<

Situated where Lake Ontario flows into the St. Lawrence River, Carleton Island's position made it critical to military strategy, accounting for its long history. British Fort Haldiman rose on a bluff behind the property, that historic site is now a property of the Thousand Islands
Land Trust. During the nineteenth century, sport fishing attracted visitors and summer residents. The waters around nearby village of
Cape Vincent became known for Black Bass. Carleton Island, large enough to support farms, became site of several clubs of seasonal
fishermen, then of private summer cottages. Today some 31 private homes are scattered along the shores, most of them used during the summer months, but increasingly they are being winterized to allow visits at all seasons.

History of Carleton Island and Cape Vincent

Aerial photographs, shared here by Ian Coristine, appear in one of his Thousand Islands books, "Water, Wind and Sky," available on his web site: www.1000IslandsPhotoArt.com ____________________Hear Ian Coristine's interview on public radio.

The St. Lawrence River, about eight miles wide here, flows towards the distant eastern horizon and the Atlantic Ocean. Carleton Villa is prominent on the closer point. The house is oriented westward to Lake Ontario.
The evening sun picks out Carleton Villa on Government Point, defined by North and South Bays. Shadows reveal the ramparts of Ft. Haldiman, above North Bay, where the wreck of a historic naval vessel still remains, often visited by scuba divers. The property
includes a beach on North Bay. The shore at the head of the island, in front of the Villa, is a remarkable table of flat bedrock.
South Bay, behind the Villa, affords a protected harbor. Access to the Villa is by docking on South Bay.

This is the view from directly in front of the Villa. On the right in the distance is Wolfe Island Canada, directly center looks west out to Lake Ontario, on the left is mainland, USA.

Carleton Island's interior, once cultivated farm fields, now is open meadow and woods, as seen above. Paths and tracks connect shoreline residents who use all-terrain vehicles as well as boats to communicate.

Click here for zoomable Google Map of Carleton Island

Click here to zoom in on above tax map

 

Click for zoomable version of tax map