Transportation history site.

Details of Site Location: South of St. Clair, over the Humber River at the point where Old Dundas Street curves southward away from the modern bridge at St. Clair, in line with the angle of the street.

Boundary History: The bridge spanned the Humber River, and each end rested on piers at the riverbanks.

Current Use of Property: The bridge no longer exists, having been replaced by a much larger one to the north on St. Clair Avenue West.

Historical Description: The ancient Davenport Trail was joined by another later called Dundas some distance east of the Humber. The two united and rose to the line that became St. Clair, then dropped south again at an angle to cross the Humber. The first bridge built at this location was in 1811, at that time the second bridge over the Humber north of Lake Ontario. During the period from 1791 to 1957 (a span of 166 years), there were 78 floods on the Humber: 25 of these were rated “severe” and one, Hurricane Hazel in 1954, was rated as “very severe.” This bridge was washed out by floods in 1850, 1857, and 1878. Construction of the bridge was that of wooden trestle, broad and solid enough to support heavy wagons and stagecoaches carrying the Royal Mail in 1878. The final bridge was of iron trestle construction. Its approaches were washed out in October 1954 by the floodwaters of Hurricane Hazel, and it was subsequently demolished. The early bridges were built to service the mills and their clients, which they did for 120 years. The bridges were at the heart of the Village of Lambton Mills, as well as being the link to the road extending to Hamilton, London, and beyond (later Highway 5). It should be noted that Lambton Mills was the name and enterprise of Sir William P. Howland, a Father of Confederation. He named the area in honour of John George Lambton, Earl of Durham. It should also be noted that the road west from the Humber, called the Governor’s Road as it was improved by the Queen’s Rangers, was the main link to southwestern Ontario long before there was a Queen Elizabeth Way or Highway 401. The Governor’s Road had been ordered by Governor Simcoe as a military road and link to the capital city he had originally planned to be at London. A portion of Dundas became “Old Dundas Street” in 1928 following the completion of the ten-span high-level reinforced concrete bridge to the north. New approaches to the bridge necessitated landfill, which began at Scarlett Road in the east and ended at Earlington in the west. The stone piers of the old bridge are still visible.

Relative Importance: The site is important because of the age of the roads it carried over the Humber, because of the early dates of the bridges themselves, and because of their economic and political importance as a link between York and the southwestern parts of the province. The bridge site also has its importance as a reminder of environmental disaster.

Planning Implications: The bridge site deserves plaquing and a bridge for pedestrians and cyclists using the surviving abutments. As well, there should be park benches at the eastern abutment overlooking the river.

Reference Sources: John Ross Robertson, Landmarks of Ontario; The Globe (18 February 1857 and 14 September 1878).

Acknowledgements: Humber Heritage Committee; Maps Project.