Despite their historical value, ports have received little attention from Great Lakes scholars. A new digital public history project by Brock students aims to change that.<\/p>\n
\u201cPort histories provide an incomparable record on settlement, trade and the development of major towns and cities,\u201d says Kimberly Monk, Instructor for HIST 2F00 Great Lakes Maritime and Coastal History. \u201cThe aim of the PortCities<\/a> project is to explore the historic and contemporary importance of Great Lakes ports.\u201d<\/p>\n The first port to be featured on the website is Hamilton, with students researching a wide range of themes connected to the port, including geography, transportation, recreation, environment, health, industry and culture. Monk chose Hamilton as the first port in recognition of Brock University\u2019s partnership agreement<\/a> with HOPA Ports (the Hamilton and Oshawa Port Authority).<\/p>\n Eric Kelusky chose to focus his research on Niagara\u2019s connection to the port of Hamilton by looking at the Lock 3 register of the Second Welland Canal. The register documents every ship passing through the lock between 1854 and 1885, including the ship\u2019s name, the type of ship, the cargo it was carrying, its port of origin and its destination.<\/p>\n \u201cLock 3 was in St. Catharines and located near where the bridge crosses Highway 406 from Glenridge to St. Paul Street and adjacent to part of the Shickluna Shipyard<\/a>,\u201d says Kelusky.\u00a0 \u201cThe register allowed me to develop a very detailed picture of the shipping trade at that time and enabled me to sort through every individual ship that was going to or from the Port of Hamilton in those years.\u201d<\/p>\n