Ontario Highway 71
North end | Highway 17 near Kenora | ||||||
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Location | |||||||
Country | Sioux Narrows, Kenora | ||||||
Highway system | |||||||
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King's Highway 71, commonly referred to as Highway 71, is a
The current routing of Highway 71 was created out of a route renumbering that took place on April 1, 1960, to extend Highway 11 from
Route description
Highway 71 connects the Rainy River region with the Trans-Canada Highway near Kenora. The first 65 kilometres (40 mi) of the highway traverses the largest pocket of arable land in northern Ontario. Following that, the route suddenly enters the Canadian Shield, where the land is unsuitable for agricultural development.[3]
The highway begins at the international bridge in Fort Frances; within the United States, the road continues south as US 53 and US 71 in
North of the Manitou Rapids Reserve, Highway 71 presses through a large swath of land mostly occupied by horse and cattle ranches. It intersects
North of Nestor Falls, the highway travels along the eastern shore of Lake of the Woods, providing access to the community of Crow Lake on the Sabaskong Bay 35D reserve of the Ojibways of Onigaming First Nation between Lake of the Woods and Kakagi Lake,[6][7] as well as to the Whitefish Bay 32A reserve of the Naotkamegwanning First Nation immediately southeast of Sioux Narrows.[4] Here the route crosses the Sioux Narrows Bridge, the last part of the highway to be constructed and a formidable engineering obstacle in the 1930s.[8] North of Sioux Narrows, the highway meanders northward through an uninhabited region, zigzagging among the numerous lakes that dot Kenora District and crossing the Black River. It provides access to Eagle Dogtooth and Rushing River Provincial Parks several kilometres south of its northern terminus at Highway 17, four kilometres (2.5 mi) east of the split with Highway 17A and 20 kilometres (12 mi) east of downtown Kenora.[4]
History
Highway 71 was created out of a renumbering of several highways in the Rainy River District during the late 1950s as Highway 11 was extended west of Thunder Bay. The history of the route is tied to the two major highways in Rainy River District: the Cloverleaf Trail and the Heenan Highway.
The Cloverleaf Trail, the older of the two roads, was initially developed as the Rainy River colonization road. A line was blazed as early as 1875, possibly as part of the
The Heenan Highway would become the first Canadian link to the Rainy River area; before its opening in the mid-1930s, the only way to drive to the area was via the United States.
On July 1, 1936, Premier Mitch Hepburn attended a ceremony in front of the Rainy Lake Hotel in Fort Frances.[8] On a rainy afternoon, at 5:30 p.m., Peter Heenan handed Hepburn a pair of scissors with which to cut the ribbon crossing the road and declare the highway open. Hepburn, addressing the crowd that was gathered, asked "What would you say if we call it the Heenan Highway, what would you think of that?". The crowd cheered and Hepburn cut the ribbon.[11]
The Cloverleaf Trail and the Heenan Highway were assumed by the DHO shortly after its merger with the Department of Northern Development. Following the merger, the DHO began assigning trunk roads throughout northern Ontario as part of the provincial highway network.[16][17] Highway 71 was assigned on September 1, 1937, along the Cloverleaf Trail. The portion of the Heenan Highway lying within Kenora District was designated as Highway 70 on the same day. The portion within Rainy River District was designated as Highway 70 on September 29.[1]
The original route of Highway 70 split in two south of
Throughout the mid- to late 1950s, a new highway was constructed west from Thunder Bay towards Fort Frances. Initially this road was designated as
Although now rebuilt as a steel structure, the original Sioux Narrows Bridge was considered to be the longest single span wooden bridge in the world, at 64 metres (210 ft). The original bridge remained in place until 2003, when an engineering inspection revealed that 78% of the structure had failed. A temporary bridge was erected while a new structure was built. The new bridge was completed in November 2007, incorporating the old timber truss as a decorative element. A ribbon cutting ceremony to dedicate the bridge was held on July 1, 2008, 72 years after the original dedication by Mitch Hepburn.[15]
