Thunder Bay Unseen

Superior History

North Water Street

Running along the industrial water front lies Water Street. Although along the course of the road most Thunder Bay residents are familiar with the lake's shore has retreated under development and landfill at the northern end of Marina Park the northern reaches of Water Street still hug the shoreline. Once an extension of Port Arthur's residential neighbourhoods, this lakefront address has been slowly claimed by heavy industry. It is now a part of the so-called 'North Active Harbour.'

The industrial area of North Water Street actually begins on Marina Park Drive, just past the Graham Street Overpass. The Graham Street Overpass was constructed, in part, in order to eliminate the graded crossings that allowed access to the harbour in Port Arthur's industrial youth. A large load bearing concrete bridge was constructed over McVicar's Creek due to the large amount of heavy lumber trucks passing over it.

McVicar Creek, below the bridge, has also seen some heavy work in the last decade or so. It has been artificially straightened and the banks have been stabilized to prevent erosion and silting. The gray ridge halfway between the fence and river's edge is wire-bound rocks.

Trees have been planted to assist in the stabilizing process.As a result the river has become a prime fishing destination during the spring melt.

North of McVicar Creek lies the Navy Marina, the shore-based extension of the HMCS Griffon.

The Griffon Boat shed is home to a fleet of small sailboats used by the Navy Cadets to learn sailing and watercraft skills.
The Navy Marine features a large dock and a sheltered bay area. It also features immaculately kept grounds that are home to dozens of Canada Geese each year as they make their annual migration north and south.

By far, the largest industry along this short stretch of harbour is Great West Timber

Great West Timber uses the former lands of this grain elevator, Manitoba Pool 2, which it has left standing derelict due to the high cost of tearing it down. Most of the external and internal machinery has been removed and the simple design is easily recognizable as a landmark on the northern waterfront.

A closer view of the lumber yard, where the rail cars are loaded with a finished product.

The barge is a regular sight at Great West Timber.

Another view into the work yard.

Bay Wood Processing Ltd. may be a previous name for what is now Great West Timber.

Clavet Street marks one of the former graded crossing sites. Now an orphaned section of roadway, this section of Clavet serves only to link Marina Park Drive to North Water Street.
Clavet Street is named for George Onésime Philomène Clavet, who twice served as the mayor of Port Arthur, first from 1903-1904 and again from 1906-1907.

The parking lot for Great West Timber has its own history.From inside Great West through the parking lot and behind the float plane base and old shacks used to lay Strathey Street. The power lines strung across the parking lot probably mark the former street's location. Strathey Street was named for former Port Arthur Alderman Robert L. F. Strathey. The street was closed by Thunder Bay By-law in 1973.

Past the vast expanse of mud and dirt that serves as Great West Timber's parking lot one comes across a true oddity in the city of Thunder Bay.
Once a community all to itself these dilapidated shacks are all that remains of Port Arthur's waterfront neighbourhood. As recently as 15 years ago school buses made the daily trip to these homes to pick up children and take them to St. James Public School.
Train tracks literally run through their front yard.

Next door to those last houses lies Thunder Bay's private float plane base.

In order to launch those same places, they must be pulled across Water Street and down a ramp to the lake itself.

For decades the most easily recognizable grain terminal along the Thunder Bay waterfront was the Richardson Family terminal.

With its storage towers painted a distinctive and eye catching orange and the workhouse painted yellow, the Richardson Terminal was a showpiece in terms of workplace beautification.

As time as marched on, however, the terminal is no longer painted orange. Probably cut as a cost saving measure after the company was renamed JRI (James Richardson International) the terminal now resembles most others on the waterfront.

The workhouse is still painted yellow, however.

This concrete structure is hollow inside. I have always been curious as to its purpose as they can be found at some, but not all, of the city's grain terminals. They were probably used for loading and unloading at one time. Does anyone have an answer?

The source of the name of Water Street is quite simplistic and easily distinguishable along this northern stretch - it lies along the shore of the lake. At one time the entire length of Water Street lay along the lake's shore, before subsequent landfill pushed the city out into the harbour.

MacDougall Street is named for Alan H. MacDougall who was a surveyor and town engineer for Port Arthur in the late 1800s.

Barely 10 meters from the lake's edge lies this manhole cover, marking the edge of the Port Arthur Sewer system.

Installed in 1963, this line probably only services the Richardson Terminal and General Chemical. It, quite obviously, has not needed any serious work in its life thus far as it is still graced by its original Port Arthur manhole cover.

The end of the line for this northern stretch of the active harbour is this former graded crossing at MacDougall Street. The last graded crossing to be closed after the completion of the Graham Street Overpass, the MacDougall crossing formed the nucleus of a prosperous miniature business district with five motels within blocks, a tavern, a corner store, a short strip mall, and a chinese restaurant.

The area fell upon hard times in the interim with most of the commercial space laying empty and two of the motels and the tavern being closed. The area has shown re growth in recent years but the crossing itself remains closed.

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North Water Street