Founded by William H. Hill and Elihu Edwards in 1892, the Peterborough Canoe Company was managed by James Z.

[2] In 1948 Princess Elizabeth received a 16-foot cedar rib canoe made by this company as a wedding present from the City of Peterborough.

[4] After World War II, the company became less profitable because of competition from makers of the new aluminum and fibreglass canoes, which were easier to mass-produce.

[3][5] The company began to manufacture wooden powerboats and sailboats, as well as related products such as duck decoys, water skis and surf boards.

[10] The original site of the Peterborough Canoe Company boatworks is now Millennium Park, and on Canoe Day each year visitors can see a display of antique boats, some of them having returned to the very spot where they were built generations ago.