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Home · Science & Technology · Transportation  · The St. Lawrence Seaway: Gateway to the World

Topic spans: 1951 - 2001

The St. Lawrence Seaway: Gateway to the World

In 1535, Jacques Cartier stood on Mount Royal looking down in despair at the Lachine Rapids that barred his further progress inland along the St. Lawrence River. It wasn't until 1954 that a formal agreement between Canada and the U.S. finally made the St. Lawrence Seaway possible. Heralded as a marvel of engineering when it opened in 1959, the Seaway has been hit by environmental problems and hard economic times over the last two decades. What lies ahead for the Seaway?

Topic photo: Opening of the St Lawrence Seaway, Library and Archives Canada/PA-136706

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Queen Elizabeth officially opens the St. Lawrence Seaway

Broadcast Date: June 26, 1959

As part of the 1959 royal visit to Canada, Queen Elizabeth joins U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower in the formal opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway on June 26. After addressing the crowd at the lock at St. Lambert, Ont., Elizabeth and "Ike" board the Royal Yacht Britannia, which soon pulls away and enters the lift locks, officially opening the Seaway for business.

With a slow and stately air, the magnificent yacht moves up the canal as the crowd of spectators cheer. And though the royal yacht has travelled around the globe, to the people of Canada, the most memorable entry in Britannia's logbook will be this brief voyage of a few hundred yards through the ceremonial gate.

Queen Elizabeth officially opens the St. Lawrence Seaway

• The Royal Yacht Britannia was launched in 1953, and served the Queen for forty-four years. It carried the Queen and her family on 968 official voyages, from the South Seas to Antarctica. Britannia was decommissioned on December 11, 1997 and is now permanently moored in Edinburgh's historic port of Leith.

• St. Lawrence Seaway dedication ceremonies were also held the next day in Massena, New York, and involved the Queen and Vice-President Richard M. Nixon.

Queen Elizabeth officially opens the St. Lawrence Seaway

Medium: Television

Program: CBC Television News Special

Broadcast Date: June 26, 1959

Guest(s):


Reporter: Ted Reynolds

Duration: 10:31

Last updated:
Aug. 31, 2009


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