Major intersections
The following table lists the major junctions along Highway 71, as noted by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario.[2]
Division | Location | km[2] | mi | Destinations | Notes |
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US 71 south – International Falls | Continuation into Minnesota | ||||
Fort Frances–International Falls International Bridge Canada–US border | |||||
Thunder Bay | Eastern end of Highway 11 concurrency | ||||
2.2 | 1.4 | Highway 602 (Colonization Road) – Emo | |||
Highway 613 – Northwest Bay | |||||
Fort Frances | |||||
Chapple | 40.2 | 25.0 | Highway 11 west – Rainy River | Western end of Highway 11 concurrency | |
Southern end of Trans-Canada Highway designation. | |||||
58.6 | 36.4 | Off Lake Corner | |||
Kenora | Sioux Narrows | 139.3 | 86.6 | ||
Unorganized Kenora District | 174.0 | 108.1 | Andy Lake Road | ||
194.1 | 120.6 | Kenora, Dryden | |||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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References
- ^ a b "Appendix No. 3 - Schedule of Assumptions and Reversions of Sections of the King's Highway System for the Year Ending March 31, 1938". Annual Report (Report). Department of Highways. March 31, 1938. pp. 80–81. Retrieved February 3, 2021 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ a b Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (2016). "Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) counts". Retrieved January 1, 2021.
- ^ Rainy River District Agricultural Economic Impact Study (PDF) (Report). Harry Cummings and Associates. October 2009. pp. iv, 17. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 31, 2012. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-55198-226-7.
- ^ Google (September 5, 2011). "Highway 71 north of Finland, Ontario" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved September 5, 2011.
- ^ "Toporama (on-line map and search)". Atlas of Canada. Natural Resources Canada. 12 September 2016. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
- Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry. 2014. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
- ^ a b c "Sioux Narrows Bridge". Sioux Narrows Nestor Falls. Archived from the original on September 3, 2011. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
- ^ a b "Between the Ripples...Stories of Chapple". Fort Frances Times. 1997. Retrieved January 5, 2014.
- ^ a b "Travel's Come a Long Way Since Voyageurs". Alberton Centennial Times. April 5, 1978. Archived from the original on November 5, 2010. Retrieved January 5, 2014.
- ^ a b "Highway Officially Opened By Premier M.F. Hepburn Named "Heenan Highway"". Fort Frances Times and Rainy Lake Herald. July 2, 1936. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
- ^ Touring Department (1927). Road Map of Ontario (Map). Ontario Motor League. Northwestern portion inset.
- ^ Sessional Papers (Report). Vol. 66. Province of Ontario. 1935. Retrieved January 5, 2014.
- ^ Sessional Papers (Report). Vol. 70. Province of Ontario. 1939. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
In Kenora the contract for construction of 48 miles of grading and gravelling on the Heenan Highway, started in 1934, was officially completed and this Highway, linking Fort Frances and Rainy River to Kenora was officially opened in June.
- ^ a b "The Sioux Narrows Bridge". Lake of the Woods Vacation Area. Archived from the original on January 2, 2014. Retrieved January 1, 2014.
- ISBN 0-7743-9388-2.
- ^ Smith, R. M (March 31, 1938). "Ontario and its Highways". Annual Report (Report). Department of Highways. p. 8.
- ^ Robins, C.P. (1956). Ontario Road Map (Map). Ontario Department of Highways. Northern portion inset. § F4–H6.
- ^ "Appendix 3 - Schedule of Assumptions and Reversions of Sections". Annual Report (Report). Department of Highways. March 31, 1954. pp. 154, 156.
- ^ Robins, C.P. (1959). Ontario Road Map (Map). Ontario Department of Highways. Northern portion inset. § F4–H6.
- ^ Robins, C.P. (1960). Ontario Road Map (Map). Ontario Department of Highways. Northern portion inset. § F4–H6.
- ^ Information Section (November 9, 1959). "No title" (Press release). Department of Highways.
External links
- Media related to Ontario Highway 71 at Wikimedia Commons