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Highway 71 (Ontario)
Encyclopedia
King's Highway 71, commonly referred to as Highway 71, is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian
province of Ontario
. The 194 kilometres (120.5 mi) route travels concurrently
with Highway 11 for 40 kilometres (24.9 mi) from the Fort Frances-International Falls International Bridge
in Fort Frances, where it continues south as U.S. Route 71
, to Chapple
. From there, Highway 71 travels north for 154 kilometres (95.7 mi) to a junction with Highway 17 just east of Kenora. Highway 71 is part of the Trans-Canada Highway
for its entire length.
in northern Ontario
. Following that, the route suddenly enters the Canadian Shield
, where the land is unsuitable for agricultural development.
The highway begins at the international bridge in Fort Frances, where it proceeds north along Central Avenue, encountering Highway 11 one block north. The two routes travel concurrently north to 3 Street West, where both turn west. At the Fort Frances Cemetery, the route branches southwest and exits Fort Frances after splitting with the Colonization Road (Highway 602). It follows the old Cloverleaf Trail west through Devlin, where it intersects Highway 613, and Emo
, where it merges with the Colonization Road. Approximately 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) west of Emo, in the Manitou Rapids First Nations Reserve
, Highway 71 branches north, while Highway 11 continues west to Rainy River
.
North of the Manitou Rapids Reserve, Highway 71 presses through a large swath of land mostly occupied by horse and cattle ranches. It intersects Highway 600 and Highway 615, both of which have historical connections to Highway 71. The highway passes through Finland and enters the Boreal Forest, descending into the Canadian Shield
over the course of a kilometre and a half.
From this point to its northern terminus, the highway crosses through rugged and isolated terrain, curving around lakes, rivers and mountains on its northward journey. It passes through the community of Caliper Lake before crossing between Rainy River District and Kenora District midway between there and Nestor Falls. North of Nestor Falls, the highway travels along the eastern shore of Lake of the Woods
, providing access to Crow Lake, as well as to Whitefish Bay just southeast of Sioux Narrows. 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. North of Sioux Narrows, the highway meanders northward through an uninhabited region, zig-zaging among the numerous lakes that dot Kenora District. It provides access to Eagle Dogtooth and Rushing River Provincial Parks several kilometres south of its northern terminus at Highway 17, 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) east of the split with the Highway 17A and 20 kilometres (12.4 mi) east of downtown Kenora.
. 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 trail was blazed as early as 1875, possibly as part of the Dawson Trail
, and improved by 1885 into a wagon trail. This initial trail followed the Rainy River west from Fort Frances to Lake of the Woods; Highway 602 follows the road between Fort Frances and Emo. In 1911, James Arthur Mathieu
was elected as a MPP in the Rainy River riding. As a lumber merchant, Mathieu promoted improved road access in the region. Between 1911 and 1915, he oversaw construction of the gravel
Cloverleaf Trail between Fort Frances and Rainy River.
The Heenan Highway would become the first Canadian link to the Rainy River area; prior to its opening in the mid-1930s, the only way to drive to the area was via the United States
. In 1922, Kenora
MPP Peter Heenan
and Dr. McTaggart approached the government to lobby for construction of a road between Nestor Falls and Kenora. Nestor Falls was the northernmost point accessible by road from the Rainy River area. Heenan would become the Minister of Lands and Forests in Mitch Hepburn's cabinet.
This provided the impetus for construction to begin in 1934.
Unlike the Cloverleaf Trail, the Fort Frances – Kenora Highway, as it was known prior to its opening, was constructed through the rugged terrain of the Canadian Shield
. Rocks, forests, lakes, muskeg
, and insects served as major obstacles during construction of the 100 kilometres (62.1 mi) highway, which progressed from both ends. By late 1935, the only remaining gap in the road was the Sioux Narrows Bridge. Construction on this bridge was underway by March 1936; it was rapidly assembled using Douglas fir from British Columbia
as the main structural members. The bridge was completed on June 15, 1936, completing the link between Fort Frances and Kenora.
