Spanish, Ontario

We don't have any museums, theatres, fancy restaurants or even a shopping mall, but Spanish is well known for own hometown hospitality and is considered a natural stop for tourists who are travelling on the waters of the North Channel.

Spanish has a population of 728 (Canada 2006 Census), told ya we lived in a small community! LOL Although our town has always been called Spanish, we were formerly known as the Township of Shedden. In 2004, we officially become the Town of Spanish.

The governing body of the Town of Spanish is Council. It consists of the Mayor and four Councilors. Members of Council are elected for a four-year term office.

Rick ran in the 2006 Municipal elections mising out by one. A Councillor stepped down immediately following the elections and Rick was then appointed.

Picture is Mayor (standing on right) swearing in Rick (standing on left) on January 2, 2007. He has been very active in his position and I'm just so darn proud of him!

Our Federal Member of Parliament (1993 to 2008), Brent St. Denis, was born in Spanish. As of June 1, 2009, Mr. St. Denis is the new CAO of Spanish, welcome Brent!

1902 - Railway station was built

February 1911 - The Jesuits purchase property for St Peter's Clavier's School (later Garnier College) for boys and St Joseph's School for girls

1913 - First day at the Garnier School

1916 - The St Joseph Residential School was built (Girl's School)

1917 - A voter's list was created

1919 - Flu epidemic took many lives

1922 - A telephone exchange was installed in the Post Office

1926 - Spanish Mills was closed down

1951 - Spanish receives electricity

1956 - Spanish population climbs to 12,000 (due to mining)

1957 - The North Theatre opened

1957 - 42 Homes were constructed

1957 - The telephone exchange office is built

1957 - Bank is established

1958 - Garnier College is closed

1962 - St. Joseph's School closed

1973 - The Township of Shedden experienced its first form of municipal government by joining the Improvement District of the North Shore

1975 - Direct distance dialing

1978 - The elected council changed the name to The Township of the North Shore

1978 - First Library established

1980 - Library moved to a pre-fab beside the fire hall

1981 - Improvement District of the North Shore and the Township of Shedden separate

1981 - The former St Joseph Residential School building burns down

1985 - The Township of Shedden separated from The North Shore and became the Improvement District of Shedden with an appointed Board of Trustees

1989 - The Township of Shedden was created, electing its own independent council

1992 - Official opening of the Township of Shedden and Public Library building

1992 - Medical Clinic

1992 - Farmers Market

1992 - We bought a house and moved here!

1995 - Dental clinic

1997 - Municipal Marina

1998 - Gignac Square built

1999 - Four Season Waterfront Complex

2004 - Former Garnier residential School is demolished

2004 - Lake Huron North Channel Historic Trail was completed

2004 - The Township of Shedden becomes the Corporation of the Town of Spanish

Refer to the complete history information.

Spanish is located at the mouth of the Spanish River which flows 150 miles (240 km) in a southerly direction from its headwaters in Lake Biscotasi (west branch) and Duke Lake (east branch before emptying into Georgian Bay on Lake Huron.

This river has been used as a transportation corridor for thousands of years, first by Native Canadians and in the 19th century by fur traders, many of whom were natives. During the late 19th and mid 20th century, it was used to transport logs to Georgian Bay where they were towed by tugs to sawmills on the Great Lakes.



Now, the river is mainly used for recreational boating and canoeing and has been protected as a waterway provincial park. There are also three hydro-electric dams on the river; one at High Falls on Lake Agnew, Big Eddy and the other at the Domtar mill in Espanola. And the fishing is awesome!



The river's name, and the name of the nearby town of Espanola, Ontario, are due to French explorers/Jesuit priests encountering Ojibway native peoples speaking Spanish in the area, apparently as a result of a Spanish woman having been taking captive during an expedition far to the south.

The Lower Spanish River Forest houses the worlds oldest Red Pine and White Pine ancient forests, and much of that is under provincial protection, in form of Provincial Parks and Reclamation Acts. Being a "prestine" wilderness route, makes it the favorite of environmentalists and fans of our rich, old forests.

The replica lighthouse was designed by (late) Morris Menzies. Once a councilor for the Town of Spanish, his inspiration for the design was a lighthouse model similar to a lighthouse that stands on Clapperton Island.

It was used by a harbormaster as an office and visitors could purchase charts, supplies and use the washroom facilities. It was moved, and now stands as a historical landmark for visitors, to the Municipal Marina and the Four Seasons Waterfront Complex built in 1997.

Our Marina and Complex are ideally located at the mouth of the Spanish River (Delta) where it empties into the North Channel of Lake Huron. This northern portion of Lake Huron is a favorite summer yachting destination for both Canadian and American boaters. Spanish has an international reputation for having some of the best sailing in the world.



Also at the Marina is our Lookout Tower, and the views are simply amazing (you can see some on my Pictures from Home lens). It is a wee bit of a walk up, as you can see from the picture below, and I usually need a few breaks when I head up there.

This is actually the Spanish River Delta, known locally as the Spanish Marshes. This marsh area has been designated as Provincial Significant Wetlands by the Ontario government.

The marsh is a staging area during migration, and is home to a variety of birds and waterfowl.

What you haven't heard of Spanish Joe? Where have you been? Spanish Joe is our resident psychic groundhog.

If you want a good laugh, spend the time and browse through his website! I'm sure he will give you a woodchuckle or two!

And of course, I also made him his own Squidoo Lens.