Cockburn Island (Ontario)

Template: Infobox Island / Maintenance / height missing

Cockburn Iceland is an island in Lake Huron in the Canadian province of Ontario. It belongs to the Manitoulin District. It is separated from the Mississagi Strait from the western tip of Manitoulin Iceland. To the west lies the belonging to Michigan Drummond Iceland. In between is the False Detour Channel.

Most of the island belongs to the Township Cockburn Iceland, which has a permanent population of 10. It involves the community (incorporated municipality ) in Canada with the least population. The municipal authorities are in Thessalon on mainland Ontario, located in the Algoma District.

In summer the population grows to about 200, since on the island are a number of cottages.

History

The island was named after Francis Cockburn - a Deputy Quartermaster of Upper and Lower Canada in the early 19th century.

The island was home to several hundred people in the past. In Tolsmaville (45 ° 57 ' 29 " N, 83 ° 19' 5" W45.958055555556 - 83.318055555556 ), also known as Port Cockburn, was mainly fished in Ricketts Harbour timber industry was operated.

Tolsmaville is still today the center of the island. The site serves as a hub for island tourism in the summer.

A small part of the island belongs to the Cockburn Iceland 19 Indian Reservation, which has no permanent settlement. The area belongs to the cultural heritage of a First Nation, whose main settlement is located on the adjacent Manitoulin Island.

In addition to the summer tourism, forestry is one of the economic factors of the island.

Traffic

There is neither a bridge or a boat to the neighboring islands of Manitoulin and Drummond Iceland, nor to the mainland. The municipality operates a pier for private boats and seaplanes near Tolsmaville. In addition, there is west of Tolsmaville a small airfield.

Earlier, when the permanent island population was even greater, there was a ferry service by the MS Norgoma. The island population decreased rapidly, as this ferry in the late 1960s reduced its operation and only once frequented weekly by Meldrum Bay from.