDonald Confederation Basin ,
Portsmouth Olympic Harbour ,
Collins Bay ,
Wolfe Island ,
Garden Island , the
Cataraqui River (including
Kingston, Ontario Inner Harbour and, within that,
Anglin Bay .)
Here's an external link to an
overview of marinas, harbours, anchorages in and around Kingston .
