Nature's Past Episode 045: The St. Lawrence Seaway and Power Project

It cuts through the centre of the continent linking all of the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean. Long the ambition of governments, industry, and continentalist visionaries, the St. Lawrence Seaway fulfilled the mid-century modernist dream of transforming the Great Lake cities of North America into international seaports.

Between 1954 and 1959, Canada and the United States jointly constructed a series of canals and locks to create a single navigable system from the port at Montreal through the Great Lakes. Building upon previous navigational improvements, including the various Welland Canals, the St. Lawrence Seaway opened for business in 1959. It was both an ecological and a diplomatic breakthrough.

The history of the seaway is one of tremendous Earth-moving high modernism and complicated international diplomacy. And Daniel Macfarlane’s new book, Negotiating a River: Canada, the US, and the Creation of the St. Lawrence Seaway, takes readers through the fascinating environmental and diplomatic history of the St. Lawrence Seaway.

On this episode of the podcast, we speak with Daniel Macfarlane about his new book on the history of the St. Lawrence seaway and power project.