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Sault Ste. Marie Situated on the St. Mary's River which connects Lake Superior and Lake Huron, Sault Ste. Marie (74,948) is a growing city and an industrial "island" at the centre of the world's busiest water-way. Serving two great nations, the locks of the "Soo" canals accommodate more waterborne freight each year than the combined tonnage of the Suez and Panama canals. The "Soo" is also the only possible gateway for land traffic in 600 miles of water-located international boundary. It is a "twin city", not an uncommon occurrence on the international boundary, but unique in the fact that the Canadian city is much larger than its American counterpart. Sault Ste. Marie was known to the French explorers from the time of Etiènne Brûlé who visited it in 1611. He found an Indian settlement located on the south bank which subsisted mainly on whitefish caught at the Falls. From 1630 on, it was a centre of the fur trade and a mission station. In 1797, the North West Fur Traders built a post on the north shore and two villages came into being. They also built the first lock around the rapids. In the 1840's two commercial towns came into being, based on the exploitation of the Lake Superior timber and mining resources. In 1859, the district of Algoma was organized and Sault Ste. Marie became its judicial centre. In 1887 the first C.P.R. train arrived and, in the same year, the town was incorporated. In 1891 it had 2,400 people, only half as many as its Michigan neighbour. It was then an important saw milling centre. Canalization and control of the river flow made possible the development of a large supply of electric power and a paper mill was established. In recognition of the geographical advantages of the area a steel mill was erected in 1901 and the population jumped to 7,000. In 1911 it was 10,000 and a separate suburb of Steelton had grown to more than 4,000. Later they were amalgamated to form a single city. During both World Wars the "Soo" has been the most important steel producing centre in Canada. In keeping with its riverine location the city is rather elongated, stretching for nearly five miles beside the river. The incorporated area is 4,900 acres but it is not all built up. The steel mills and the pulp and paper mill have water-side locations above the falls. The business section is down stream from the falls and contained between the railway and the riverside along which the docks are located. Parks, golf courses and other recreational lands are, for the most part, located at the eastern end of the city. Although the "Soo" is a district town, a market centre of some importance and an international gateway, it is pre-eminently a seat of heavy industry. Fifty-five per cent of the gainfully employed are engaged in manufacturing, four-fifths of whom are in iron and steel. Pulp and paper, lumber, chemicals and many small industries employ the remainder. Here also are found the headquarters and shops of the Algoma Central Railway and the home base of the Ontario Provincial air service which patrols the vast forest area of Northern Ontario. Tributary to the city is a small dairy farming area on the Algonquin Lake plain. Behind it at a distance of about four miles from the river rises a steep fault line scarp which marks the edge of the forested upland of the Canadian Shield. The summit elevations are more than 1300 feet above sea level and 700 feet above the surface of Lake Superior. Garden River Indian Reserve lies about five miles east of the city. River location and nearness to the wilderness make the "Soo" a notable tourist headquarters. Home