Natural and Heritage Features -
Preserved and under Public Ownership:
The 248 acres of the QQ to be rehabilitated is the residual quarried area after the donation of 100 acres of natural and heritage features. Accordingly, these natural and heritage features including the escarpment brow, cement kilns, caves, original 1800's quarry locations, quarry worker village, radio microwave communications tower, Bruce Trail and Upper Canada Trail are all under public ownership and will not be altered under QQRC's reclamation plans. Strung along the length of the Bruce Trail parallel to QQ you will find these historic treasures which offer rich insight into the quarry and its place in Canadian and Niagara's heritage.
One unique feature is a Settlement Village for Quarry Workers which existed as recently as the early 1960's. Some of the original foundations for 14 homes built in 1897 to house quarry workers still exist. Life stories of families who lived in these villages are being sought and plans for their transcription will be stated in the next version of this summary.
Many theories have been offered to describe the purpose of the tripod metal stand. It was a Radio Microwave Communications Tower and has been stated by some as a memorial to the cold war. It was erected by Fleet Industries in the 1950's during the era of fear of Communism for DEW (Distant Early Warning). Fleet was contracted by Siemens Electric to manufacture and test radar equipment ordered by the U.S. government. This tower was used to test and calibrate large parabolic dishes where testing signals were sent from a tower at Line Nine and the Parkway in Queenston. Approximately 100 dish units were produced and calibrated at this location.
Also along the Bruce Trail are remnant Quarried Stones from the mid-1800's. These old moss covered limestone blocks show evidence of the quarrying method using steel wedges, called plugs and feathers, that were pounded into holes bored into the stone to split the rocks into rectangular sections.
In 1882, Isaac Usher & Son opened a cement operation at QQ where they mined into a natural layer of rock cement, creating Caverns and locally known as the "Caves", fired it in limestone kilns, ground it into a powder and barrelled the final product. The remnants of the Limestone Kilns remain along the face of the escarpment. And just a short detour from the main Bruce Trail path you can obtain a close-up view and enter the caves to inspect the flat roof and the petrified mud floor of an ancient shallow sea.
Also of historical significance and under public ownership is the 10.6 km Upper Canada Heritage Trail. This greenway is located on an abandoned rail bed where its route connects St. Davids with the village of Niagara-on-the-Lake. The following is summary of the Upper Canada Heritage Trail:
Location: From the Bruce Trail, just east of St. Davids Golf Club, the greenway heads north-easterly across Regional Road 81 to the corner of North Line and First Concession Road. It then travels north along the abandoned Michigan Central right-of-way, paralleling First Concession Road (Railroad Street). The greenway bends north-westerly at East-West Line, converging with The Promenade. At Charlotte Street it extends north-easterly until John Street, where it heads east and eventually connects with the Niagara River Recreation Trail.
History: From the late 1800s to the mid-1900s this route was owned separately by Michigan Central Railway, New York Central Railroad, and the Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake. As an early railroad it transported passengers and freight to and from ports in Niagara-on- the-Lake, but the line ultimately was abandoned. In 1973, Regional Niagara acquired the railway bed from Niagara- on-the-Lake. The Region dedicated it as a public road in 1977. The present-day trail was established in 1984.
Uses: Most non-motorized uses are permitted: including horseback riding, walking, and hiking. Some cycling is permitted.
Historical / Ecological: The trail's southern terminus is approximately 1.6 km west of the site of the Battle of Queenston Heights (and the monument of Sir Isaac Brock). Also, Laura Secord's homestead is close by. The town of Niagara-on-the-Lake has many historical features. Fort George is at the trail's north end. The trail runs alongside orchards and vineyards, and through wooded areas. It also transverses the shoreline of pre-glacial Lake Iroquois and the base of the Niagara Escarpment.