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Thames River (Ontario)
Encyclopedia
The Thames River is located in southwestern Ontario
, Canada
.
The Thames flows west 273 kilometres (169.6 mi) through southwestern Ontario, through the cities of Woodstock
, London
and Chatham
to Lighthouse Cove on Lake St. Clair
. Its drainage basin
is 5825 square kilometres (2,249 sq mi).
Called Askunessippi (Anishinaabe language: Eshkani-ziibi, "the antlered river") by the Odawa
and Ojibwa
inhabitants, who together with the Neutrals, have lived in the area since before Europeans arrived, the river was named after the River Thames
in England
by Lieutenant Governor
John Graves Simcoe
in 1793.
Much of the Thames is surrounded by deciduous
Carolinian forests, although much of this forest has been removed to permit agriculture
and other forms of development
. Three separate dam
s are used to control the seasonal flooding this river could cause: Wildwood Dam
, Pittock Dam
& the Fanshawe Dam
.
Thames River and sometimes simply called the Thames.
The North and South branches on the upper part of the river flow through valleys created during the retreat of the glacier
s during the last ice age
. The North and South branches meet at London; the University of Western Ontario
is located on the North Branch. Downriver from London, the lower part of the river flows through a shallow plain of sand
and clay
, with an average depth of 4 feet (1.2 m). The lower Thames flows through Delaware
, Chatham
, Thamesville
, as well as Chippewa and Oneida
First Nations
settlements. Tributaries
of the Thames include the Avon River
, Dingman Creek, Jeanettes Creek, McGregor Creek, Medway Creek
, Pottersburg Creek, Stoney Creek, and Waubuno Creek.
. The Battle of the Thames
(also known as the Battle of Moraviantown) was fought on October 5, 1813, between American General William Henry Harrison
and British General Henry Proctor, along with Proctor's ally Tecumseh
. Chief Tecumseh was killed in the battle.
On August 14, 2000, the Thames was designated a Canadian Heritage River
.
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...
.
The Thames flows west 273 kilometres (169.6 mi) through southwestern Ontario, through the cities of Woodstock
Woodstock, Ontario
Woodstock is a city and the county seat of Oxford County in Southern Ontario, Canada. Woodstock is located 128 km southwest of Toronto, north of Highway 401 along the historic Thames River...
, London
London, Ontario
London is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, situated along the Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. The city has a population of 352,395, and the metropolitan area has a population of 457,720, according to the 2006 Canadian census; the metro population in 2009 was estimated at 489,274. The city...
and Chatham
Chatham, Ontario
Chatham is the largest community in the municipality of Chatham-Kent, Ontario. Formerly serving as the seat of Kent County, the governments of the former city of Chatham, the county of Kent, and its townships were merged into one entity known as the Municipality of Chatham-Kent in 1998.Located on...
to Lighthouse Cove on Lake St. Clair
Lake Saint Clair (North America)
Lake St. Clair is a fresh-water lake named after Clare of Assisi that lies between the Province of Ontario and the State of Michigan, and its midline also forms the boundary between Canada and the United States of America. Lake St. Clair includes the Anchor Bay along the Metro Detroit coastline...
. Its drainage basin
Drainage basin
A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...
is 5825 square kilometres (2,249 sq mi).
Called Askunessippi (Anishinaabe language: Eshkani-ziibi, "the antlered river") by the Odawa
Odawa people
The Odawa or Ottawa, said to mean "traders," are a Native American and First Nations people. They are one of the Anishinaabeg, related to but distinct from the Ojibwe nation. Their original homelands are located on Manitoulin Island, near the northern shores of Lake Huron, on the Bruce Peninsula in...
and Ojibwa
Ojibwa
The Ojibwe or Chippewa are among the largest groups of Native Americans–First Nations north of Mexico. They are divided between Canada and the United States. In Canada, they are the third-largest population among First Nations, surpassed only by Cree and Inuit...
inhabitants, who together with the Neutrals, have lived in the area since before Europeans arrived, the river was named after the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
by Lieutenant Governor
Lieutenant governor
A lieutenant governor or lieutenant-governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction, but is often the deputy or lieutenant to or ranking under a governor — a "second-in-command"...
John Graves Simcoe
John Graves Simcoe
John Graves Simcoe was a British army officer and the first Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada from 1791–1796. Then frontier, this was modern-day southern Ontario and the watersheds of Georgian Bay and Lake Superior...
in 1793.
Much of the Thames is surrounded by deciduous
Deciduous
Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
Carolinian forests, although much of this forest has been removed to permit agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
and other forms of development
Real estate development
Real estate development, or Property Development, is a multifaceted business, encompassing activities that range from the renovation and re-lease of existing buildings to the purchase of raw land and the sale of improved land or parcels to others...
. Three separate dam
Dam
A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...
s are used to control the seasonal flooding this river could cause: Wildwood Dam
Wildwood Dam
Wildwood Dam is a dam located on Trout Creek, upstream of the Town of St. Marys, Ontario.Wildwood Dam is designed for flood control and flow augmentation purposes....
