Hillsborough River (Prince Edward Island)

The Hillsborough River, also known as the East River, is a Canadian river in northeastern Queens County, Prince Edward Island.

From its source near the farming hamlet of Head of Hillsborough in the northeastern part of the county, the river flows southwesterly, becoming a tidal estuary at Mount Stewart which gradually widens from several dozen metres to approximately 1 km at its discharge point in Charlottetown Harbour. The river's total meander length is approximately 45 km, with 12 km being an estuary.

The river was the 27th in Canada and the first in Prince Edward Island to be nominated to the Canadian Heritage Rivers System. The river's estuary fronts heritage agricultural communities, Acadian dykes, historic shipyards, and the Charlottetown waterfront (where the Fathers of Confederation landed). The river's freshwater portion flows through pristine forests and farming areas, as well as extensive wetlands. The river during its freshwater run resembles a typical stream in other Canadian provinces.

The river was bridged by the Prince Edward Island Railway between Charlottetown and Southport on the massive Hillsborough River Bridge, one of the longest railway bridges in eastern Canada, as well as one of the longest narrow gauge railway bridges in the world, as well as on a much shorter crossing in Mount Stewart.

The modern highway bridge was constructed adjacent to the railway bridge between Charlottetown and Southport in 1962 and was modernized and expanded in 1995. Additional highway bridges cross the river at Mount Stewart and at several points upstream from Mount Stewart.

The river hosts a variety of recreational activities as well as quahog and oyster fisheries.

References

* [http://www.hra.mountstewartpei.ca/ Hillsborough River Association]