Prescott, Ontario

Prescott
—  Town  —
Prescott
Coordinates: 44°43′N 75°31′W
Country	Canada
Province	Ontario
County	Leeds and Grenville
Settled	1787
Government
• Mayor	Brett Todd
• Federal riding	Leeds—Grenville
• Prov. riding	Leeds—Grenville
Area
• Land	4.95 km2 (1.91 sq mi)
Population (2011)
• Total	4,284
• Density	865.3/km2 (2,241/sq mi)
Time zone	EST (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
Postal code	K0E
Area code(s)	613
Website	www.prescott.ca

Prescott is a town of approximately 4,280 people on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River in Leeds and Grenville United Counties, Ontario, Canada. The Ogdensburg-Prescott International Bridge, 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) east of Prescott at Johnstown, connects it with Ogdensburg, New York. The town was founded in the early 19th century by Edward Jessup, a Loyalist soldier during the American Revolution.

History

The Battle of the Windmill was a battle fought nearby in 1838.

Prescott is the home of Fort Wellington, National Historic Park, which is a tourist destination. The Battle of the Thousand Islands was fought near the present location of the city in August 1760. During the War of 1812, troops stationed at Fort Wellington crossed the frozen river and burned Ogdensburg in retaliation for an American raid further up the river; the American citizens of Ogdensburg, who were profiting by supplying the British army with food and other necessities, drove out their own American military detachment after the raid so that they could continue doing business with the British army in Prescott.

Prescott was originally an important transshipment point for cargo moving from the Great Lakes eastwards towards Montreal, Quebec and the Atlantic Ocean, but the construction of the Saint Lawrence Seaway ended the forwarding trade. Prescott is on the mainline of the Canadian National Railway connecting Toronto to Montreal, and is near the junction of the east-west Highway 401 and Highway 416 north to Ottawa.

In 1991, Prescott was the focus of a child sexual abuse scandal, as local residents Billy Elliott, his parents and several others were revealed as chronic abusers.

Prescott is home to the Sandra S. Lawn Harbour, which attracts boaters from as far east as Montreal serving as a picturesque gateway to the Thousand Islands. During the summer months, Prescott hosts the St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival, a professional theatrical production, at the Harbour's public amphitheater.

Demographics

Population trend:

• Population in 2011: 4284
• Population in 2006: 4180
• Population in 2001: 4228
• Population in 1996: 4480
• Population in 1991: 4512

Mother tongue:

• English as first language: 91 %
• French as first language: 4 %
• English and French as first language: 0 %
• Other as first language: 5 %

Prescott waterfront and marina

Residents of note

• Leo Boivin, hockey hall of famer
• Jean Casselman Wadds, politician

External links

• Town of Prescott
• Gallery of Free, (Public Domain), Photos from Prescott, Ontario

Local Media

• Downtown Prescott Business's
• The Prescott Journal
• BrockNews.ca