Barbara Raue

Caledonia Ontario in Colour Photos Barbara Raue

Caledonia is a small riverside community located on the Grand River in Haldimand County located at the intersection of Highways 6 and 54. On Highway 6, the town is 10 kilometres south of Hamilton and 10 kilometres north of Hagersville. On Highway 54, the town is 15 kilometres east of Brantford and 10 kilometers west of Cayuga. The Grand River flows 293 kilometres from the Dundalk Highlands to Lake Erie and is the largest river in southern Ontario. The river winds its way through marshes, woods, farmsteads, and communities. Rainbow trout use this river in their migration. Caledonia was once a small strip of land between Seneca and Oneida villages. The Grand River traveled through Caledonia dividing it into two sides, North and South. In 1834, Ranald McKinnon was hired to build a dam in Seneca and a dam in Caledonia. Completed in 1840, the dams made water power available. The dam at Caledonia was constructed as part of a series of dams, locks and canals to facilitate navigation of the Grand River from Lake Erie to Brantford. Mills were built throughout Seneca village, and five mills were built in Caledonia by 1850. Commercial navigation ceased by 1879, but the dam continued to serve the local mills and provided a recreation opportunity. The present dam was built in 1980 downstream of the original structure.