Fort William

In aboriginal times the Kaministikwia river was an important link between the Great Lakes and the northwest, and from the late 17th century French posts here at its mouth served as bases for the penetration of the interior. Between 1804 and 1821 this was the depot from which the North West Company tapped the rich fur resources of half a continent. In 1875 construction was begun for the lake terminus of the Canadian Pacific Railway, and in 1883 the first grain from the prairies reached here for trans-shipment to the east. In 1905 a second transcontinental line, the Grand Trunk Pacific, was begun from here.