Cultural Landmarks of Hamilton-Wentworth

Hamilton Harbour

Location: West side of Lake Ontario

Hamilton Harbour is a naturally protected, landlocked body of water that was created during the last glaciation period. It is located at the western most end of Lake Ontario and is comprised of 500 square kilometres. The first explorer to the area was believed to be Étienne Brulé in 1615. The first officially recorded visit was by La Salle in September, 1669. The harbour has also been known as Macassa Bay, Lake Geneva, and Ouilqueton. When the area was becoming more populated, the name was changed to the Head-of-the-Lake, and by the early 19th century it was commonly known as Burlington Bay.

In 1823, a canal was cut through the beach strip which opened the harbour to mercantile shipping. The canal played an important role in the economic and industrial development of the area. In 1846, all properties on the harbour were deeded to the City of Hamilton through the Deeds of Incorporation of 1846, which incorporated the City of Hamilton and defined its boundaries. During the same year, the canal was widened to allow larger commercial vessels to enter the port.

When the railway terminus on the harbour front was developed, commercial traffic increased significantly. Passenger service also increased in the mid 19th century, due to increased immigration. In the 1830’s and 1840’s, two great waves of immigrants, mostly Irish, were fleeing disastrous conditions in their homelands. Hamilton was an excellent debarking port, because it was an ideal staging ground for immigration into the rest of Canada. Large emigrant sheds were erected along the waterfront for passengers who were arriving almost on a daily basis to Hamilton’s Gunn and Browne Wharves. They arrived at an increasing rate which eventually climbed to 4,000 per navigation season.. Many of these people settled in the area, becoming a substantial part of the culture and substance of the City of Hamilton.

Following Confederation in 1867, Hamilton Harbour began to develop further, due to the local industries that were beginning to establish their companies on the shore. The convenient access to water for industrial processes as well as easy access to shipping created the ideal climate to foster industrial expansion of the waterfront.

The Harbour was also vital to the growing community of Hamilton as a source of recreation. Its waters provided an attractive venue for swimming, boating, and fishing during the summer months and for skating, and curling during the winter months. Boating clubs were prevalent and bathing beaches dotted the shore of the Harbour. A thriving building business provided employment for many during this period.

During the winter months, the waters of the bay provided a ready source of ice which was harvested and stored in the great ice sheds along the shore in preparation for their sale during the summer.

In 1912, the local City Council found that the Harbour was too complex to manage, and requested that a governing body be created to manage the Harbour. As well, at the time, the current governing bodies, the Harbour and Beach Committee of City Council and the Bay Front Improvement Committee could not make long term commitments, because their membership was constantly changing, which resulted in policy changes.

In the same year, the Federal Government, by an Act of Parliament, created the Hamilton Harbour Commission to take over the administration of the Harbour from the City of Hamilton. There were to be three Commissioners, one appointed by Hamilton City Council and two appointed by the Federal Government. The first Hamilton Harbour Commissioners were George J. Guy, H.S. Wallace and W.J. Clark. The City of Hamilton gave the newly form organisation an operating fund of $4,000 per year.

They began a programme of land reclamation and extended wharfage to deal with the rapidly expanding industrial usage of the Harbour. In the years immediately following World War I, shipping increased dramatically as the commissioners expanded port activities and encouraged development of industrial harbour sites. The Harbour, in the first half of the 20th century became the site of a vital modern port. The latter half of the 20th century has seen the Harbour continue to develop as an industrial shipping centre while also developing the western section to allow the public to use the Harbour facilities for recreation.

One of the first projects the Hamilton Harbour Commissioners undertook was the building of docks and warehouses at the foot of Catharine Street. The revetment wall was built in 1912 which was 1,500 feet long to Wellington Street and 1,200 feet long south to Burlington Street. This project was made possible through their first great land reclamation project, which added more acres of shore land to what is now known as Eastwood Park.

By 1924, the Harbour was in need of greater accommodation for imported and exported goods. The operating grant of the Hamilton Harbour Commission was increased to $10,000 a year. Thus, a second warehouse was built on the Wellington Street dock. In anticipation of the opening of the Welland Ship Canal 1932, the Beach Strip Canal was widened and deepened to accommodate the larger ships that would be travelling through the Welland Ship Canal. The opening of the Welland Canal resulted in an increase in shipping in Hamilton Harbour. The Steel Company of Canada and the Hamilton By-Product Coke Ovens built larger docks to accommodate the new ships. The Hamilton Harbour Commissioners also created a larger turning basin for freighters by dredging the Ottawa Street Channel in 1935. By 1932, the operating fund of the commission was increased to $12,000 per year.