, Pittock Dam
Pittock Dam
The Pittock Dam is a dam in Woodstock, Ontario, Canada. It lies on the south branch of the Thames River , and creates the Pittock Reservoir. This artificial lake forms the northeast boundary of the City of Woodstock....
& the Fanshawe Dam
Fanshawe Dam
Fanshawe Dam is a dam located on the eastern edge of London, Ontario. The crest of the dam is 625 metres long. It is 30.5 metres in height and drops the river surface 12 metres...
.
Course
The Thames River has three main source branches—the North Thames, South Thames, and Middle Thames Rivers. These are also known as the North Branch, South Branch, and Middle Branch. The South Thames is the main stemMain Stem
"Main Stem" is 1942 instrumental by Duke Ellington and His Famous Orchestra. Although recorded in 1942, the single would not be released until 1944 where it was Duke Ellington's last of four number one's on the Harlem Hit Parade. "Main Stem" would also peak at number twenty on the pop chart"Main...
Thames River and sometimes simply called the Thames.
The North and South branches on the upper part of the river flow through valleys created during the retreat of the glacier
Glacier
A glacier is a large persistent body of ice that forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. At least 0.1 km² in area and 50 m thick, but often much larger, a glacier slowly deforms and flows due to stresses induced by its weight...
s during the last ice age
Ice age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
. The North and South branches meet at London; the University of Western Ontario
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario is a public research university located in London, Ontario, Canada. The university's main campus covers of land, with the Thames River cutting through the eastern portion of the main campus. Western administers its programs through 12 different faculties and...
is located on the North Branch. Downriver from London, the lower part of the river flows through a shallow plain of 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 clay
Clay
Clay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...
, with an average depth of 4 feet (1.2 m). The lower Thames flows through Delaware
Delaware, Ontario
Delaware is a community located about west of and outside of London, Ontario, within Middlesex County. Delaware stradles the Thames River. Delaware is accessed by the old highway linking London and Chatham and the freeway linking Sarnia along with Port Huron and Toronto.- History :The community...
, Chatham
Chatham, Ontario
Chatham is the largest community in the municipality of Chatham-Kent, Ontario. Formerly serving as the seat of Kent County, the governments of the former city of Chatham, the county of Kent, and its townships were merged into one entity known as the Municipality of Chatham-Kent in 1998.Located on...
, Thamesville
Thamesville, Ontario
Thamesville is a community in Chatham-Kent, Ontario, Canada. It is located at the junction of former provincial Highways 2 and 21, between Chatham and London. Its name comes from the Thames River that flows nearby and the suffix -ville....
, as well as Chippewa and Oneida
Oneida tribe
The Oneida are a Native American/First Nations people and are one of the five founding nations of the Iroquois Confederacy in the area of upstate New York...
First Nations
First Nations
First Nations is a term that collectively refers to various Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis. There are currently over 630 recognised First Nations governments or bands spread across Canada, roughly half of which are in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia. The...
settlements. Tributaries
Tributary
A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...
of the Thames include the Avon River
Avon River (Ontario)
The Avon River is a river in Perth County, Ontario, Canada. The river was named after the River Avon in England when the town of Stratford was founded on its banks in 1832. The Avon River rises northeast of Stratford and flows southwest, entering the North Thames River near St. Marys...
, Dingman Creek, Jeanettes Creek, McGregor Creek, Medway Creek
Medway Creek (Ontario)
Medway Creek is a tributary of the Thames River in southwestern Ontario, Canada, draining into the North branch of the Thames at the University of Western Ontario....
, Pottersburg Creek, Stoney Creek, and Waubuno Creek.
History
The river was the location of an important battle of the War of 1812War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
. The Battle of the Thames
Battle of the Thames
The Battle of the Thames, also known as the Battle of Moraviantown, was a decisive American victory in the War of 1812. It took place on October 5, 1813, near present-day Chatham, Ontario in Upper Canada...
(also known as the Battle of Moraviantown) was fought on October 5, 1813, between American General William Henry Harrison
William Henry Harrison
William Henry Harrison was the ninth President of the United States , an American military officer and politician, and the first president to die in office. He was 68 years, 23 days old when elected, the oldest president elected until Ronald Reagan in 1980, and last President to be born before the...
and British General Henry Proctor, along with Proctor's ally Tecumseh
Tecumseh
Tecumseh was a Native American leader of the Shawnee and a large tribal confederacy which opposed the United States during Tecumseh's War and the War of 1812...
. Chief Tecumseh was killed in the battle.
On August 14, 2000, the Thames was designated a Canadian Heritage River
Canadian Heritage Rivers System
The Canadian Heritage Rivers System was established in 1984 by the federal, provincial and territorial governments to conserve and protect the best examples of Canada's river heritage, to give them national recognition, and to encourage the public to enjoy and appreciate them. It is a cooperative...
.