The cities of Canada are some of the most interesting in the world as they differ in as much as that they do not all speak the same language. However, they all share certain similarities, such as the availability of green space and their cleanliness. Quebec City is the oldest city in North America but is small in comparison to nearby Montreal which is the second largest French speaking city in the world, with a population of 1,700,000 inhabitants. This makes it the second largest city in Canada and its metropolitan area contains just over 4 million people.
There have been native people living the Island of Montreal, on the confluence of the Rivers Ottawa and Lawrence, for around 4000 years. The French set up a fur trading post on the Island in 1611 and in 1639 a Roman Catholic mission was established on the Island. From this point the settlement grew as a trading post until in1832 it was incorporated as a city. Due its location the city continued to grow as business centre. The building of the railways and the construction of the Lachine Canal made the interior more accessible. In this time of industrialization, the city benefited from more produce being transported from Canada’s interior.
By 1860 it had grown into Canada’s largest urban area, but the British decided to give central power to Ottawa due to the Ottawa’s location further away from the United States. Although Montreal has continued to grow it has been challenged by the nation’s capital as the centre of economic activity. Ottawa stands on the south bank of the River Ottawa with a population of 934,000, and was first formed in 1826 as Bytown, before taking on its current title in 1855. As well as being the political centre of the country it also is the most educated city with most of the nation’s best universities being located there.
The country’s high-tech industries are based in the area, as well as the thousands of public service jobs associated with the city’s political importance. This has resulted in a high standard of living for the local people which reflected by the lowest unemployment rates in the country. The city with the highest population in the country is Toronto with a population of 2,700,000 residents. The city is in the province of Ontario and lies on the north shore of Lake Ontario and is only 58 miles from Buffalo in the United States.
The area is on a broad sloping plateau with deep ravines that have been formed by rivers, and the rich soils have produced natural forests. In time the forests have been replaced by farmland and this productive agricultural area has attracted many people to live in the area. The actual settlement has been occupied by the indigenous people for more than 10,000 years and the British created York in 1793. After the Battle of York in 1812 it was badly damaged and renamed Toronto which became the capital of Ontario in 1867.
The city is the most ethnically diverse of all of Canada’s cities. It is the main destination for the majority of new immigrants and although English is the main language there are 160 different languages spoken in the city. It has the most high-rise buildings in the country, and its good transport links with the USA and the rest of Canada has resulted with many industries being attracted to the city. The waterfront of the city has been particularly industrialised and has provided many jobs to the immigrants arriving in the city.
As well as the city providing some of the best sports teams in the country it also has a strong reputation for its music and arts scene. The city is a popular place to live as it is environmentally clean with many recreational activities on its door step. Despite Canada having a low population density over 80% of the population live in major urban areas. The country has some of the most attractive cities in the world and are proving popular to live in.