Since the previous reclamation projects had been so successful, the Hamilton Harbour Commissioners decided to embark on one of the most ambitious projects in their history- build a new dock, east of Wellington Street. This endeavour added 51 acres of waterfront property, and a new deep channel was dredged along the industrial waterfront. The work was carried out by the Department of Public Works at the request of the Hamilton Harbour Commissioners.

The marine railway and dockyard were built in 1938, which increased the volume of goods flowing through Hamilton Harbour. It was reported that shipping of goods had increased from $1,500,000 in 1931 to $2,500,000 in 1938. Moreover, the dock facilities at the Royal Hamilton Yacht Club were rebuilt. During the same year, the Commissioners decided that a new passenger dock was needed, due to the volume of passengers arriving in Hamilton Harbour. Therefore, a new dock was built at the foot of James Street with the assistance of the Department of Public Works. The Commission wanted to explore solutions to becoming a more self-reliant organisation, so they adopted a user fee strategy in 1938. This would enable the Commission to become more financially independent. By the end of the year, the Committee had generated $15,000 in revenues from the selling of waterlots and infilled developments to private and public corporations, which included STELCO, Canadian National Railway(CNR), and Otis Elevators.

By 1940, World War II was having a significant positive effect on the development of Hamilton Harbour. The local industries were enlisted to produce materials and products needed for the war in Europe. Thus, a new terminal Dock was built to accommodate the increase in exports. As well, the dock at the foot of Catherine Street was extended to John Street, and the Ottawa Street Channel was dredged. The Hamilton Harbour Commissioners built a new pavilion and swimming pool in 1942, and began operating a recreational beach

The Hamilton Harbour Commissioner’s Wellington Street warehouse was taken over by the Naval Shipping Building branch of the Department of Munitions and Supply in 1943. They established a naval training base called H.M.C.S. Star. A radio beam was also installed to guide ships into Hamilton Harbour.

The SS. Hamiltonian was purchased by the Hamilton Harbour Commission in 1944, in order to provide ferry service across the bay from the James Street Dock, La Salle Park, and the Beach Canal.

European trade was flourishing by 1948, which resulted in an increased need for more warehouses and dock facilities. This year also saw the Port of Hamilton exceed Toronto as a major port in Lake Ontario. By 1949, the Hamilton Harbour Commission attempted another reclamation project which cost approximately $1,200,000. In this project, the City acquired 17 more acres that were located between Emerald and Wentworth Streets. In the same year, a wharf was built at the rear of the marine docking yard building, and it spanned 300 feet by 120 feet. The James Street passenger slip was also widened from 65 feet to 100 feet. The Hamilton Harbour Commission applied to the Federal Government for funding to widen the La Salle Park dock at a cost of $73,000.

In 1951, the Harbour Commissioners purchased land for their future administration building. The cornerstone was laid in 1953.

One of the largest projects undertaken by the Commission was the reclamation of 1,000 acres for commercial use in 1957. During the same time as the reclamation, construction on the Burlington Bay Skyway Bridge commenced. Two years later the St. Lawrence Seaway opened allowing international ocean vessels to come to Hamilton’s Port. In fact, the first ocean vessel through the St. Lawrence Seaway berthed at Hamilton Harbour. Another major development was the construction of the Catharine Street Piers in the spring of 1962. The project cost $5,000,000 and is now called the Centennial Pier. This pier doubled the port’s ability to handle larger amounts of cargo and ships by adding seven new berths to Hamilton Harbour.

In 1982, a redevelopment of piers 12 and 13 was completed. It combined the two piers into one large shipping wharf with 16 hectares of back-up land and 1,000 metres of new Seaway draft berthage. The new wharf also had the Port’s first "Roll-on/Roll-off" facility which would give stern and bow loader ships access to the Port. The total cost of the project was $7,000,000. An earlier study on the future development of the East Port was undertaken, and in 1984 it was decided the first phase of the development would be the construction of a 244 metre dockwall. By 1985, the dockwall was to encompass an additional 600 metres. The completed project was 16.5 hectares in total, while 7.5 hectares were used for marine trans-shipment, and 9 for transportation services and other industries. The projected total leasable hectares was 50 hectares.

