Port Colbourne
Port Colborne (2006 population 18,599) is a city on Lake Erie, at the southern end of the Welland Canal, in the Niagara Region of Southern Ontario, Canada near Niagara Falls.

The original settlement, known as Gravelly Bay, dates from 1832 and was re-named after Sir John Colborne, a British war hero and the Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada at the time of the opening of the southern terminus of the First Welland Canal in 1833.

History

In pre-colonial times, the Neutral Indians lived in the area, due in part to the ready availability of flint and chert from outcroppings on the Onondaga Escarpment. This advantage was diminished by the introduction of firearms by European traders, and they were gradually driven out by the Five (later Six) Nations (Iroquois) who were allied with the British against the Huron and their French allies.

The city grew up around the southern terminus of the Welland Canal, which was extended to reach Lake Erie in 1833. Originally called Gravelly Bay, after the large, shallow, and bedrock-floored bay upon which it sits. Port Colborne was incorporated as a village in 1870, became a town in 1917, and was re-incorporated as a city in 1966, merging with neighbouring Humberstone soon after.

From supplying the original camps for the labourers who worked on the canal, maritime commerce has been an important part of Port Colborne's economy to the present day. Port Colborne was a heavily industrial city throughout most of the 20th century, hosting a grain elevator, two modern flour mills, an INCO nickel refinery, a cement plant operated by Port Colborne Canada Cement, and a blast furnace operated by Algoma Steel in addition to the ongoing ship repair and provisioning trade. In the past thirty years, some of these industries have closed, while those operations which remain now employ significantly fewer residents due to modernization and cutbacks.

Port Colborne has been successful in attracting new industry, significantly agro-business operations of Casco Inc. and Jungbunzlauer, which process corn into products such as sweeteners and citric acid. However, the economy has gradually shifted towards tourism and recreation, taking advantage of the scenic beauty of the lakeshore.