Thousand Islands

Thousand Islands, group of more than 1,000 small islands in east central North America, in the St. Lawrence River just east of Lake Ontario. Most are part of southeastern Ontario and the rest are part of northern New York; many are privately owned. It has been estimated that there are as many as 1,700 islands, but an accurate count is difficult because of the large number of tiny islets. The largest is Wolfe Island (127 sq km/49 sq mi) in Ontario. The islands have been popular summer resorts since the mid-1800s. All or part of 21 islands and about 90 smaller islets are included in Canada's St. Lawrence Islands National Park, established in 1914.