The Hamilton Harbour is a unique Harbour in Canada, because it is not a public Harbour under Section 108 and the Third Schedule of the Constitution Act, 1867. Moreover, the 1846 statute that incorporated the City of Hamilton gave authority over the Harbour to the City and not to the Provincial Government. Current proprietary ownership of the Hamilton Harbour is with the Hamilton Harbour Commission. It was given this authority, due to an agreement in 1948 that was designed to end disagreements over ownership and authority of the Harbour. Thus, the Hamilton Harbour Commission is a relatively independent and autonomous organisation. However, the Federal Government does have the ability to affect the decisions of the organisation through "legislative" jurisdiction, under the Constitution Act of 1867. Most Harbours are regulated by the Harbour Commissions Act of 1964, and the Canadian Ports Act of 1982, however, Hamilton Harbour is not subject to their laws regarding financial policies, borrowing, and reporting practices. In fact, the Hamilton Harbour is one of the most decentralised ports in Canada which is subject to little government intervention.

The Hamilton Harbour Commission is a public corporation with the power to develop and administer policies on behalf of the city. The Commission has authority over the Hamilton Harbour which includes piers, waterfront property, docks, waterlots, shores, and beaches. The only areas that are not under the Commission’s control is Cootes Paradise which is owned by the Royal Botanical Gardens, and the Burlington shipping channel, which is under the authority of the Federal Department of Transport.

The Commission can borrow, spend, sell, lease, and acquire property at its own discretion. Though the Commission can enact laws regarding the use of the lands it has jurisdiction over, it cannot infringe on the rights of the public and private landowners. Therefore, their by-laws cannot conflict with Federal Government legislation in regards to the Canadian Shipping Act and the Navigable Waters Protection Act. The existence of only legal and legislative restrictions on the Hamilton Harbour Commission has made it an highly autonomous organisation with wide ranging powers. Since the Commission is self financing, it must generate revenues through cargo fees, dockyard charges, and marine slip and boat rentals. In most years, the Commission has made a profit, however, since it is a non-profit organisation, the excess revenue is to be turned over to the City of Hamilton. The Hamilton Harbour Commission has been a successful and effective manager of Hamilton Harbour. They have been able to handle the fiscal and physical obstacles of managing the Harbour effectively and efficiently.

Currently, one third of the Hamilton Harbour shoreline is being used for commercial shipping which includes warehouses, wharves, and terminals, while over one half of the waterfront is being used as industrial areas. Much of the shore line is a result of the Hamilton Harbour Commissions’ 1926-1982 systemic policy of filling waterlot with dredged material for industrial sites. In fact, the Hamilton Harbour water surface area has been decreased by 22 percent since the 1850’s.

Since industrialisation and increased urbanisation, there have been concerns about pollution. By the later half of the nineteeth century, complaints about the stench from the Harbour were plentiful since raw sewage was being dumped directly into it. In 1832, and 1854, there were serious cholera epidemics. By 1930, a by-law was passed that prohibited swimming in the Harbour. Increased pressure and interest to pursue the issues surrounding the degradation of the Harbour’s ecosystem have raised serious questions about the condition of the Harbour and the level of contaminants, that not only affect birds, fish, and other water dependent creatures, but humans as well. In 1992, the Remedial Action Plan(RAP) was developed through a set of community based proposals issued to the public, industry, and the government. Two years later, the Federal Government endorsed the principals set forth in the original proposal. The organisation is now co-ordinated by the Canada Centre for Inland Waters in Burlington, Ontario in conjunction with the Federal Government. There are also many community partners involved in RAP and include:

The RAP Bay Area Implementation Team(BAIT) is co-chaired by both Federal and Provincial Government representatives. The organisation conducted a study on Hamilton Harbour, Cootes Paradise and the tributaries connected to the Harbour. Their goal is to discover the underlying problems in the Harbour and to attempt to improve the situation by developing new processes of handling stormwater, sewage, and industrial waste. They want to eliminate toxic chemicals, and infilling in order to improve the eco-system. This plan has been conducted in three phases. The first phase was the study of the condition of the Harbour. The second phase is the development of policies or procedures that would reduce the level of chemicals, and the level of human intervention, such as infilling in the Harbour. The final stage of the project will be the implementation of the policies and procedures developed in the second stage.

The estimated cost for implementing the RAP program is $800,000,000 to $900,000,000. The majority of the cost would be the responsibility of the local municipalities which would be invested in upgraded sewer overflow controls and sewage treatment facility upgrades. Over the past five years, STELCO and DOFASCO have spent $76,000,000 to aid in improving water quality and restoring habitats.

