Ontario switched its provincial highways to the metric system, replacing miles with kilometres in a move that left a province bordering five U.S. states by land and water using a distance measure that none of them officially uses even today, though the U.S. congress authorized just that in 1866 — a year before Canada was born.

In Southwestern Ontario, close to Michigan and New York state and with lots of Americans on its roads, confusion reigned — no matter how it was measured.

Help us salute our 150th

Daily online until Canada Day, and with a special supplement to mark the occasion, The London Free Press is saluting the people, places, things and moments that define Southwestern Ontario history under the banner Our150.

Follow the daily salutes at lfpress.com, at facebook.com/lfpress and on Twitter with the hashtag #Our150.

To suggest candidates for the Our150, email lfp.newsdesk@sunmedia.ca and put Our150 in the subject field.

Catch up on #Our150 series on Medium at: bit.ly/Our150swont or our website at: www.lfpress.com/Our150