Long a transportation route toIndigenous peoples, the St. Lawrence River has played a key role in thehistory of Canada and in the development of cities such asMontreal andQuebec City. The river remains an important shipping route as the backbone of theSt. Lawrence Seaway, a lock and canal system that enables world marine traffic to access the inland ports of theGreat Lakes Waterway.
The river has historically been given a variety of different names by localFirst Nations. Beginning in the 16th century, French explorers visited what is now Canada and gave the river names such as theGrand fleuve deHochelaga and theGrande rivière du Canada,[8] wherefleuve andrivière are twoFrench words (fleuve being a river that flows into the sea).
The river's present name has been used since 1604 when it was recorded on a map bySamuel de Champlain.[8] Champlain opted for the namesGrande riviere de sainct Laurens andFleuve sainct Laurens in his writings, supplanting the earlier names.[8] In contemporary French, the name is rendered as thefleuve Saint-Laurent. The nameSaint-Laurent (Saint Lawrence) was originally applied to theeponymous bay byJacques Cartier upon his arrival into the region on the 10th of Augustfeast day forSaint Lawrence in 1535.[8]
In winter, the St. Lawrence River begins producing ice in December betweenMontreal andQuebec City. The prevailing winds and currents push this ice towards the estuary,[15] and it reaches the east ofLes Méchins at the end of December. Ice covers the entireGulf of St. Lawrence in January and February.
Ice helps navigation by preventing the formation of waves, and therefore spray, and prevents the icing of ships.[16]
With the draining of theChamplain Sea, due to a rebounding continent from theLast Glacial Maximum, the St. Lawrence River was formed. The Champlain Sea lasted from about 13,000 years ago to about 10,000 years ago and was continuously shrinking during that time, a process that continues today.[17][18] The head of the St. Lawrence River, nearLake Ontario, is home to theThousand Islands.[19]
The St. Lawrence River runs 3,058kilometres (1,900 mi) from the farthest headwater to the mouth and 1,197 km (743.8 mi) from the outflow of Lake Ontario. These numbers include the estuary; without the estuary, the length from Lake Ontario is c. 500 km (c. 300 mi). The farthest headwater is theNorth River in theMesabi Range atHibbing, Minnesota. Its drainage area, which includes the Great Lakes, the world's largest system of freshwater lakes, is 1,344,200 square kilometres (518,998.5 sq mi), of which 839,200 km2 (324,016.9 sq mi) is in Canada and 505,000 km2 (194,981.6 sq mi) is in the United States. The basin covers parts ofOntario andQuebec in Canada, parts ofMinnesota,Wisconsin,Illinois,Indiana,Ohio,Pennsylvania,New York,Vermont, and nearly the entirety of the state ofMichigan in the United States. The average discharge below theSaguenay River is 16,800 cubic metres per second (590,000 cu ft/s). At Quebec City, it is 12,101 m3/s (427,300 cu ft/s). The average discharge at the river's source, the outflow of Lake Ontario, is 7,410 m3/s (262,000 cu ft/s).[7]
The St. Lawrence River is in a seismically active zone wherefault reactivation is believed to occur along lateProterozoic to earlyPaleozoic normal faults related to the opening of theIapetus Ocean. The faults in the area arerift-related and comprise theSaint Lawrence rift system.
According to the United States Geological Survey, the St. Lawrence Valley is aphysiographic province of the largerAppalachian division, containing theChamplain section.[23] However, in Canada, where most of the valley is, it is instead considered part of a distinctSt. Lawrence Lowlands physiographic division, and not part of the Appalachian division.[24]
The source of the North River in theMesabi Range inMinnesota (Seven Beaver Lake) is considered to be the source of the St. Lawrence River. Because it crosses so many lakes, the water system frequently changes its name. From source to mouth, the names are:
The St. Lawrence River and the largest tributaries of theGreat Lakes.
The St. Lawrence River tributaries are listed upstream from the mouth. The major tributaries of the inter-lake sections are also shown, as well as the major rivers that flow into the Great Lakes. Great Lakes tributaries are listed in alphabetical order.
