THE ISLANDS OF THE LONG SAULT PARKWAY

(WEST TO EAST)

BREDIN ISLAND (formerly island #5, then Whitney Island):

   It was with interest that we received a most  interesting letter from Edward M. Bredin, Q.C, member of the Lost  Villages Historical Society. This letter was in response to a "Did You Know?" item which was included in the October newsletter of the  society.


   The item referred to the islands  of Lake St. Lawrence, and the numbers which had originally been  associated with them.  Island No. 5 was referred to as Whitney  Island, and this was the information taken directly from the  brochure which had been donated to the Lost Villages Museum, during the summer of 2002. A patron to the museum had dropped off the brochure, originally produced by the Ontario-St. Lawrence Development Commission, dated June 15, 1956.


   Whitney Island is now Bredin Island and this does appear in documentation since 1958.  We thank Edward Bredin for his efforts to alert our society to some important family history, and we assure him that Bredin Island is now included in documentation with the St. Lawrence Parks Commission. The  information provided in the October newsletter was taken directly  from the pre-1958 change to the island's name.


   Edward M. Bredin writes: "On the last page  of the October bulletin of the Association there is a paragraph headed "DID YOU KNOW? That paragraph refers to island No. 5 as  Whitney Island.  The list of numbered islands purports to be  based on a document received by the Society recently produced by the  Ontario - St. Lawrence Development Commission dated June 15, 1956. 


   The Society should be aware of  correspondence between the Bredin family and "The Canadian Board of Geographical Names".This correspondence took place in 1958 and was  therefore after the date the document sent to you by the Ontario -  St. Lawrence Development Commission was produced. In an exchange of  correspondence my brother the late James Cameron Bredin, former proprietor of the Cornwall Motor Sales dealership in Cornwall, wrote to the "Canadian Board on Geographical Names" pointing out that former Premier Whitney had lived in Dundas County whereas Island No.  5 had been formed from land owned by the Bredins.


   The land was acquired by my great grandfather Henry Bredin in 1832. It was the home of his son Lt.  Col. J. H. Bredin and of the latter's son James William Bredin. I  have not included the long letter written on August 21st 1958 by my brother James Cameron Bredin to the Geographical Board in support of the application to change the name of Island 5 to Bredin Island. I am however enclosing a copy of the letter dated December 5, 1958  from the Secretary of that Board in which it is stated that the name of the island was changed from Whitney Island to Bredin Island at the December meeting of the Board, "...and this name will appear on future maps of the area".



McLAREN ISLAND: named after Rev. Narcisse McLaren, a well-known United Church Minister in the area, who  established Camp Kagama on Sheek’s  Island. Although established as a  camp for all Protestant denominations, the camp has since become non- denominational, and is now situated adjacent to the Upper Canada Migratory Bird  Sanctuary.



WOODLANDS ISLAND: to commemorate the community of Woodlands.  This name came from the wood, timber and cordwood supplied by the settlement, which was a fuel supply point for the early wood-fired steamers on the St. Lawrence River.



FRASER ISLAND: named after Simon  Fraser (1776-1862), one of the Nor’Westers who was born in the state  of Vermont.  He came to Upper Canada with his family and other  United  Empire Loyalists and settled at St. Andrew’s West. He entered the North West Company in 1792 and in 1805 was in charge of the company’s operations beyond the Rocky Mountains, at which time he traced the river which bears his name to the Pacific Ocean. He later returned to St. Andrew’s where he died and is buried in the  cemetery there.



HOOPLE ISLAND: named after  Hoople’s Creek,  which was named after one of the original settlers of the area.  Hoople’s Creek was the location of an important skirmish on November 10, 1813, when a force of raw recruits from the Glengarry Militia  Regiment, under Major Dennis, fought an invading American land  force under General Brown, proceeding by the north shore of the St. Lawrence with the  role of subduing minor opposition.



DICKINSON  ISLAND: to commemorate the community of Dickinson’s Landing  which took its name from Barnabus Dickinson, proprietor of a stage-coach line carrying passengers and mail  between Montreal and Kingston. Dickinson’s Landing was a transfer point for passengers and cargo from the steamers.



HERIOT ISLAND: named after Captain Frederick G. Heriot who commanded  the Voltigeurs at the Battle of Crysler’s farm.  He also served  at Sackett’s Harbour and in the relief of Burlington during the war of 1812-14. In 1841 he attained the rank of  Major-General and  died at Drummondville, Quebec, in 1843.



VANKOUGHNET ISLAND: named after Philip Vankoughnet who was the great projector and instrumental in the  construction of the Cornwall Canal.  He was born in 1790, the  son of United Empire Loyalists. He fought in the War of 1812, was a  Member  of the Legislative Assembly for Stormont and Dundas from 1820-1828 and was elected to the Legislative Council in 1836.



PHILLPOTTS ISLAND: named after  Lieutenant-Colonel R.E. Phillpotts, who in 1836, was in charge of construction on the Cornwall Canal.  During 1839 and 1840, he made a report to the Imperial Government on the inland navigation of Canada, which was the basis for the construction of the St. Lawrence Canals during the 1840s, among which were the Farran’s Point Canal, Galops Canal and Rapide Plat Canal, in the area.



MacDONELL ISLAND: named after Bishop Alexander Macdonell (1760-1840) who emigrated from Scotland along  with others and settled between the Loyalists on the west and the  French on the east.  He was a Legislative Councilor, first Roman Catholic Bishop of Upper Canada, a patriot, a military chaplain, an educator and lived and laboured in the Eastern District for many years.



ROYAL BAKER ISLAND: named  after Royal Baker, a Game and Fisheries Overseer and Fish and  Wildlife Inspector from  December 27, 1921 to 1954.  This is the little island can be seen just east of Rapids Point and has a small section of the old highway #2 running across it.



MILLE ROCHES ISLAND: to commemorate the “Lost Village” of Mille Roches and means “a thousand rocks”. The rocks  were associated with the many quarries north of the  community.



SNETSINGER ISLAND: named after John Gray Goodall Snetsinger born in Cornwall Township where his  grandfather settled in 1784. Of Palatine stock, he was given a  business training  and entered the store of the Honourable  Philip Vankoughnet. He was elected to the Legislature in 1875, for a  second term and in 1896  was elected Member of Parliament for  Stormont.



MOULINETTE ISLAND: to commemorate the “Lost Village” of Moulinette, an early settlement in the area,  with the  name meaning “little  mill”.