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Windsor is the southernmost city in Canada and is at the North West tip of Essex County, Ontario. To the North of Windsor the Detroit river flows South Westward from Lake St. Clair to Lake Erie. Interestingly, Windsor is the only point along Canada's southern border where crossing to the United States involves heading north. Because of its southern location, it is one of the few paces in Canada, apart from the Pacific coast where roses grow. Thus Windsor claims the epithet of Rose City. Most years, the Queen Elizabeth rose gardens in Jackson Park are well worth a visit, however this year they are a sad travesty of their former glory. Weeds run rampant and few roses are evident. For many years FM 212, an Avro Lancaster Bomber, sat on a concrete concrete pedestal in the middle of the rose garden. Over time, the corrosive, industrial air drifting across from Detroit has wrecked havoc with the aluminium skin and the old aircraft has been taken away for restoration. A visit now will be disappointing. The population of the City is growing at over 5% per year. In 2001 there were 200 thousand people in the city and 300 thousand in the metropolitan area. The arms of the city are Windsor's motto is "The river and the land sustain us". Windsor was first settled in the mid-1720s after farms started getting too far from the protection of a fort in Detroit making it the oldest continually inhabited European city in Canada, west of the Quebec border. The area was first named Petite Cote (Little Coast), the site later became known as la Cote de Misere (The Misery Coast) because of the sandy soils near LaSalle. Windsor's French heritage is reflected in many French street names, such as Ouellette, Pelissier, Marentette and Lauzon. There is a significant French speaking minority in Windsor and the surrounding areas. and it has several large parks on the waterfront, extending uninterrupted from the Ambassador Bridge to Hiram Walker's Canadian Club plant. It is also home to the University of Windsor. The campus is just east of the Ambassador Bridge. Windsor is recognized as the automotive capital of Canada, having achieved this status mainly by its proximity to Detroit. Its industries include DaimlerChrysler's minivan assembly plant, several Ford Motor Company engine and casting plants, General Motors' transmission plant and Hiram Walker's Canadian Club plant, along with a myriad of smaller manufacturers that supply the larger plants. Windsor tourist attractions include Casino Windsor, a lively downtown, the Odette Sculpture Park, Ojibway Park, and nearby Point Pelee National Park. Windsor was a major entry point into Canada for refugees from slavery via the Underground Railroad and a major source of liquor during American Prohibition. Windsor is linked to the United States by the Ambassador Bridge, the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel, and a Canadian Pacific Railway tunnel. The Ambassador Bridge is North America's No1 international border crossing in terms of goods volume: 27% of all trade between Canada and the United States crosses the Ambassador Bridge. Labour union membership is very high in Windsor, and both of the city's current federal Members of Parliament are members of the New Democratic Party. Because of Windsor's proximity to the Detroit media market, radio and television broadcasters in Windsor are accorded a special status by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, exempting them from many of the Canadian content requirements most broadcasters in Canada are required to follow. |