River Welland

The River Welland is a lowland river in the east of England, some 65 miles (105 km) long. It drains part of the Midlands eastwards to The Wash. The river rises in the Hothorpe Hills, at Sibbertoft in Northamptonshire, then flows generally northeast to Market Harborough, Stamford and Spalding, to reach The Wash near Fosdyke. It is a major waterway across the part of the Fens called South Holland, and is one of the Fenland rivers which were laid out with washlands. There are two channels between widely spaced embankments with the intention that flood waters would have space in which to spread while the tide in the estuary prevented free egress. However, after the floods of 1947, new works such as the Coronation Channel were constructed to control flooding in Spalding and the washes are no longer used solely as pasture, but may be used for arable farming.

Significant improvements were made to the river in the 1660s, when a new cut with 10 locks was constructed between Stamford and Market Deeping, and two locks were built on the river section below Market Deeping. The canal section was known as the Stamford Canal, and was the longest canal with locks in Britain when it was built. The river provided the final outlet to the sea for land drainage schemes implemented in the seventeenth century, although they were not completely successful until a steam-powered pumping station was built at Pode Hole in 1827. Navigation on the upper river, including the Stamford Canal, had ceased by 1863, but Spalding remained an active port until the end of the Second World War.

Welland

Welland (2011 population 50,631) is a city in the Regional Municipality of Niagara in Southern Ontario, Canada.

The city is located in the centre of Niagara. Within a half hour or less, residents can travel to Niagara Falls, Niagara-On-The-Lake, St. Catharines, Port Colborne and Buffalo. It has been traditionally known as the place where rails and water meet, referring to the railways from Buffalo to Toronto and Southwestern Ontario, and the waterways of Welland Canal and Welland River, which played a great role in the city's development. The city is separated by the Welland River and Welland Canal which links Lake Erie and Lake Ontario.

Welland is the home of C Company of The Lincoln and Welland Regiment which is part of 32 Canadian Brigade Group, the classification of this unit is Light Infantry.

Welland's nickname is The Rose City.

History

The city was first settled in 1788 by the United Empire Loyalists. On 19 October 1814, Canadian forces led by George Hay, 8th Marquess of Tweeddale, met an American raiding party, numbering approximately nine hundred, near the eastern edge of the present community during the Battle of Cook's Mills. After an intense skirmish, the Americans retreated to Buffalo, New York. Cook's Mills was the second to last engagement of the War of 1812 on Canadian soil.

Welland (provincial electoral district)

Welland (formerly Niagara Centre) is a provincial electoral district in Ontario, Canada, represented in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario since the 2007 provincial election. Its population in 2006 was 112,875.

The current electoral district was created in 2003: 74.9% of the riding came from Niagara Centre riding, 22.5% from Erie—Lincoln and 2.7% from Niagara Falls riding.

The riding also existed from 1867 until 1981 under different boundaries.

A new riding of Niagara Centre was created before the 1999 election from small parts of Lincoln and St. Catharines—Brock ridings, and almost all of Welland—Thorold riding.

Geography

Welland riding consists of the cities of Welland, Thorold, and Port Colborne, the Township of Wainfleet, and the part of the City of St. Catharines lying south of a line drawn from the western city limit east along St. Paul Street West, northeast along St. Paul Crescent, east and south along Twelve Mile Creek, and east along Glendale Avenue to the eastern city limit.

Niagara Centre

Niagara Centre (French: Niagara-Centre; formerly Welland) is a federal electoral district in the Niagara Region of Ontario that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1867 to 1988 and since 1997.

Demographics

Ethnic groups: 92.2% White, 2.9% Aboriginal, 1.5% Black
Languages: 82.3% English, 7.3% French, 3.4% Italian
Religions: 76.6% Christian (40.4% Catholic, 8.5% Anglican, 7.3% United Church, 3.3% Presbyterian, 1.9% Baptist, 1.8% Lutheran, 1.3% Pentecostal, 12.1% Other), 21.8% No religion
Median income (2010): $28,573
Average income (2010): $35,416

Geography

Niagara Centre consists of the cities of Welland, Thorold, and Port Colborne, and the part of the City of St. Catharines lying south of a line drawn from the southern city limit north along First Louth St, east along St. Paul Street West, northeast along St. Paul Crescent, east and south along Twelve Mile Creek, and east along Glendale Avenue to the eastern city limit.

History

Welland was originally created in 1867 by the British North America Act. It consisted initially of the Townships of Bertie, Crowland, Humberstone, Stamford, Thorold, and Willoughby, and the Villages of Chippawa, Clifton, Fort Erie, Thorold and Welland.