10 Celebrities Who Love Northern Ontario

When big names like Justin Bieber, Victoria Beckham, and Tom Hanks want to reconnect with nature and unwind, they’ve been known to head to Muskoka, Ontario, which has earned the nickname “the Hamptons of the North” for its celebrity draw. 

But Hollywood stars, sitting presidents, royalty and musicians of yesteryear preferred to head further north to find their solitude, see awe-inspiring landscapes, escape from day-to-day pressures, reflect and restore.

From Marilyn Monroe to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, here are some of the public figures who fell in love with Northern Ontario.

1. Marilyn Monroe

Around the 1930s, the Canadian Pacific Railway opened French River Bungalow Camp, an exclusive resort in the north accessible only by railcar.

It became a beloved getaway for celebrities like Marilyn Monroe, who fell in love with the privacy the rustic area provided.

In his book Marilyn at French River and other ghostly sightings, author Terry Boyle says Monroe was so enamored by the cabin she stayed in there, that her ghost took up long-term residence after her death.

2. Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Elizabeth II made numerous visits to Northern Ontario during her reign, making a big impression on locals.

She visited Kapuskasing in 1951 while still a princess, and told locals she was “very pleased” to meet them and commended them for making their homes up north. “I know that many of you came here first as pioneers in a new land, and learned at first hand of the hardships of frontier life,” she said, according to the Timmins Daily Press.

On future trips she toured Canadore College in North Bay, Sault Ste. Marie, Thunder Bay, Frood Mine in Sudbury, and attended the grand opening of Science North in 1984.

3. Glenn Gould

The famous pianist’s love of Northern Ontario was well documented in the 1969 CBC documentary Variations on Glenn Gould.

In it, he spoke highly of his visits to the small Algoma Country town of Wawa, which he described as “therapy.”

He was known to stay at the Wawa Motor Inn and in his first two-week visit, he said he did “the best writing” of his “entire life.”

4. Franklin D. Roosevelt

Former president Franklin D. Roosevelt made a secret wartime visit to Northeastern Ontario to do some fishing and regroup.

In August 1943, badly in need of some R&R, Roosevelt quietly escaped to Birch Island, near Manitoulin Island, flanked by security.

“With all the boats following behind us, it was like a mother hen and all her chicks behind...And above us the airplanes - just circling all the time, and contacting us through walkie-talkies, asking what kind of fish we caught and how big…The President was having the greatest time,” one of his fishing guides, Ernie St. Pierre, wrote in his book, Memoirs of McGregor Bay.

5. Jimmy Stewart

Fresh off the heels of filming his Oscar-winning role in “The Philadelphia Story,” Jimmy Stewart and his family escaped to Temagami for a two-week fishing trip and restorative holiday in 1940.

While they were up north, Stewart and his wife got a private tour of Quintland, the Dionne Quintuplet attraction, according to the Callander municipal website.

6. Clark Gable

The “King of Hollywood” Clark Gable was said to be a guest at Muskoka’s elite Bigwin Island, but also ventured further north.

Like Monroe, Gable stayed at the luxe French River Bungalow Cabins, according to CTV News, and was also said to have visited Quintland and Dr. Allan Roy Dafoe, who achieved celebrity status for delivering the quintuplets.

7. Roy Thomson

Media mogul Roy Thomson built the foundation for his empire in Northern Ontario.

He got a gig in the region selling radio receivers, but a lack of northern radio stations made it a tough sell. So he started his own station, CFCH, in North Bay in 1931, followed by CKGB in Timmins and CJKL in Kirkland Lake.

In 1934, he purchased Timmins Daily Press, and housed the Thomson Enterprises headquarters in Timmins at Cedar Street and Second Avenue. The building had offices, a radio station, presses, and an apartment for Thomson.

8. Thomas Edison

Drawn by the allure of nickel, American inventor Thomas Edison arrived in Sudbury in the early 1900s.

He staked a claim in Falconbridge Township, just northeast of Sudbury, with hopes of using the mineral to revolutionize early automobile batteries.

After striking out for several years, Edison shut down operations, but mementos of his time in Sudbury can be seen throughout the city, including his 1902 lease agreement with the Commissioner of Crown Land (at the main public library) and his shovel (at Dynamic Earth).

9. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle made several trips through the north in the early 1900s, and was particularly taken with the twin cities of Port Arthur and Fort William (now Thunder Bay).

The Sherlock Holmes author declared he could see them becoming “a Canadian Chicago” and possibly “the greatest city in the country,” he wrote in his “Western Wanderings” series of articles, later reprinted in his Memories and Adventures autobiography.

“If I were a rich man and wished to become richer, I should assuredly buy land in the Twin Cities,” he wrote. He apparently followed through, owning a property at 1016 Victoria Ave. E. for a time, where Holland Bakery now stands.

10. Stompin’ Tom Connors

After years travelling Canada, national icon Stompin’ Tom Connors wound up in Timmins, where he credited the Maple Leaf Hotel with launching his career.

An 18-month residency there gave Connors plenty of time to perfect his craft, and touring around the region gave him the inspiration for songs like “Sudbury Saturday Night,” “Little Wawa,” and “Fire in the Mine.”

A life-sized bronze statue of Connors by Sudbury-based sculptor Tyler Fauvelle now stands at the Sudbury Community Arena, memorializing the unofficial ambassador of the north.

Ready to Plan Your Own Retreat in Northern Ontario? 

Plan a staycation in a lodge, take an opulent boating getaway, or plan a unique fishing adventure.

Plan your next family vacation now

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