The Lost Villages are ten communities in the Canadian province of Ontario, in the township of South Stormont near Cornwall, which were permanently submerged by the creation of the St. Lawrence Seaway in 1958.

The flooding was expected and planned for. In the weeks and months leading up to the inundation, families and businesses in the affected communities were moved to the new planned communities of Long Sault and Ingleside. These negotiations were controversial, however, as many residents of the communities felt that market value compensation was insufficient since the Seaway plan had already depressed property values in the region.

The town of Iroquois was also flooded, but was relocated 1.5 kilometres north rather than being abandoned. Another community, Morrisburg, was partially inundated as well, but the area to be flooded was moved to higher ground within the same townsite.

At 8 a.m. on July 1, 1958, a large cofferdam was blown up, allowing the flooding to begin. Four days later, all of the former townsites were fully underwater. Parts of the New York shoreline were flooded by the project as well, but no communities were lost on the American side of the river.

A museum in Ault Park near Long Sault is devoted to the Lost Villages, including several historic buildings salvaged from the communities. Other buildings from the villages were moved to the site of Upper Canada Village in Morrisburg. The flooded area also includes Crysler's Farm, where a major battle was fought during the War of 1812. A monument commemorating the battle was also moved from Chrysler's Farm to Upper Canada Village.

In some locations, a few remnants of sidewalks and building foundations can be still be seen under the water, or even on the shoreline when water levels are sufficiently low.

The Lost Villages

• Aultsville
• Dickinson's Landing
• Farran's Point
• Maple Grove
• Mille Roches
• Moulinette
• Santa Cruz
• Sheek's Island
• Wales
• Woodlands

External links

• The Lost Villages Historical Society
• 1951 map of Stormont County

In the Stormont County map, seven of the Lost Villages can be noted along the train tracks near the St. Lawrence River. Sheek's Island is not labelled, but it is the island coloured in yellow near Moulinette and Mille Roches.