This was the first day of the Paint the Town Kingston in association with the International Plein Air Painters World Wide Paint Out. The weather was exceptional with a ridge of high pressure approaching in the wake of the cold front.
I went to the point at the southeast corner of the Old Woolen Mill Property. There was still a chilly northwest wind and this location offered some shelter. Duck families paddled by looking for hand-outs. They were used to being fed.
The view to the southeast toward the La Salle Causeway was interesting but essentially this is a skyscape. I was using paint that had been on the palette for three weeks so it had a lot of texture. From a cable ferry in the early 1800's, to the Penny Bridge in 1826, to the La Salle Causeway (built in 1916/17), Kingstonians have always been travelling between downtown Kingston and the former Pittsburg Township.
The first attempt at transportation across the river was a cable-operated scow type of ferry that began operating in 1786. Two rowboats were often available for use as well. In 1826 the Cataraqui Bridge Company was formed to build a wooden bridge "1800 feet long by 25 feet wide and built on stone piers". The Cataraqui Bridge was opened in 1829. Tolls were collected from a toll booth on the west end of the bridge, and since pedestrians were charged a penny, the bridge was popularly known as the "Penny Bridge". A draw bridge allowed larger vessels to pass through. The draw bridge was eventually replaced by an easier-to-operate swing bridge.
In 1917, the Penny Bridge was replaced by the causeway which included three bridges: two bridges at each end of the causeway, and the centre lift bridge. Of these, only the original centre lift bridge remains; the steel bridges at the east and west ends of the causeway were replaced with concrete bridges in 1962 and 1993 respectively.
The air mass was unstable and I could see towering cumulus develop to the northwest just as I was finishing this view to the south east.
I went to the point at the southeast corner of the Old Woolen Mill Property. There was still a chilly northwest wind and this location offered some shelter. Duck families paddled by looking for hand-outs. They were used to being fed.
The first attempt at transportation across the river was a cable-operated scow type of ferry that began operating in 1786. Two rowboats were often available for use as well. In 1826 the Cataraqui Bridge Company was formed to build a wooden bridge "1800 feet long by 25 feet wide and built on stone piers". The Cataraqui Bridge was opened in 1829. Tolls were collected from a toll booth on the west end of the bridge, and since pedestrians were charged a penny, the bridge was popularly known as the "Penny Bridge". A draw bridge allowed larger vessels to pass through. The draw bridge was eventually replaced by an easier-to-operate swing bridge.
In 1917, the Penny Bridge was replaced by the causeway which included three bridges: two bridges at each end of the causeway, and the centre lift bridge. Of these, only the original centre lift bridge remains; the steel bridges at the east and west ends of the causeway were replaced with concrete bridges in 1962 and 1993 respectively.
The air mass was unstable and I could see towering cumulus develop to the northwest just as I was finishing this view to the south east.
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