The two worst contaminated areas of the Hamilton Harbour are Randle Reef and Windermere Basin. In fact, Environment Canada has suggested that over 30,000 cubic metres of contaminated sediment be removed from Randle Reef. However, the project can only go ahead if funding is available. Windermere is also a highly polluted area of the Harbour. It is located at the south-east edge of Hamilton Harbour and was once a 40 hectare cattail marsh. It was eventually filled between 1960 and 1970, and remained a "hot spot" of contamination in the Harbour. The area was dredged in 1989 to attempt to rid it of some of the polluted sediment.

RAP will continue to monitor fish and wildlife populations, research new rehabilitation of habitat procedures, waterflow, seasonal effects on the Harbour, effects of exotic species(i.e. Zebra Mussels) on the eco-system, and chemical levels in the Harbour, even after the third phase has been completed. Their mandate remains to be the restoration and the preservation of Hamilton Harbour and its eco-system.

The Hamilton Harbour has been receiving ships at an increasing rate. Approximately 1,000 ships enter the Harbour on a yearly basis. The Hamilton Port is generally used for importation of goods rather than the exportation of goods. It is estimated that 80 percent of the total port tonnage is for use by the steel industry. Even though, Hamilton Harbour has become a busy Harbour, it has not received any complaints of congestion for over ten years. This is attributed to the fact that the Harbour has the capacity to berth thirty ships at one time. Moreover, there has been virtually no thefts of cargo, since cargo tends to be iron/ore, sugar, malts, and soybeans. The individually owned or leased docks tend to have their own security forces, even though the Hamilton Harbour Commission employs its own police force consisting of seventeen officers and three gate guards. The Harbour has been free of strikes, walkouts, slowdowns, and lockouts since 1961, which has attributed to its success. The majority of the port is owned and dominated by private industry and STELCO and DOFASCO make up the largest interests in the port. The Hamilton Harbour is the largest port in Lake Ontario, and is the 5th largest port in Canada in terms of tonnes of cargo imported and exported on a yearly basis. Since the first pier was built in 1912, the available docking space has increased to approximately 9,088 metres. The annual tonnage has been increasing steadily from 89,400 tons in 1912, to between 10 and 12 million metric tonnes toady.

The current statistics on the Harbour are:

During the Federal Government's last term, it tried to pass Bill C-4 which proposed the creation of a Port Authority for all Canadian Harbours.  Under this Act, Canadian Ports will be independently managed by Port Authorities, instead of  politically appointed Commissioners.  However, Sheila Copps MP pushed a last minute amendment through the cabinet, which granted Hamilton "special status".  The amendment would exclude Hamilton from the Act ensuring the City's control over the Port.   Nevertheless, on June 11, 1998, the Canadian Marine Act (Bill C-9) was passed by the Federal Government and was given Royal Assent. Under this act, Hamilton Harbour will no longer have "special status" and the  Commission will become the Hamilton Port Authority(PAC) effective January 1, 1999.

Hamilton Harbour is a significant cultural landmark, because it has played a central role in the development and industrialisation of the region. Through the process of industrialisation we have damaged a critical component of our natural habitat, which we are attempting to rectify. The actions of citizens, governments, and industry illustrates the importance of the natural gift we have been given.

References:
Hamilton Harbour Commissioners Scrapbook. vol. 1 & 2.  Special Collections, HPL.
Hamilton Harbour Scrapbook. vol. 1-5.  Special Collections, HPL.
Port of Hamilton Canada. Hamilton Harbour Commission: Hamilton, 1951.
Port of Hamilton Directory. Hamilton Harbour Commissioners: Hamilton, 1988-1989.
Sproule-Jones, Mark. "Commercial Shipping and Hamilton Harbour" in Copps Chair in Urban Studies. McMaster University: Hamilton, April 1988.
Sproule-Jones, Mark. "A Historical Profile of Hamilton and Its Harbour" in Copps Chair in Urban Studies. McMaster University, September 1986.
RAP Office Update: Newsletter of the Hamilton Harbour Remedial Action Plan Office. Issue Number 12, Summer 1998.
Hughes, Rick. "Harbour to get new managers", in Hamilton Spectator. December 5, 1997.
Hughes, Rick. "What's the truth behind harbour policy flip-flop?", in Hamilton Spectator. December, 8, 1997.
"We are not served by harbour changes", Hamilton Spectator. December 13, 1997.
"Port authority will be more accountability", Hamilton Spectator. December 22, 1997.