A short history
Thunder Bay as a name is young. The places it joined together are not.
The fur trade
In the early 1800s Fort William was the inland meeting place of the North West Company, where canoe brigades from Montreal met traders coming out of the northwest. Fort William Historical Park recreates the post as a living history site.
Two towns become one
For most of their history Fort William and Port Arthur were separate, competing communities a few kilometres apart. In 1970 they were merged, together with neighbouring townships, into the new city of Thunder Bay.
Traces of the rivalry survive in the city's two distinct downtown areas.
Terry Fox
In 1980 Terry Fox's Marathon of Hope, his run across Canada to raise money for cancer research, ended near Thunder Bay when his cancer returned. A monument overlooking Lake Superior on the highway east of the city marks the place.
Many communities
The city has a long-standing Finnish community, visible in its halls and food, and is home to Lakehead University and Confederation College, which draw students from across the northwest.
- OutdoorsThe main outdoor sights near Thunder Bay: Sleeping Giant Provincial Park, Kakabeka Falls, Mount McKay and the Lake Superior shoreline.
- Getting aroundPractical notes on reaching Thunder Bay by road and air, driving the Trans-Canada Highway and planning around winter.
- AboutAn independent guide to Thunder Bay, Ontario.