Musselman Lake, Ontario
Encyclopedia
Musselman Lake is a community settled adjacent to a 123 acre (0.49776378 km²) kettle lake of the same name in the town of Whitchurch–Stouffville, Ontario
, Canada
. It is located about 6 km north-northwest of urban Stouffville
, and is part of the Greater Toronto Area
.
It is accessible from Highway 48
, which links Toronto
to Beaverton
. Highway 404, a limited-access 400-Series Highway
9 km west of Musselman Lake and which first opened in the early 1980s, is reached by Aurora Road. Located just south of Musselman Lake on the west side of Ninth Line is Windsor Lake, a much smaller kettle lake. The main streets are Vandorf Sideroad to the north, and Bloomington Road
to the south. Musselman Lake feeds a small tributary to the East Holland River
, which flows to the west.
, with much of the area forested and the moraine dividing the Lake Ontario
and Lake Simcoe
basins itself divided at Musselman Lake. Residential areas are around the two lakes and on a few other large lots within Musselman Lake. Pine
trees dominate much of the area along with a couple of hills. Farmland covers the rest of the northeastern portion of Whitchurch–Stouffville. Creeks and streams are also characteristic of the area. Sand
and gravel
mining
is widespread to the south and east of Musselman Lake. Musselman Lake has several mining areas and quarries
. The mining industry began in the 1950s and continues through the present. In the early 2000s, a building whose construction was already under way had it halted for good to protect the moraine.
In 2009 the Musselman's Lake Subwatershed Assessment and Stewardship Opportunities Report was recognized that the water quality of the lake was "impaired" and "degraded," and had declined since 1989 when similar study had been done.
.
In the 1950s and 1960s housing developments was built around Musselman Lake.
A significant issue facing the Musselman Lake community in the coming years is the federal government's proposed development of an international airport immediately south-east of Whitchurch–Stouffville (the Pickering Airport
lands); under the current plan, an approach for one of the three landing strips would be directly above the communities of Ballantrae
and Musselman Lake, with planes descending (or ascending) from 500 to 450 metres. The plan calls for 11.9 million passengers per year (or 32,600 per day) by 2032. A "Needs Assessment Study" was completed by the Greater Toronto Airports Authority
for the federal government in May 2010. After a "due diligence review," Transport Canada
released the report in July 2011.
(including some funding for shoreline restoration); the Ministry of Natural Resources
governs fishing regulations, town by-laws regulate the use of power boats on the lake, and laws are enforced by the York Regional Police Marine Unit. While the resources of all levels of government are used for the regulation, protection and preservation of the lake, the entire perimeter of the lake is currently in private hands, and homeowners and business alone benefit from exclusive access rights to one of Whitchurch-Stouffville's most significant natural and recreational assets.
to the north-east and Bloomington
to the south. Goodwood, a community of the town of Uxbridge
, lies to the east.
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....
, Canada
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...
. It is located about 6 km north-northwest of urban Stouffville
Stouffville, Ontario
Stouffville is the primary urban area within the Town of Whitchurch–Stouffville, Ontario, Canada. It is centred at the intersection of Main Street, Mill Street and Market Street.-History:...
, and is part of the Greater Toronto Area
Greater Toronto Area
The Greater Toronto Area is the largest metropolitan area in Canada, with a 2006 census population of 5.5 million. The Greater Toronto Area is usually defined as the central city of Toronto, along with four regional municipalities surrounding it: Durham, Halton, Peel, and York...
.
It is accessible from Highway 48
Highway 48 (Ontario)
King's Highway 48, also known as Highway 48, is a provincially-maintained highway in southern Ontario that extends from Major Mackenzie Drive in Markham, through Whitchurch-Stouffville, to Highway 12 south-east of Beaverton, Ontario. Prior to 1998, Highway 48 extended from Highway 401 in Toronto to...
, which links Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
to Beaverton
Beaverton, Ontario
Beaverton is a community in Brock Township in the Regional Municipality of Durham, Ontario, Canada.Originally part of Thorah Township in Ontario County, Beaverton was first settled in 1822. The settlement is located on Lake Simcoe at the mouth of the Beaver River...
. Highway 404, a limited-access 400-Series Highway
400-series highways (Ontario)
The 400-series highways are a network of controlled-access highways throughout the southern portion of the Canadian province of Ontario, forming a special subset of the provincial highway system. They are analogous to the Interstate Highway System in the United States or the British Motorway...
9 km west of Musselman Lake and which first opened in the early 1980s, is reached by Aurora Road. Located just south of Musselman Lake on the west side of Ninth Line is Windsor Lake, a much smaller kettle lake. The main streets are Vandorf Sideroad to the north, and Bloomington Road
York Regional Road 40
King's Highway 47, also known as Highway 47 and locally as Stouffville Road, Toronto Street and Brock Street was a provincial highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. The mostly rural route travelled through the towns of Whitchurch-Stouffville, Goodwood, and Uxbridge on its east–west path...
to the south. Musselman Lake feeds a small tributary to the East Holland River
East Holland River
The East Holland River is a river in Ontario, Canada that is part of the Holland River watershed that empties into Cook's Bay in Lake Simcoe. The headwaters of the East Holland River rise in the Oak Ridges Moraine...
, which flows to the west.
Geography
Musselman Lake is part of the Oak Ridges MoraineOak Ridges Moraine
The Oak Ridges Moraine is an ecologically important geological landform in the Mixedwood Plains of south-central Ontario, Canada. The moraine covers a geographic area of between Caledon and Rice Lake, near Peterborough...