On July 1, 1936, premier Mitch Hepburn attended a ceremony in front of the Rainy Lake Hotel in Fort Frances. 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.
The Cloverleaf Trail and the Heenan Highway were assumed by the Department of Highways (DHO) shortly after its merger with the Department of Northern Development. Following the merger, the DHO begin assigning trunk roads throughout northern Ontario as part of the provincial highway network.
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 September 1 as well. The portion within Rainy River District was designated as Highway 70 on September 29.
The original route of Highway 70 split in two south of Finland; Highway 70 turned east to Off Lake Corner, then south to Emo, while Highway 70A turned west to Black Hawk then south to Barwick. The northern end of the highway was also concurrent with Highway 17 for 21.7 kilometres (13.5 mi) into Kenora, and the southern end concurrent with Highway 71 for 37 kilometres (23 mi) between Emo and Fort Frances.
During 1952, the highway was extended south from its split to Highway 71, midway between Barwick and Emo. By 1953, the new road was opened and informally designated as the new route of Highway 70. The old routes were decommissioned on February 8, and the new route designated on March 10, 1954.
Throughout the mid to late 1950s, a new highway was constructed west from Thunder Bay towards Fort Frances. Initially this road was designated as Highway 120. In 1959, it was instead decided to make this new link a westward extension of Highway 11; a major renumbering took place: Highway 11 was established between Rainy River and Fort Frances, Highway 71 was truncated west of the Highway 70 junction, and the entirety of Highway 70 was renumbered as Highway 71.
This established the current routing of the highway.
Although now rebuilt as a steel structure, the original Sioux Narrows Bridge was considered to be the longest single span wooden bridge in North America, at 64 metres (210 ft).
{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%;"
|-
!scope="col"|Division
!scope="col"|Location
!scope="col"|km
!scope="col"|Destinations
!scope="col"|Notes
|-
|colspan="5" style="text-align:center;"|Fort Frances-International Falls International Bridge
over the Rainy River
continues into Minnesota
as U.S. 53 / U.S. 71
|-
|rowspan="7"|Rainy River
|rowspan="3"|Fort Frances
|0.0
|
|
|-
|0.1
|
|Beginning of Highway 11 concurrency
|-
|2.2
|
|
|-
|Devlin
|21.3
|
|
|-
|Emo
|34.0
|
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|Chapple
|40.2
|
|End of Highway 11 concurrency
|-
|58.6
|
|
|-
|rowspan="3"|Kenora
|Sioux Narrows
|139.3
|
|Sioux Narrows Bridge
|-
|rowspan="2"|Unorganized Kenora District
|174.0
|Andy Lake Road
|
|-
|194.1
|
|
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
province of Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
. The 194 kilometres (120.5 mi) route travels concurrently
Concurrency (road)
A concurrency, overlap, or coincidence in a road network is an instance of one physical road bearing two or more different highway, motorway, or other route numbers...
with Highway 11 for 40 kilometres (24.9 mi) from the Fort Frances-International Falls International Bridge
Fort Frances-International Falls International Bridge
The Fort Frances – International Falls International Bridge is a privately owned international toll bridge connecting the towns of Fort Frances, Ontario and International Falls, Minnesota across the Rainy River....
in Fort Frances, where it continues south as U.S. Route 71
U.S. Route 71
U.S. Route 71 is a north–south United States highway. This original 1926 route has remained largely unchanged by encroaching Interstate highways. Currently, the highway's northern terminus is in International Falls, Minnesota at the Canadian border, at the southern end of the Fort...
, to Chapple
Chapple, Ontario
Chapple is a township in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in the Rainy River District. The main communities in the township are Barwick, located along Ontario Highway 11 and Black Hawk, located along Secondary Highway 600.-History:...
