In 1836 a fur trading post was established by the Hudson's Bay Company at present-day Kenora, and the contstruction of the Canadian Pacific Railway in the 1880s allowed the town to prosper. In 2000 Kenora became a city.
Forestry, tourism and mining are the three largest sectors of the Kenora economy.
Kenora-Rainy River's Member of Provincial Parliament, Howard Hampton, is leader of the Ontario New Democratic Party. The same area's federal Member of Parliament, Robert Nault, is a Liberal.