London tourist information

Prior to European contact in the 17th century, the present site of London was occupied by numerous Algonquin and Iroquois villages; the Algonquin village at the forks of Askunessippi (now called the Thames River) was called Kotequogong.

This location was selected to be the site of the future capital of Upper Canada in 1793 by Lieutenant-Governor John Graves Simcoe. It was Simcoe who named the settlement after London, England and also renamed the river, however, his choice was initially rejected by Guy Carleton, (Governor Dorchester), who made the comment that "access to London would be limited to hot-air balloons".

In 1814 there was a skirmish during the War of 1812 in what is now southwest London at Reservoir Hill, formerly Hungerford Hill.

The village itself was not founded until 1826 and never became the capital envisioned by Simcoe. It was part of the Talbot Settlement, overseen by Colonel Thomas Talbot, who oversaw the surveying of the land and built the first government buildings for the administration of the Western Ontario region. With the rest of Southwestern Ontario which was part of this settlement, it benefited from Talbot's provisions for building and maintaining roads and for assignment of priority for access to main roads to productive land (rather than to Crown and clergy reserves, which received preference in the rest of Ontario).

In 1832 the new settlement suffered an outbreak of cholera. London remained a centre of strong Tory support during the Upper Canada Rebellion of 1837, with a large British garrison stationed there, although there was a brief rebellion led by Dr. Charles Duncombe, who was forced to flee to the U.S.

On April 13, 1845, a large fire destroyed much of London, which was at the time filled with mostly wooden buildings. One of the first casualties of the fire was the town's only fire engine. In the 1860s, sulphur hot springs were discovered at the forks of the Thames River while industrialists were drilling for oil. The springs became a popular destination for wealthy Ontarians, until the turn of the 20th century when a textile factory was built at the site, replacing the spa.

In 1875, London's first iron bridge, the Blackfriars Street Bridge, was constructed. A rare example of a bowstring through truss bridge, it remains open to vehicular traffic today. The bridge was produced by the Wrought Iron Bridge Company of Canton, Ohio; however, a local contractor, Isaac Crouse (1825-1915), was the contractor who undertook the actual erection of the bridge. Isaac Crouse was responsible for portions of the construction of many bridges in London. Although many repairs and modifications have been made to the Blackfriars bridge, the structure remains an historic relic designated under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act, still serving its original purpose.

While other Protestant cities in Ontario (notably Toronto) remained under the sway of the Orange Order well into the 20th Century, London abandoned sectarianism in the 19th Century. In 1877, Catholic and Protestant Irish in London formed the Irish Benevolent Society, which was open to both Catholics and Protestants and forbade the discussion of Irish politics. The influence of the Orange Order (and of Catholic organizations) quickly waned. The Society survives to this day.

On May 24, 1881, the ferry SS Victoria capsized in the Thames River, drowning approximately 200 passengers, the worst disaster in London's history. Two years later, on July 12, 1883, the first of the two most devastating floods in London's history killed 17 people. The second major flood occurred on April 26, 1937, which destroyed more than 1000 homes and caused millions of dollars in damages, particularly in West London. After repeated floods the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority built Fanshawe Dam to control the level of the Thames; it opened in 1952. Financing came from the federal, provincial, and municipal governments. Other natural disasters include a 1984 tornado that led to damage on several streets in the White Oaks area of South London.

London's role as a military centre continued into the 20th Century during the two World Wars, serving as the administrative centre for the Western Ontario district. Today there is still an active Garrison Support Unit in the city at Wolseley Barracks.

London amalgamated many of the surrounding communities in 1961, including Byron and Masonville, adding 60,000 people and more than doubling its size. After this amalgamation, suburban growth accelerated as London grew outward in all directions, creating expansive new subdivisions such as Westmount, Oakridge, Whitehills, Pond Mills and White Oaks.

In 1993 London annexed nearly the entire Town of Westminster, a large, primarily rural municipality directly south of the city. With this massive annexation, London almost doubled in size again, adding several thousand more residents. London now stretches south to the boundary with Elgin County.

The 1993 annexation has made London one of the largest urban municipalities in Ontario. Intense commercial/residential development is presently occurring in the southwest and northwest areas of the city. Opponents of this development cite urban sprawl and transportation concerns as major issues facing London. The City of London is currently the 13th largest city in Canada and the 5th largest city in Ontario.

London's diverse cultural offering boosts its tourism industry. The city is home to many festivals throughout the summer including the London International Children's Festival, London Ribfest which is the second largest rib festival in North America and Sunfest, a World music and culture festival — the second biggest in Canada after Caribana in Toronto.

Musically, London is home to Orchestra London, a professional symphony orchestra, the London Youth Symphony and also the Guy Lombardo Museum. There are several museums and theatrical facilities including Museum London, which is located at the Forks of the Thames. Museum London exhibits art by a wide variety of local, regional and national artists including Paul Peel and Greg Curnoe. London is also home to the Museum of Archaeology, owned by the University of Western Ontario (UWO), with a reconstructed Iroquois village, the McIntosh Gallery which is an art gallery on the UWO campus and The Grand Theatre which is a professional theatre with a secondary stage named the McManus Studio. Other places and events of artistic and cultural interest include:

* Forest City Gallery, an artist-run centre, founded in 1973 * Fanshawe Pioneer Village, a reconstructed 19th century village * Storybook Gardens, an amusement park/zoo for children * Home County Folk Festival, a Folk music festival * London Fringe Festival * London Balloon Festival, displays of hot air balloons * Hawk Rocks the Park an annual Classic Rock music festival held in Harris Park by Radio Station The hawk. * Western Fair, an agricultural fair * Western Fair Raceway, a half-mile (802 m) harness racing track and simulcast centre; despite its name, it operates year-round. The grounds include a coin slot casino, an IMAX theatre and Sports and Agri-complex. * John Labatt Centre, sports-entertainment complex * London Rib-Fest, currently the second largest rib-fest in North America. * Labatt Memorial Park, historic baseball park * TD Waterhouse Stadium, an all-purpose stadium at the University of Western Ontario * Forest City Velodrome, an indoor bicycle track at the former London Ice House * Spriet Children's Theatre, used primarily by The Original Kids theatrical company * The Arts Project, an art gallery, workshop and theatre. * The Royal Canadian Regiment Museum, Wolseley Barracks www.rcrmuseum.ca