Welcome to www.windsorswebsites.com and our HISTORY PAGES, we have researched a little of history, but are in no way experts on the history of windsor, or profess to be. Please feel free to send us any information  you wish to share with the rest of windsor, that you believe to be true about windsor. We will  review it, and if appropriate we will publish  it in the windsor history pages. Please make the text so it does not exceed one page. Hence, windsors history pages. Feel free to send any text, questions and/or comments to: editorial@windsorswebsites.com Thank-You!!

Chris Arquette ( Owner )
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WINDSOR was first settled in 1748 as a French agricultural settlement, making it the oldest continually inhabited city in CANADA west of the Quebec border. WINDSOR is the second largest city in Southwestern Ontario and is part of Essex County. WINDSOR is south of Detroit, Michigan and is separated by the DETROIT RIVER. We are the only border crossing from the mainland United States where you head South. The current Mayor of Windsor is Eddie Francis.

The WINDSOR area was first named Petite Cote (Little Coast), and later became known as La Cote de Misere (Poverty Coast) because of the sandy soils near LaSalle. WINDSOR'S FRENCH HERITAGE is reflected in many street names, such as Ouellette, Pelissier, Marentette and Lauzon. There is a significant French speaking minority in Windsor and the surrounding areas. Many of them are in the Lakeshore area. The current street system of Windsor (grid with elongated blocks) reflects the French method of agricultural land division where the farms were long and narrow, fronting along the river.

In 1794, after the American Revolution, the settlement of SANDWICH was founded. It was later renamed to WINDSOR, after the town in Berkshire, England. The Sandwich neighbourhood on Windsor's west side is home to the oldest buildings in the city, including Mackenzie Hall, originally built as the Essex County courthouse in 1855. Today, this building functions as a community centre. The oldest building in the city is the Duff-Baby House built in 1798. It is owned by Ontario Heritage Trust and houses government offices.
The Francois Baby House in downtown Windsor was built in 1812 and houses Windsor's Community Museum, dedicated to local history.

WINDSOR was established as a village in 1854 (the same year the village was connected to the rest of CANADA, by the Grand Trunk Railway/CN Rail), then WINDSOR became a town in 1858, and ultimately gained city status in 1892.

The city's growth in the twentieth century was spurred by annexations, which included Walkerville. The WINDSOR STAR CENTENNIAL EDITION in 1992 covered the city's past, its heyday as a railroading centre, and its contributions to WORLD WAR 1 and WORLD WAR 11. There was a naming controversy when the town of WINDSOR wanted to become a city?

WINDSOR had a population of 208,402 in 2005 and its official metropolitan area (Windor, Tecumseh, Amherstburg, Lasalle and Lakeshore) has a population of 307,877. The 2005 projectory census indicated a population of 340,000 inhabitants growing at an average of 1.4% annually. Windsor attracts many immigrants from around the world. It is the fourth most diverse city in CANADA with over 20% of its residents being classified as foreign-born.

ETHNIC ORIGIN

FRENCH- 24.9% ENGLISH-20.4%, IRISH-14.0%, SCOTTISH-12.6%, ITALIAN-10.1%

RACIAL PROFILES

WHITE-82.8%, ARAB-3.6%, BLACK-3.5%, ASIAN-3.1%, CHINESE-2.6%

49.3% MALE AND 50.7% FEMALE

Children under five account for approximately 6.3% of the resident population of WINDSOR. Persons of retirement age (65 and over) accounted for 14.1%, with the average age is 36 years. The population density of WINDSOR is 1728 people per square kilometre, compared to an average of 12.6 for all of ONTARIO.

WINDSOR competes with Oshawa, Ontario for the title of automotive capital of Canada, with WINDSOR housing the DAIMLER-CHRYSLER Canadian headquarters, and Oshawa housing the GENERAL MOTORS Canadian Headquarters. Industries include the Mini-Van assembly plant, several FORD MOTOR COMPANY engine and casting plants, the GENERAL MOTORS transmission plant and the HIRAM WALKER CANADIAN CLUB plant, along with a number of smaller parts manufacturers that supply the larger plants. WINDSOR is also known as global leader in the building of molds for the plastic injection industry.

Labour union membership is very high in WINDSOR, and both the city's current federal Members of Parliament are members of the New Democratic Party. The Canadian Auto Workers Union has a strong and influential presence in the city. WINDSOR is also home to the Great Lakes Regional Office of the International Joint Commission.