The list includes all tributaries with adrainage area of at least 1,000 square kilometres and an average flow of more than 10 cubic metres per second.
Largemarine mammals travel in all the seas of the earth, the research and observations of these giants concernfishermen andshipping industry, exercise a fascination and a keen interest for laymen and, subjects of endless studies for scientists from Quebec, Canada and around the world.[29][30][31]
Reproduction of map of 1543 showing Cartier's discoveries (c. 1909)Basque settlements and sites dating from the 16th and 17th centuriesWatercolour (c. 1792) byElizabeth Simcoe depicting a bend in the St. Lawrence River in Quebec
In the early 17th century, theWendat Nation migrated from their original country ofHuronia to what is now known asNionwentsïo centred aroundWendake.[40][41] Nionwentsïo occupies both the north and south shores of the river,[40] overlapping with Nitassinan and the more westernWabanaki or Dawnland countries.[39] Adjacent on the north shore is the Atikamekw territorial homeland ofNitaskinan[42][43] and, upstream, the further reaches of Anishinaabewaki, specifically the homelands of theAlgonquin andMississauga Nations.[39]
TheNorse explored the Gulf of St. Lawrence in the 11th century and were followed by fifteenth- and early sixteenth-century European mariners, such asJohn Cabot, and the brothersGaspar andMiguel Corte-Real. The first European explorer known to have sailed up the St. Lawrence River itself wasJacques Cartier. At that time, the land along the river described as "about two leagues, a mountain as tall as a heap of wheat" was inhabited by theSt. Lawrence Iroquoians. During Cartier's second voyage in 1535, because Cartier arrived in the estuary onSaint Lawrence's feast day 10 August, he named it theGulf of Saint Lawrence.[44][45]
The St. Lawrence River is today partly within the U.S. and as such is that country's sixth oldest surviving European place-name.[46]
The earliest regular Europeans in the area were theBasques, who came to the St Lawrence Gulf and River in pursuit of whales from the early 16th century. TheBasque whalers and fishermen traded with indigenous Americans and set up settlements, leaving vestiges all over the coast of eastern Canada and deep into the St. Lawrence River. Basque commercial and fishing activity reached its peak before theArmada Invencible's disaster (1588), when the Basque whaling fleet was confiscated by KingPhilip II of Spain. Initially, the whaling galleons fromLabourd were not affected by the Spanish defeat.
Until the early 17th century, the French used the nameRivière du Canada to designate the St. Lawrence upstream to Montreal and the Ottawa River after Montreal. The St. Lawrence River served as the main route for European exploration of the North American interior, first pioneered by French explorerSamuel de Champlain.
In 1809, the first steamboat to ply its trade on the St. Lawrence was built and operated byJohn Molson and associates, a scant two years after Fulton's steam-powered navigation of theHudson River. TheAccommodation with ten passengers made her maiden voyage from Montreal to Quebec City in 66 hours, for 30 of which she was at anchor. She had a keel of 75 feet, and a length overall of 85 feet. The cost of a ticket was eight dollars upstream, and nine dollars down. She had berths that year for twenty passengers.[47]Within a decade, daily service was available in the hotly-contested Montreal-Quebec route.[48]
Because of the virtually impassableLachine Rapids, the St. Lawrence was once continuously navigable only as far as Montreal. Opened in 1825, theLachine Canal was the first to allow ships to pass the rapids. An extensive system of canals and locks, known as theSt. Lawrence Seaway, was officially opened on 26 June 1959 byElizabeth II (representing Canada) and PresidentDwight D. Eisenhower (representing the United States). The Seaway (including theWelland Canal) now permits ocean-going vessels to pass all the way toLake Superior.[49]
Alcoa,Reynolds Metals Company, andGeneral Motors (GM) Central Foundry operated along the St. Lawrence River and its tributaries for decades. The Alcoa plant opened in 1903, and Reynolds and GM began operations in the late 1950s. These facilities released toxic substances into the St. Lawrence River and the surrounding area, includingPCBs,PAHs,cyanide,fluoride, anddioxins.
