Water Stewardship on the French River

In recognition of its importance to Canada’s rich history, the French River was identified as a Canadian Heritage river in 1986. In the early 1900’s it supported a logging industry and some of the original mill sites are still in operation today. In the 1920′s and 30′s a tourist industry sprang up as fishing camps began to set up along the shoreline. In 1953 the opening of Highway 69 provided access to the area and both cottages and year round homes began to dot the shoreline, a trend which will continue as the highway is expanded to four lanes. The section of the four lane highway from Hwy 64 turn off heading North to Sudbury opened August 2016. The Highway 69 heading South of the Hwy 64 turnoff  is under construction.