Niagara Peninsula
The Niagara Peninsula is the portion of Ontario, Canada lying on the south shore of Lake Ontario. It stretches from the Niagara River in the east to Hamilton, Ontario in the west. Lake Ontario lies to the north and Lake Erie to the south.
The area was originally inhabited by a First Nations people called the "Neutrals", so named for their practise of trading goods such as flint arrow-head blanks with both of the feuding regional powers, the Wendat and Iroquois. The Neutrals were wiped out by the Iroquois c. 1650 as the latter sought to expand their fur trapping territory. From this point until the arrival of United Empire Loyalists following the American War of Independence, the region was only sporadically inhabited, as the Iroquios did not establish permanent settlements in the area.
The Niagara peninsula then became one of the first areas settled in Upper Canada by British Loyalists in the late 18th century. The capital of the new colony was established with the founding of Niagara-on-the-Lake.
Following the agricultural period of European settlement, the Niagara area became an imporant industrial centre, with water-powered mills joined later by hydro-electric power generation in Niagara Falls and electricity-intensive industry in both Niagara Falls and St. Catharines. While agriculture - especially fruit farming along the shore of Lake Ontario - remains important to this day, it was joined in the 19th century by industrial developments. A succession of canals were built to connect the markets and mineral resources of the upper Great Lakes with the St. Lawrence Seaway. General Motors built a considerable presence in St. Catharines with auto plants and a foundry, and a number of auto-parts manafucturers followed. Dry docks were also built at Port Weller on Lake Ontario.
Heavy industry has since diminished in supremacy as the region has diversified. Today the peninsula has a thriving tourist industry, thanks to the Shaw Festival, the Niagara Escarpment and especially Niagara Falls. It is also a significant wine-growing area, and wineries are playing a growing role in the development of tourism with the wine culture supported by winery tours, B&B's and the Grape and Wine festival.
The region's relatively warm weather make it a retirement destination for Ontarians. Centres of higher education are Brock University and Niagara College, the former now offering doctoral-level programs.
The Niagara area was a key region in the War of 1812. Today, wartime history is preserved at Fort George, Brock's Monument and the Laura Secord Monument.
The Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW) is a major freeway joining Buffalo via Fort Erie to Toronto that bisects the peninsula.
The peninsula is incorporated as the Regional Municipality of Niagara. Cities in the region include St. Catharines, Niagara Falls, Thorold, Port Colborne and Welland. Towns include Niagara-on-the-Lake, Lincoln, Pelham, Grimsby and Fort Erie, as well as the township of West Lincoln.