. From there, Highway 71 travels north for 154 kilometres (95.7 mi) to a junction with Highway 17 just east of Kenora. Highway 71 is part of the Trans-Canada Highway
Trans-Canada Highway
The Trans-Canada Highway is a federal-provincial highway system that joins the ten provinces of Canada. It is, along with the Trans-Siberian Highway and Australia's Highway 1, one of the world's longest national highways, with the main route spanning 8,030 km...
for its entire length.
Route description
Highway 71 is a 194.1 kilometres (120.6 mi) route which connects the Rainy River region with the Trans Canada Highway near Kenora. The first 65 kilometres (40.4 mi) of the highway traverse the largest pocket of arable landArable land
In geography and agriculture, arable land is land that can be used for growing crops. It includes all land under temporary crops , temporary meadows for mowing or pasture, land under market and kitchen gardens and land temporarily fallow...
in northern Ontario
Northern Ontario
Northern Ontario is a region of the Canadian province of Ontario which lies north of Lake Huron , the French River and Lake Nipissing. The region has a land area of 802,000 km2 and constitutes 87% of the land area of Ontario, although it contains only about 6% of the population...
. Following that, the route suddenly enters the Canadian Shield
Canadian Shield
The Canadian Shield, also called the Laurentian Plateau, or Bouclier Canadien , is a vast geological shield covered by a thin layer of soil that forms the nucleus of the North American or Laurentia craton. It is an area mostly composed of igneous rock which relates to its long volcanic history...
, where the land is unsuitable for agricultural development.
The highway begins at the international bridge in Fort Frances, where it proceeds north along Central Avenue, encountering Highway 11 one block north. The two routes travel concurrently north to 3 Street West, where both turn west. At the Fort Frances Cemetery, the route branches southwest and exits Fort Frances after splitting with the Colonization Road (Highway 602). It follows the old Cloverleaf Trail west through Devlin, where it intersects Highway 613, and Emo
Emo, Ontario
Population trend:* Population in 2006: 1305* Population in 2001: 1331* Population in 1996: 1366* Population in 1991: 1275-Emo Walleye Classic:The Emo Walleye Classic is a two-day catch and release fishing tournament held annually in Emo, during the final week of May each year...
, where it merges with the Colonization Road. Approximately 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) west of Emo, in the Manitou Rapids First Nations Reserve
Rainy Lake and River Bands of Saulteaux
Rainy Lake and River Bands of Saulteaux were a historical Saulteaux group located in Northwestern Ontario and northern Minnesota, along and about the Rainy Lake and the Rainy River....
, Highway 71 branches north, while Highway 11 continues west to Rainy River
Rainy River, Ontario
The Canadian town of Rainy River is situated on the Ontario-Minnesota border, along the Rainy River opposite Baudette, Minnesota, USA, and southeast of the Lake of the Woods...
.
North of the Manitou Rapids Reserve, Highway 71 presses through a large swath of land mostly occupied by horse and cattle ranches. It intersects Highway 600 and Highway 615, both of which have historical connections to Highway 71. The highway passes through Finland and enters the Boreal Forest, descending into the Canadian Shield
Canadian Shield
The Canadian Shield, also called the Laurentian Plateau, or Bouclier Canadien , is a vast geological shield covered by a thin layer of soil that forms the nucleus of the North American or Laurentia craton. It is an area mostly composed of igneous rock which relates to its long volcanic history...
over the course of a kilometre and a half.
From this point to its northern terminus, the highway crosses through rugged and isolated terrain, curving around lakes, rivers and mountains on its northward journey. It passes through the community of Caliper Lake before crossing between Rainy River District and Kenora District midway between there and Nestor Falls. North of Nestor Falls, the highway travels along the eastern shore of Lake of the Woods
Lake of the Woods
Lake of the Woods is a lake occupying parts of the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Manitoba and the U.S. state of Minnesota. It separates a small land area of Minnesota from the rest of the United States. The Northwest Angle and the town of Angle Township can only be reached from the rest of...
, providing access to Crow Lake, as well as to Whitefish Bay just southeast of Sioux Narrows. Here the route crosses the Sioux Narrows Bridge
Sioux Narrows Bridge
The Sioux Narrows Bridge is a bridge on Highway 71 at Sioux Narrows, Ontario, which spans the Sioux Narrows strait between Whitefish Bay and Lake of the Woods....