, with much of the area forested and the moraine dividing the Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south by the American state of New York. Ontario, Canada's most populous province, was named for the lake. In the Wyandot language, ontarío means...
and Lake Simcoe
Lake Simcoe
Lake Simcoe is a lake in Southern Ontario, Canada, the fourth-largest lake wholly in the province, after Lake Nipigon, Lac Seul, and Lake Nipissing. At the time of the first European contact in the 17th century the lake was called Ouentironk by the Huron natives...
basins itself divided at Musselman Lake. Residential areas are around the two lakes and on a few other large lots within Musselman Lake. Pine
Pine
Pines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...
trees dominate much of the area along with a couple of hills. Farmland covers the rest of the northeastern portion of Whitchurch–Stouffville. Creeks and streams are also characteristic of the area. Sand
Sand
Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental settings and non-tropical coastal...
and gravel
Gravel
Gravel is composed of unconsolidated rock fragments that have a general particle size range and include size classes from granule- to boulder-sized fragments. Gravel can be sub-categorized into granule and cobble...
mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
is widespread to the south and east of Musselman Lake. Musselman Lake has several mining areas and quarries
Quarry
A quarry is a type of open-pit mine from which rock or minerals are extracted. Quarries are generally used for extracting building materials, such as dimension stone, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, and gravel. They are often collocated with concrete and asphalt plants due to the requirement...
. The mining industry began in the 1950s and continues through the present. In the early 2000s, a building whose construction was already under way had it halted for good to protect the moraine.
In 2009 the Musselman's Lake Subwatershed Assessment and Stewardship Opportunities Report was recognized that the water quality of the lake was "impaired" and "degraded," and had declined since 1989 when similar study had been done.
History
The area was first settled 1807 by Peter and Jacob Musselman, Mennonites from PennsylvaniaPennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
.
In the 1950s and 1960s housing developments was built around Musselman Lake.
A significant issue facing the Musselman Lake community in the coming years is the federal government's proposed development of an international airport immediately south-east of Whitchurch–Stouffville (the Pickering Airport
Pickering Airport
Pickering Airport is a proposed international airport for the Greater Toronto Area, to be located in the city of Pickering, Ontario, Canada, 50 kilometres north-east of downtown Toronto, and 65 kilometres east of Toronto Pearson International Airport...
lands); under the current plan, an approach for one of the three landing strips would be directly above the communities of Ballantrae
Ballantrae, Ontario
Ballantrae, Ontario is a hamlet in the Town of Whitchurch–Stouffville. Named for the village of Ballantrae in South Ayrshire, Scotland, the community is centred around the intersection of Aurora Road and Highway 48...
and Musselman Lake, with planes descending (or ascending) from 500 to 450 metres. The plan calls for 11.9 million passengers per year (or 32,600 per day) by 2032. A "Needs Assessment Study" was completed by the Greater Toronto Airports Authority
Greater Toronto Airports Authority
The Greater Toronto Airports Authority operates Toronto Pearson International Airport in Mississauga, Ontario, west of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The GTAA operates Canada's largest airport facility with a traffic of 31.0 million passengers in 2006. The authority's headquarters are on the airport...
for the federal government in May 2010. After a "due diligence review," Transport Canada
Transport Canada
Transport Canada is the department within the government of Canada which is responsible for developing regulations, policies and services of transportation in Canada. It is part of the Transportation, Infrastructure and Communities portfolio...
released the report in July 2011.
Privately owned waterfront
Virtually all of the water front in the community of Musselman's Lake is private residential property. Musseman's Lake itself is a natural lake and thus crown property, not private: use of the lake and its shorelines is regulated by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada in conjunction with the Toronto and Region Conservation AuthorityToronto and Region Conservation Authority
Toronto and Region Conservation Authority or Office de protection de la nature de Toronto et de la région is one of 36 conservation authorities in Ontario, Canada...
(including some funding for shoreline restoration); the Ministry of Natural Resources
Ministry of Natural Resources (Ontario)
The Ministry of Natural Resources is a government ministry of the Canadian province of Ontario that responsible for Ontario’s provincial parks, forests, fisheries, wildlife, mineral aggregates and the Crown lands and waters that make up 87 per cent of the province...
governs fishing regulations, town by-laws regulate the use of power boats on the lake, and laws are enforced by the York Regional Police Marine Unit. While the resources of all levels of government are used for the regulation, protection and preservation of the lake, the entire perimeter of the lake is currently in private hands, and homeowners and business alone benefit from exclusive access rights to one of Whitchurch-Stouffville's most significant natural and recreational assets.
Nearest communities
Musselman's Lake is situated near the eastern boundary of the town of Whitchurch–Stouffville. Neighbouring communities within Whitchurch–Stouffville include BallantraeBallantrae, Ontario
Ballantrae, Ontario is a hamlet in the Town of Whitchurch–Stouffville. Named for the village of Ballantrae in South Ayrshire, Scotland, the community is centred around the intersection of Aurora Road and Highway 48...
to the north-east and Bloomington
Bloomington, York Region, Ontario
Bloomington is a hamlet in York Region, Ontario, Canada, in the town of Whitchurch–Stouffville. The hamlet is centred at the intersection of Ninth Line and Bloomington Road near the eastern boundary of the town of Whitchurch–Stouffville...
to the south. Goodwood, a community of the town of Uxbridge
Uxbridge, Ontario
Uxbridge is a township in south-central Ontario, Canada, in the Regional Municipality of Durham, in the Greater Toronto Area.The main centre in the township is the namesake community of Uxbridge...
, lies to the east.