WINDSOR is the western terminus of both Ontario Highway 401, Canada's busiest highway, and of VIA Rail's Quebec City-Windsor Corridor. The city is served by Windsor Airport with regular, scheduled commuter air service and heavy general aviation traffic. The Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport is located across the river in Michigan. WINDSOR is also located on the ST. LAWRENCE SEAWAY, and is accessible to ocean-going vessels.

Local transportation is handled by TRANSIT WINDSOR, the city-owned bus company, which shares its downtown depot with GREYHOUND BUS LINES.

WINDSOR has competed a municipal highway, E.C. ROW EXPRESSWAY, running from east-west through the city. Consisting of 15.7 kilometres of highway and nine interchanges, the expressway is the fasted way for commuters to travel across the city.

The city is connected to Essex and Leamington via HIGHWAY 3, and is well connected to the other municipalities and communities throughout Essex County via the county road network.

WINDSOR is linked to the UNITED STATES by the AMBASSADOR BRIDGE, the DETROIT-WINDSOR TUNNEL, a CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY TUNNEL, and the DETROIT WINDSOR TRUCK FERRY. The Ambassador Bridge is North America's #1 international border crossing in terms of goods volume: 27% of all trade between CANADA and the UNITED STATES crosses at the AMBASSADOR BRIDGE.

A current issue in WINDSOR is traffic around the AMBASSADOR BRIDGE. The number of vehicles crossing the bridge has doubled in the past fifteen years and, since the SEPTEMBER 11, 2001 ATTACKS, travelling through customs on the U.S. side takes much longer. The only way to access the bridge or tunnel is from two municipal roads: HURON CHURCH ROAD (BRIDGE) and WYANDOTTE STREET (TUNNEL). A large portion of the traffic is 18-wheeler trucks. There have been at times a wall of trucks up to eight kilometres long on HURON CHURCH ROAD. This road cuts through the west end of the city and the trucks are the source of many complaints about noise, pollution and pedestrian hazards. While in a very good state of repair, it had the distinction of being number 17 on a list of Canada's worst roads.

WINDSOR paid world famous traffic consultant SAM SCHWARTZ to produce a proposal for a solution to this traffic problem. The city councillors have overwhelmingly endorsed the proposal and it was presented to the federal government as the solution that the city officially approves. Unfortunately, not all of the surrounding residents support the plan the city paid for. The problem with the plan is that the proposed roadway would cut through protected green space such as OJIBWAY PARK. The FEDERAL GOVERNMENT wasn't expecting the city be able to agree upon a proposal of any sort and are now pushing for short term, cheaper solutions.

WINDSOR is home to the UNIVERSITY OF WINDSOR, which is CANADA'S southernmost university. It is a research oriented, comprehensive university. It has a student population of over 15,000 full-time and part-time undergraduate students and over 1000 graduate students. The university is just east of the AMBASSADOR BRIDGE, south of the DETROIT RIVER. WINDSOR is also home to ST. CLAIR COLLEGE, a community college.

WINDSOR is home to two INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE recognized schools, ASSUMPTION COLLEGE SCHOOL, a CATHOLIC SCHOOL, and ST. CECILE'S, a private school.

WINDSOR tourist attractions include CASINO WINDSOR, a lively downtown, the CAPITOL THEATRE, LITTLE ITALY, the ART GALLERY of WINDSOR, the ODETTE SCULPTURE PARK, OJIBWAY PARK, and nearby POINT PELEE NATIONAL PARK. WINDSOR was a major entry point into CANADA for REFUGEES from SLAVERY via the UNDERGROUND RAILROAD and a major source of LIQUOR during the AMERICAN PROHIBITION.

WINDSOR'S nickname is the "CITY OF ROSES" and the city is noted for its several large parks and gardens found on its waterfront. The Queen Elizabeth II SUNKEN GARDEN is located at JACKSON PARK at the corner of OUELLETTE AVENUE and TECUMSEH ROAD in the heart of the city. A WWII era LANCASTER BOMBER was displayed on a stand in the middle of JACKSON PARK for over four decades, but has since been removed for restoration. This park is now home to a mounted SPITFIRE replica and a HURRICANE REPLICA.

