Wild Northerner Magazine Spring 2018 | Page 40

History of Ontario Parks

Walk through history of Ontario Parks

BY WILD NORTHERNER STAFF

For 125 years, Ontario's provincial parks have provided places for outdoor recreation, education, and connection with nature.

Algonquin Provincial Park, established in 1893, was Ontario's first provincial park and is one of Canada's oldest. Today, Ontario's diverse system of parks protects an area greater than Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island combined. 125 years later our mandate is as strong as ever.

1893 - Algonquin created as a public park and forest reservation, fish and game preserve, health resort and pleasure ground.

1954 - Ontario has eight provincial parks. A Division of Parks is created within the Department of Lands and Forests. The new division embarks on a provincial expansion program to meet the needs of a post-war recreation boom.

1960 - There are now 45 provincial parks in Ontario, hosting over 5 million visits annually.

1967 - Ontario introduces a policy that divides parks into classes based on permitted activities. These include recreation, cultural heritage, wilderness, and more.

1978 - Ontario introduces the Ontario Provincial Parks Planning and Management Policies, the first park system planning and policy framework of its kind in Canada.

1983 - A province-wide strategic land use planning exercise leads to the creation of 155 new parks.