, the last part of the highway to be constructed and a formidable engineering obstacle in the 1930s. North of Sioux Narrows, the highway meanders northward through an uninhabited region, zig-zaging among the numerous lakes that dot Kenora District. It provides access to Eagle Dogtooth and Rushing River Provincial Parks several kilometres south of its northern terminus at Highway 17, 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) east of the split with the Highway 17A and 20 kilometres (12.4 mi) east of downtown Kenora.
History
The modern 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 BayThunder Bay
-In Canada:Thunder Bay is the name of three places in the province of Ontario, Canada along Lake Superior:*Thunder Bay District, Ontario, a district in Northwestern Ontario*Thunder Bay, a city in Thunder Bay District*Thunder Bay, Unorganized, Ontario...
. 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 trail was blazed as early as 1875, possibly as part of the Dawson Trail
Dawson Trail
Dawson Trail is a provincial electoral division in the Canadian province of Manitoba. It was created by redistribution in 2008 and was created out of parts of Morris and La Verendrye....
, and improved by 1885 into a wagon trail. This initial trail followed the Rainy River west from Fort Frances to Lake of the Woods; Highway 602 follows the road between Fort Frances and Emo. In 1911, James Arthur Mathieu
James Arthur Mathieu
James Arthur Mathieu was an Ontario lumber merchant, philanthropist and political figure. He represented Rainy River in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as a Conservative-Liberal and then Conservative member from 1911 to 1923 and 1926 to 1929.Mathieu came to Rainy River from Minnesota around...
was elected as a MPP in the Rainy River riding. As a lumber merchant, Mathieu promoted improved road access in the region. Between 1911 and 1915, he oversaw construction of the gravel
Gravel road
A gravel road is a type of unpaved road surfaced with gravel that has been brought to the site from a quarry or stream bed. They are common in less-developed nations, and also in the rural areas of developed nations such as Canada and the United States. In New Zealand, they are known as 'metal roads'...
Cloverleaf Trail between Fort Frances and Rainy River.
The Heenan Highway would become the first Canadian link to the Rainy River area; prior to its opening in the mid-1930s, the only way to drive to the area was via the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. In 1922, Kenora
Kenora (electoral district)
Kenora is a federal and former provincial electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004, and was represented in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from the early twentieth century....
MPP Peter Heenan
Peter Heenan
Peter Heenan, PC was a Canadian politician.Born in Tullaree, County Monaghan, Ireland, he was a locomotive engineer before being elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as the Labour candidate for the riding of Kenora in the 1919 election...
and Dr. McTaggart approached the government to lobby for construction of a road between Nestor Falls and Kenora. Nestor Falls was the northernmost point accessible by road from the Rainy River area. Heenan would become the Minister of Lands and Forests in Mitch Hepburn's cabinet.
This provided the impetus for construction to begin in 1934.
Unlike the Cloverleaf Trail, the Fort Frances – Kenora Highway, as it was known prior to its opening, was constructed through the rugged terrain of the Canadian Shield
Canadian Shield
The Canadian Shield, also called the Laurentian Plateau, or Bouclier Canadien , is a vast geological shield covered by a thin layer of soil that forms the nucleus of the North American or Laurentia craton. It is an area mostly composed of igneous rock which relates to its long volcanic history...
. Rocks, forests, lakes, muskeg
Muskeg
Muskeg is an acidic soil type common in Arctic and boreal areas, although it is found in other northern climates as well. Muskeg is approximately synonymous with bogland but muskeg is the standard term in Western Canada and Alaska, while 'bog' is common elsewhere. The term is of Cree origin, maskek...
, and insects served as major obstacles during construction of the 100 kilometres (62.1 mi) highway, which progressed from both ends. By late 1935, the only remaining gap in the road was the Sioux Narrows Bridge. Construction on this bridge was underway by March 1936; it was rapidly assembled using Douglas fir from British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
as the main structural members. The bridge was completed on June 15, 1936, completing the link between Fort Frances and Kenora.
