heather asquith
holland marsh In the early 1900’s, agricultural and drainage specialists designed the land reclamation scheme. The plan divided the marsh into five-acre plots for market gardening, with the intent to attract farming families from Holland and Belgium, skilled in the practices of farming reclaimed land. With a proposed density of approximately 1500 families, the initial intent by planners was a farming ‘company town’. The intent was that the farms would feed Toronto and other neighbouring town centres. The engineering is extensive. A perimeter canal has been dredged around the marsh’s natural edge. A dam has been constructed at the north end where the canals meet the Upper Holland River’s natural river course. This prevents flooding during high water levels in Lake Simcoe. Water from the farmlands inside the perimeter canals is pumped into the contained river creating a natural reservoir. The excess drainage water is pumped from the river over the dam in order maintain an appropriate water table. The linear crop plots create a tapestry of colour from aerial view. What becomes evident from above is an organised ‘grid’ contained within the topographic contour that defines the original marsh perimeter.
immigration agriculture reclamation land division infrastructure
land | systems of measurement by heather asquith
Approximately one hour north of the city of Toronto lies the Holland Marsh. Situated in the valley of the Holland River, this naturally occurring marsh has been drained of its surface water to uncover fertile farmland below. Feats of engineering keep the land just above the water table by an intricate set of ditches, canals and dykes. What is left after the water is drained away is some of the most productive farmland in southern Ontario. The dark, rich soil has become an intensive agricultural area growing crops such as onions, carrots, celery, lettuce and other vegetables. This example of rural urbanism emerged from a civil engineering scheme. Benefits to this scheme were twofold: draining the marsh would produce some lucrative farmland and it would also solve a traffic problem. The marsh presented a transportation barrier between neighbouring municipalities, but also an obstruction to a north/south route to northern Ontario on the west side of Lake Simcoe. Drainage of the marsh made way for what is now highway 400, a major transportation route.
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