In the late 1970s, the river was the subject of a successful ecological campaign (called "Save the River"), originally responding to planned development by theUnited States Army Corps of Engineers. The campaign was organized, among others, byAbbie Hoffman.[50]
^"Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence".Gouvernement of Canada. Fisheries and Oceans Canada. 27 January 2023. Retrieved19 February 2024.The area represents one of the largest and most productive estuarine/marine ecosystems in Canada and in the world.
^Guy O'Bonsawin (3 April 2013)."The secrets of the Saint-Laurent, marine weather guide"(PDF) (in French). Environnement Canada. pp. 89, 90 of 100. Retrieved15 October 2024.If you consider that both water and air masses literally hug the ground and follow all its contours and surfaces, it's easy to understand just how much variety there can be in wind and sea conditions.
^"The St. Lawrence, this great river that flows within us (David Suzuki Foundation)"(PDF).Wild nature in the heart of Quebec and America (in French). Fondation David Suzuki. 7 June 2023. Retrieved1 September 2024.... colossal reserve of resources natural and landscape matrix grandiose, the St. Lawrence is first and above all a source of life, a life astonishing diversity
^Frère Marie-Victorin (1935)."Flore laurentienne" (in French). florelaurentienne.com. Retrieved1 September 2024.inventory of natural vascular plant resources valley of the great Saint Lawrence River - Quebec
^"Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park". Government Quebec - Government of Canada. 2024. Retrieved19 August 2024.More than 2,200 species frequent these waters, including species at risk such as the beluga whale, the blue whale and the Barrow's goldeneye.
^"International Marine Mammal Project (IMMP)". Earth Island Institute. 2024. Retrieved19 August 2024.We have achieved victories for marine mammals around the world and work to make the oceans safe for whales, dolphins and marine life.
^Stéphane Plourde (7 November 2017)."Right Whales: A Look Back on the Summer of 2017".Gouvernement of Canada. InfoOceans - New wave. Retrieved19 August 2024.The North Atlantic right whale is an endangered species - Over the coming months, the Government of Canada will meet with representatives of the fishing and shipping industries, Aboriginal communities, whale experts and scientists, as well as the US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
^COSEPAC (27 May 2021)."Béluga - Delphinapterus leucas"(PDF). Wildlife species; Biodiversity; Species at risk; beluga. p. 132. Retrieved29 August 2024.We fear that the increase in maritime traffic, facilitated by climate change, is modifying the nature of the acoustic environment of the population. This population can correspond, or almost corresponds, to the criteria of the category "species threatened »
^Marie-Sophie Giroux (2024)."A black whale in sight! Please call Marine Mammal Emergencies!". Retrieved28 August 2024.Since 1998, several sightings of right whales have also been reported elsewhere in the St. Lawrence: Magdalen Islands, Baie des Chaleurs, Basse-Côte-Nord and the St. Lawrence estuary, in the Saguenay—St. Lawrence Marine Park.
^"Blue Whale (Balaenoptera musculus)"(PDF).Environment Canada - o Canadian Wildlife Service. Committee on the status of endangered wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC). 22 August 2003. Retrieved29 August 2024.Today, the biggest threats for this species come from ship strikes, disturbance from increasing whale watch activity, entanglement in fishing gear, and pollution.
^Bideaux, Michel (1986).Jacques Cartier: Relations (in French). Les Presses de l'Université de Montréal. pp. 130–131. Retrieved20 November 2021 – via Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec.
^"The St. Lawrence Seaway, a Vital Waterway".Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development. The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River Seaway System. 2024. Retrieved30 August 2024.According to a special report compiled by BMO Capital Markets, the eight states and two provinces that border the Great Lakes/St. Lawrence Seaway System generate an immense economic impact within North America.
^Andrée Paradis (1963)."Ode to the St, Lawrence, poetry"(PDF) (in French). Editions du Jour, Montréal. Retrieved12 September 2024...the River never took shape with so much truth in one of our poets.. Gatien Lapointe certainly wrote a very beautiful poem there you will have to listen to the song slowly.
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