History
The Indigenous peoples have travelled the lakes and rivers of what is now known as the Trent-Severn Waterway since 13,000 B.C.E. In the 1600s, European fur traders used the system, and the settlement of the Kawarthas was closely linked to the developing waterway. Traditionally, Peterborough is known as Nogojiwanong, which translates to Place at the End of the Rapids. While the rapids and waterfalls between the lakes provided waterpower for the early mills, they made travel difficult. The Trent-Severn Waterway was originally constructed so it could effectively transport military from the St. Lawrence River, inland, towards Lake Simcoe. In the late 1820s, demand for a waterway linking the upper lakes with Lake Ontario began as new settlers and farmers were looking for a way to move grain to southern markets. The first wooden lock was built in Bobcaygeon in 1833. By 1887 there were locks, canals, dams and slides at Chisholm Rapids (Hastings), Healy Falls (Campbellford), Crow Rapids (Marmora), Whitla Rapids (Peterborough), Burleigh Falls, Buckhorn, Bobcaygeon, Fenelon Falls and Lindsay.