Of the parks along WINDSOR'S WATERFRONT, the largest is the five-kilometre stretch overlooking the DETROIT SKYLINE. IT stretches from the AMBASSADOR BRIDGE to the HIRAM WALKER DISTILLERY. The western portion of the park contains the ODETTE SCULPTURE PARK which features over 30 large-scale contemporary sculptures for public viewing, along with the CANADIAN VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL. The central portion contains DIEPPE GARDENS, CIVIC TERRACE and FESTIVAL PLAZA, and the eastern portion is home to the BERT WEEKS MEMORIAL GARDENS. Further east along the WATERFRONT is COVENTRY GARDENS, across from DETROIT'S BELLE ISLE. The focal point of this park is the CHARLES BROOKS MEMORIAL PEACE FOUNTAIN which FLOATS in the DETROIT RIVER and has a coloured light display at night. The FOUNTAIN is the LARGEST of its KIND in NORTH AMERICA and symbolizes the PEACEFUL RELATIONSHIP between CANADA and the UNITED STATES.

Every summer WINDSOR CO-HOSTS the WINDOR-DETROIT INTERNATIONAL FIREWORKS DISPLAY (formerly the INTERNATIONAL FREEDOM FESTIVAL), which celebrates CANADA DAY and the AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE DAY. The fireworks display is among the WORLD'S LARGEST and is held on the final WEDNESDAY in JUNE on the DETROIT RIVER between the two downtowns. Each year, the event attracts over a million spectators to both sides of the RIVERFRONT.

WINDSOR has also been the place where many metro DETROITERS find what is forbidden in the UNITED STATES. With the minimum LEGAL DRINKING AGE at 21 in MICHIGAN and 19 in ONTARIO (I.D., OF COURSE), a number of nineteen and twenty year-old AMERICAN'S frequent WINDSOR'S BARS. The city also became a GAMING ATTRACTION with CASINO WINDSOR'S OPENING in 1994, five years before CASINOS opened in DETROIT. In addition, one can purchase CUBAN CIGARS (but a business can't advertise it anymore, due to government legislation), less-costly prescription drugs, certain imported foods, and other items not available in the UNITED STATES. A LIST OF LOCAL FESTIVALS AND EVENTS CAN BE FOUND AT WINDSORSWEBSITES.COM IN THE WEBSITE DIRECTORY UNDER FESTIVALS AND EVENTS.

WINDSOR'S Department of Parks and Recreation maintains 3,000 acres of green space, 180 parks, 64 kilometres of trails, 35 kilometres of sidewalk and 60 parking lots. As well as, vacant lands, natural areas and forest cover within the city of WINDSOR, along with bike trails, bike lanes, and bike-friendly streets.
The largest park is MIC MAC PARK, which can accommodate many different activities including baseball, soccer, biking, playground for children, and even a couple of water slides. WINDSOR has numerous BIKE TRAILS that criss-cross the city. The largest TRAIL is the GANATCHIO TRAIL on WINDSOR'S far east side. In recent years, city council has pushed for the addition of bicycle lanes on city streets to provide links throughout the existing trail network.

WINDSOR has a humid continental climate with four distinct seasons. The yearly average temperature is 9 Celcius, the coldest month is January with an average temperature of -6 degress Celcius and the warmest being July with an average temperature of 23 degrees Celcius. The winters are cold and wet with an average of 130 centimetres of snow and temperatures consistently below 0 degrees Celcius (32 degrees F), with temperatures dipping at times to as low as -25 degrees Celcius (-13 degrees F).
WINDSOR is one of the cities receiving the least amount of snow in eastern and central CANADA. Other cities with relatively little snow include TORONTO and SARNIA, though there are frequent occasions when the city gets a heavy snowfall. As is the case with many cities in SOUTHERN ONTARIO, the snow cover is not continuous. The snow comes and goes in the winter due to occasional temperature rises. In the year 2005, WINDSOR received almost 256 centimetres (101 inches) of snow, making it one of the snowiest years ever.

Summers are warm and humid with temperatures regularly reaching highs of 30 degress Celcius (86 degrees F) and sudden, short term thunderstorms often occurring. WINDSOR is CANADA'S leader in LIGHTNING days, haze, humidity, and days over 30 degrees Celcius. The summer high temperature reaches as high as 38 degrees Celcius from time to time.

The strongest TORNADO to hit WINDSOR was an F4 in 1946 (the same time the TORNADO BABIES were born, DON ARQUETTE was one of them). It was also the deadliest. Windsor was also the only CANADIAN city to be hit by a tornado during the SUPER OUTBREAK of 1974, an F3 which killed nine people at the WINDSOR CURLING CLUB. WINDSOR was also grazed in 1997 by the Southeast MICHIGAN TORNADO OUTBREAK, with one TORNADO (an F1) forming east of the city, and caused some local street flooding.
The waters of LAKE ERIE, THE DETROIT RIVER, and LAKE ST. CLAIR act as a slight natural deterrent to tornadoes, but also add humidity and instabilty in the warm summer air, to fuel strong thunderstorms. TORNADOES have been recorded to cross the DETROIT RIVER (in 1946 and in 1997), and waterspouts are regularly seen over LAKE ST. CLAIR and LAKE ERIE in the fall.

