Greater Sudbury (2011 census population 160,274) is a city in Ontario, Canada, which was founded following the discovery of nickel ore by Tom Flanagan, a Canadian Pacific Railway blacksmith in 1883, when the transcontinental railway was near completion. Greater Sudbury was formed in 2001 by merging the cities and towns of the former Regional Municipality of Sudbury with several previously unincorporated geographic townships. It is the largest city in Northern Ontario by population and the 24th largest metropolitan area in Canada. By land area, it is the largest city in Ontario and the seventh largest municipality by area in Canada. Sudbury, as it is commonly known, is administratively separate and thus not part of any district, county, or regional municipality.