On July 1, 1936, premier Mitch Hepburn attended a ceremony in front of the Rainy Lake Hotel in Fort Frances. 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.
The Cloverleaf Trail and the Heenan Highway were assumed by the Department of Highways (DHO) shortly after its merger with the Department of Northern Development. Following the merger, the DHO begin assigning trunk roads throughout northern Ontario as part of the provincial highway network.
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 September 1 as well. The portion within Rainy River District was designated as Highway 70 on September 29.
The original route of Highway 70 split in two south of Finland; Highway 70 turned east to Off Lake Corner, then south to Emo, while Highway 70A turned west to Black Hawk then south to Barwick. The northern end of the highway was also concurrent with Highway 17 for 21.7 kilometres (13.5 mi) into Kenora, and the southern end concurrent with Highway 71 for 37 kilometres (23 mi) between Emo and Fort Frances.
During 1952, the highway was extended south from its split to Highway 71, midway between Barwick and Emo. By 1953, the new road was opened and informally designated as the new route of Highway 70. The old routes were decommissioned on February 8, and the new route designated on March 10, 1954.
Throughout the mid to late 1950s, a new highway was constructed west from Thunder Bay towards Fort Frances. Initially this road was designated as Highway 120. In 1959, it was instead decided to make this new link a westward extension of Highway 11; a major renumbering took place: Highway 11 was established between Rainy River and Fort Frances, Highway 71 was truncated west of the Highway 70 junction, and the entirety of Highway 70 was renumbered as Highway 71.
This established the current routing of the highway.
Although now rebuilt as a steel structure, the original Sioux Narrows Bridge was considered to be the longest single span wooden bridge in North America, at 64 metres (210 ft).
Major intersections
The following table lists the major junctions along Highway 71. In addition, it includes some minor junctions that are noted by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario.{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%;"
|-
!scope="col"|Division
!scope="col"|Location
!scope="col"|km
!scope="col"|Destinations
!scope="col"|Notes
|-
|colspan="5" style="text-align:center;"|Fort Frances-International Falls International Bridge
Fort Frances-International Falls International Bridge
The Fort Frances – International Falls International Bridge is a privately owned international toll bridge connecting the towns of Fort Frances, Ontario and International Falls, Minnesota across the Rainy River....
over the Rainy River
continues into Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
as U.S. 53 / U.S. 71
|rowspan="7"|Rainy River
|rowspan="3"|Fort Frances
|0.0
|
|
|-
|0.1
|
|Beginning of Highway 11 concurrency
Concurrency (road)
A concurrency, overlap, or coincidence in a road network is an instance of one physical road bearing two or more different highway, motorway, or other route numbers...
|-
|2.2
|
|
|-
|Devlin
|21.3
|
|
|-
|Emo
Emo, Ontario
Population trend:* Population in 2006: 1305* Population in 2001: 1331* Population in 1996: 1366* Population in 1991: 1275-Emo Walleye Classic:The Emo Walleye Classic is a two-day catch and release fishing tournament held annually in Emo, during the final week of May each year...
|34.0
|
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|Chapple
Chapple, Ontario
Chapple is a township in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in the Rainy River District. The main communities in the township are Barwick, located along Ontario Highway 11 and Black Hawk, located along Secondary Highway 600.-History:...
|40.2
|
|End of Highway 11 concurrency
|-
|58.6
|
|
|-
|rowspan="3"|Kenora
|Sioux Narrows
|139.3
|
|Sioux Narrows Bridge
Sioux Narrows Bridge
The Sioux Narrows Bridge is a bridge on Highway 71 at Sioux Narrows, Ontario, which spans the Sioux Narrows strait between Whitefish Bay and Lake of the Woods....
|-
|rowspan="2"|Unorganized Kenora District
|174.0
|Andy Lake Road
|
|-
|194.1
|
|