Because of WINDSOR'S proximity to the DETROIT MEDIA MARKET, RADIO AND TELEVISION broadcasters in WINDSOR are accorded a special status by the CANADIAN RADIO-TELEVISION AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION EXEMPTING them from many of the CANADIAN CONTENT ("CanCon") requirements most broadcasters in CANADA are required to follow. The CanCon requirements are sometimes blamed in part for the decline in popularity of WINDSOR RADIO STATION CKLW, a 50,000 watt AM radio station that in the late 1960's (prior to the advent of CanCon) had been the number one radio station not only in DETROIT AND WINDSOR, but also in the TOLEDO and CLEVELAND MARKETS.

WINDSOR is also exempt from concentration of media ownership rules: all of its commercial broadcast outlets are owned by a single company, CHUM Limited.

RADIO

-540 AM-CBEF, LA PREMIERE CHAINE
-580 AM - CKWW, OLDIES
-800 AM - CKLW, NEWS/TALK
-1550 AM - CBE, CBC RADIO ONE
-88.7 FM - CIMX 89X MODERN ROCK
-89.9 FM - CBE, CBC RADIO TWO
-91.5 FM - CJAM, UNIVERSITY OF WINDSOR CAMPUS RADIO
-93.9 FM - CIDR, THE RIVER 93.9 ADULT CONTEMPORARY
-100.7 FM - CKUE, THE ROCK ACTIVE ROCK
-103.9 FM - CJBC-2, ESPACE MUSIQUE

TELEVISION

-CHANNEL 9 - CBET, CBC
-CHANNEL 32 - CICO-32, TVONTARIO
-CHANNEL 54 - CBEFT, SRC
-CHANNEL 60 - CHWI, A-CHANNEL

WINDSOR and most of ESSEX COUNTY, ONTARIO also receive television stations from TOLEDO, OHIO and the southern part of the county receives some of CLEVELAND, OHIO'S television stations and are carried on cable services. There are times that WILX-TV from GRAND LEDGE, MICHIGAN can be seen, albeit weekly in WINDSOR, much in the same manner as CKCO-TV'S translator in SARNIA, and CIII-TV, CHCH-TV, AND CFMT-TV, all from LONDON.

PRINT

WINDSOR and it's surrounding area is served by the WINDSOR STAR, a daily newspaper operated by the CAN WEST GLOBAL COMMUNICATIONS. Alternatively, upfront magazine, established in 1995 by Anis Elkassem, provides a voice to the underground arts, music and culture scene. Other newspapers available in WINDSOR include:

-THE GLOBE AND MAIL
-USA TODAY
-DETROIT FREE PRESS
-DETROIT NEWS
-TORONTO STAR
-TORONTO SUN

FILM

The 2000 film BORDERLINE NORMAL, featuring ROBIN DUNNE, STEPHANIE ZIMBALIST, CORBIN BERNSEN AND MICHAEL IRONSIDE, is set in WINDSOR. Many exterior locations, such as OUELLETTE AVENUE, DIEPPE PARK and the AMBASSADOR BRIDGE were featured.

-Windsor Spitfires (Ontario Hockey League Major Junior "A")
-Windsor AKO Fratmen (Ontario Lacrosse Association Junior "B")
-Windsor AKO Fratmen (Ontario Junior Football League)
-Windsor Border Stars (Canadian Soccer League)
-Windsor Mariners (Ontario Australian Football League)
-Windsor Lancers (Canadian Interuniversity League)
-St. Clair Saints (Canadian Colleges Athletic Association)

In addition to these teams, Windsor has been lobbying for a Canadian Football League franchise. This franchise (if awarded) would play its regular season home games in Windsor and possibly their playoff games in Pontiac, a suburb of Detroit. Current commissioner Tom Wright met with Windsor mayor Eddie Frances about possible expansion to Windsor during the run-up to Super Bowl XL, in which Windsor played a major role, although the game was held in Detroit at Ford Field. Shortly thereafter, media in the Windsor Star and other local news sources criticized this as an unrealistic pipe dream.