Rural+Settlement

media type="file" key="Rural Settlement.mp3" The first people in Canada were the aboriginals, also referred to as First Nations. They lived here for thousands of years before anyone else arrived.  The next group to arrive were the Vikings. Due to various reasons they did not remain in Canada. Therefore, there are no descendants from this group of people living in Canada today.  Over the last 500 years, most of Canada's people came from European or Asian countries. Canada's current population is not evenly distributed throughout the land. The people who settled in Canada created distinct settlement patterns.

The Long Lot System
 The first group of Europeans to settle permanently in Canada were the French. The first people to arrive from France and settle here came to Canada in 1604. The first settlers used the water for transportation. Every farmer, called a habitant, needed access to the water, so all the land along the waters edge was divided up.  When the children of these farmers inherited the land (farm), each male child got a section - a sliver of land with access to the water. Transportation along the water was still important, so the land was divided into narrow strips like those illustrated in the picture.  The houses were along the transportation routes. People lived near each other in rows. It was easy to visit, but it could be a long way to the other end of a farmer's field. This system of narrow strips of farm fields is called the Long Lot System. Satellite images of farmland over the St. Lawrence River still show long lots in what used to be New France.

Concession System
When the British (English) arrived, they used different settlement patterns. Surveyors went out first and planned the roads and farms in a grid pattern. These grids included concessions and side roads. These properties tend to be rectangular. The houses were set in the middle of the property to make it easier for the farmer to farm. Though it was shorter to get to the fields, it was longer to visit neighbours. If you live in rural southern Ontario, you probably live within a Concession System.

Question
====1. Find out how far it is between "concessions". What are the lines of roads going perpendicular called? Post your answer in the discussion forum for this page. ====

 Section System
 The prairies were also surveyed before they were developed for farming. The survey system was the section system. The section system created square-shaped properties. On the prairies, these small farm sizes were not enough to grow crops for sale. If they were able to, farmers bought their neighbours properties in a process known as farm consolidation. This process of bringing farms together created bigger farms which could grow enough crops (like wheat) to be sold around the world. Many of these large farms today are agribusinesses. These large farms had houses which were also more isolated from each other than those of the Long Lot System.

Northern Canada
 We can still see these systems in our land today. This only applies to the more southern sections of the country. The north is much different, with settlements and fields being much more patchy as you go north, eventually disappearing altogether. The realities of life are very different there. Click on the link "Northern Living" below to find out more (after you do the questions!).

Question
<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">2. Based on what you've learned here, why do you think Brantford would have been a great place to settle? Is this reason still an important reason to live here today? Why or why not?

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