Windsor Hotels

Windsor is the southernmost city in Canada and lies in Southwestern Ontario at the western end of the heavily populated Quebec City-Windsor Corridor. It is within Essex County, although administratively separated from the county government. Windsor is located south of Detroit, is separated from that city by the Detroit River, and has views of the Detroit skyline. Windsor is known as The City of Roses and residents are known as Windsorites.
Prior to European exploration and settlement, the Windsor area was inhabited by the First Nations and Native American people. Windsor was first settled in 1749 as a French agricultural settlement, making it the oldest continually inhabited settlement in Canada west of Montreal. The area was first named Petite Côte ("Little Coast" - as opposed to the longer coastline on the Detroit side of the river), and later became known as La Côte de Misere ("Poverty Coast") because of the sandy soils near LaSalle. Windsor's French heritage is reflected in many French street names such as Ouellette, Pelissier, Francois, Pierre, Langlois, Marentette, and Lauzon. There is a significant French speaking minority in Windsor and the surrounding area, particularly in the Lakeshore, Tecumseh and LaSalle areas. The current street system of Windsor (a grid with elongated blocks) reflects the French method of agricultural land division where the farms were long and narrow, fronting along the river. Today, the north-south street name often indicates the name of the family that at one time farmed the land. The street system of outlying areas is consistent with the British system for granting land concessions.