WALLACEBURG'S SHIPBUILDING HERITAGE Nowadays, with our easy access to roads, sidewalks and pathways, we take moving around for granted. Before the Sydenham River area was well-settled, however, the river provided one of the only ways to get around. The river was used like a highway through the bush. The earliest surveyors and settlers traveled back and forth in canoes and small boats, taking advantage of the river when the ground was too muddy for travel. It was only natural that a shipbuilding and shipping tradition would develop in the area. The J.C. Clarke, shown here at the Green Mountain Dock in Dresden, used to ferry passengers up and down the river. The earliest ship-building operation on the river was started by Laughlin McDougall, who settled in Baldoon. McDougall built schooners like the Wallace and the Selkirk, and used them to support his trading post in Baldoon. The schooners took lumber and fur to Detroit, returning with tools for fur traders and new settlers. A booming lumber and fur trade began because of this shipping route. Due to the trading post, Wallaceburg was designated a port of entry to Canada from the United States.

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