Casimir Stanislaw Gzowski (1813-1898) (English: Sir Casimir Gzowski), a participant in the November Uprising of 1830, forced to leave his homeland, first found himself in the United States and later in Canada. His work and social commitment earned him the title of "great builder of Canada". It has always been emphasised in various books and scholarly studies that "Gzowski's personal qualities, professional skills and devotion to public affairs in his adopted land made him one of the leading citizens of the Dominion of Canada in the second half of the 19th century".

Eng. Casimir Stanislaw Gzowski moved from the United States to Canada in 1841, first to supervise construction in Kingston, Onatrio, then, at the urging of the then Governor of Canada, Charles Bagot, he took a position as a government engineer in the Canadian service. He coordinated the construction of the so-called Second Welland Canal, which provided the Great Lakes with access to the Atlantic. He was also involved in the design and construction of road and rail networks, bridges, ports, canals and waterways.

In 1847, he resigned from his government job and started a private engineering practice. He became one of the most well-known and respected builders of bridges, roads, railways and ports across Canada. He was a co-founder of the country's central transportation system, one of the founders of the Engineering Institute of Canada, founder of the Canadian Rifle Association, entrepreneur, politician, lawyer, philanthropist, social activist... He organised the first Canadian horse races, founded the first hunting club, and the first shooting club of the Rifle Association of Ontario.

However, one of the Polish engineer's greatest achievements was the construction of the International Railway Bridge in 1873, which connected Canada to the United States. Built in record time (3 years) by Kazimierz Gzowski and David Lewis MacPherson - for the time - it was the pinnacle of technical achievement. Connecting Fort Erie in Ontario and Buffalo in the United States, the structure consists of three parts, is 1113 metres long and is still used today for rail transport.

Gzowski's work also includes the most important sections of the Canadian Grand Trunk Railway, running from Montreal to the American border and from Toronto to Detroit.

In 1879, he was made an Honorary Adjutant of the Queen (ADC). 11 years later he was knighted and given the noble nickname 'sir'.

He served for many years on the Senate of the University of Toronto. One of the founders of Wycliffe College, he served as president of the council for 15 years. Shortly before his death, he was asked by the authorities in Ottawa to become administrator of the province of Ontario during the illness of its governor, Sir George Kirkpatrick.

Gzowski's activities were not limited to his professional duties. As a personal friend and admirer of Canada's first Prime Minister Sir John A. MacDonald, he was closely associated with the Conservative Party, although he never actively engaged in politics. An ardent supporter of imperial unity, he was a member of the Canadian Defence Land Service and the National Militia. He used the militia's services in 1885 in Niagara, where there were only old booths and stalls within the famous waterfall. It was then that the premier of the province of Ontario appointed him chairman of the Niagara Falls Commission, a position he held from 1885 to 1893. The dashing colonel, who knew the area around the falls like few others as he had built a railway bridge here nine years earlier, threw it over the rushing Niagara River and set about creating order. Within just one day, the militia had cleared the riverbank of its "shabbiness". And within a month, dozens of trees, ornamental shrubs and flowers had been planted on the site. The dirty, neglected area by the waterfall was transformed by Kazimierz Gzowski into the Queen Victoria Park. In gratitude for this work, as well as our compatriot's other contributions to the British Crown, the Ontario government, while he was still alive, elevated him to a pedestal. He was commemorated in the same park with a stone bust, and decades later, the Ontario provincial government honoured him with a plaque detailing his life and contributions to Canada.

Today, the heir to the institution The Niagara Park Commission, which our countryman headed, reports that approximately fourteen million tourists visit Niagara every year. Walking along the banks of the Niagara River, they can stop at the commemorative plaque dedicated to park creator Kazimierz Gzowski.

Location: on the walking route to Niagara Falls, Niagara Falls, Ontario.

To the memory of Kazimierz Stanislaw Gzowski, a stately monument was erected in Toronto's Lake Ontario park named Sir Casimir Gzowski Park in 1968 (see: Kazimierz Gzowski - Visionary Engineer). In turn, a huge boulder weighing 11 tonnes with a plaque dedicated to our compatriot was unveiled in Gzowski Park in Kitchener in 1972. The idea to commemorate this distinguished Canadian engineer of Polish descent was introduced by the Secretary of the Professional Engineers of Ontario, Norman Kudrenecky. The plaque unveiling ceremony was attended by representatives of the federal government, the Canadian Polish Congress and local Polish Canadian organisations.

Location: Gzowski Park, between Westmount West and Chopin Streets, Kitchener, Ontario.

Kazimierz Stanislaw Gzowski's achievements and contributions to the province of Ontario were also commemorated in St. Catharines. In 1998, on the 100th anniversary of his death, a stone obelisk with the Pole's achievements engraved on it was unveiled in that city. Over time, after persuasion of the St. Catharines city council by the Polish community, the small parcel of land on which the monument was erected was named Sir Casimir Gzowski Park.

Location: Sir Casimir Gzowski Park, between Niagara, Currie and Garnet Streets, St.Catharines, Ontario.

Gzowski has also had several geographical names dedicated to it in Ontario, officially plotted on maps of Canada, including but not limited to: Gzowski Canton (district), Gzowski Creek (river), Gzowski Lake (lake) and many street names.

This great Pole and Canadian died on 18 August 1898 in Toronto and was buried in a beautiful family mausoleum, located on a hill overlooking a ravine, in St James's Anglican Cemetery.

Location: St James's Cemetery, 635 Parliament Street, Toronto, Ontario.