Hay River, Northwest Territories
| Hay River Xatl'o Dehe |
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| — Town — | |
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| Motto: Hub of the North | |
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 Hay River
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| Coordinates: 60°49′59″N 115°46′40″W / 60.83306°N 115.77778°WCoordinates: 60°49′59″N 115°46′40″W / 60.83306°N 115.77778°W | |
| Country | Canada |
| Territory | Northwest Territories |
| Region | South Slave Region |
| Constituency | Hay River North Hay River South |
| Census division | Fort Smith Region, Northwest Territories |
| Incorporated (town) | 16 June 1964 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Kelly Schofield[1] |
| • Town Manager | Michael Richardson |
| • MLA | Robert Bouchard (North) |
| • MLA | Jane Groenewegen (South) |
| Area | |
| • Land | 132.59 km2 (51.2 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 165 m (541 ft) |
| Population | |
| • Total | 3,648 |
| • Density | 27.5/km2 (71.2/sq mi) |
| Time zone | Mountain (MST) (UTC−7) |
| • Summer (DST) | MDT (UTC−6) |
| Canadian Postal code | X0E 0R0 - 0R9/1G1 - 1G5 |
| Area code(s) | 867 |
| Telephone exchange | 874/5 |
| Prices | |
| - Living cost | 127.5A |
| - Food price index | 113.4B |
| Website | www.hayriver.com |
| Sources: Community Governance Data List[2] 2006 Canada Census,[3] Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre,[4] Canada Flight Supplement[5] ^A 2005 figure based on Edmonton = 100[6] ^B 2004 figure based on Yellowknife = 100[6] |
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Hay River (Xátå’odehchee),[7] known as "the Hub of the North,"[8] is a town in the Northwest Territories, Canada, located on the south shore of Great Slave Lake, at the mouth of the Hay River. The town is separated into two sections, a new town 60°48′45″N 115°47′20″W / 60.8125°N 115.78889°W and an old town 60°51′13″N 115°44′19″W / 60.85361°N 115.73861°W with the Hay River/Merlyn Carter Airport between them. The town is in the South Slave Region, and along with Fort Smith is one of the two regional centres.[9]
Contents |
[edit] History
The area has been in use by First Nations, known as the Long Spear people, as far back as 7000 BC.[10]
According to the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories the first buildings were those of the Hudson's Bay Company in 1868 followed by a Roman Catholic Mission in 1869 and an Anglican Mission in 1894.[10]
However, according to the history of the area provided by the town, the first permanent settlement in the area of Hay River was established in what is now the Katl'odeeche First Nation. This was sometime between 1892-93. This first settlement was established by Chief Chiatlo and a group of people by the building of log cabins and bringing dairy cows. This was followed in 1893 by the Anglican Mission, at the request of Chief Chiatlo in 1893 with the Roman Catholic Mission and the Hudson's Bay Company arriving later.[8]
A school, health centre and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police followed, and as part of the Canol Road project the United States Army Corps of Engineers built a runway on Vale Island. In the late 1940s the Government of Canada built a gravel road, now the Mackenzie Highway, from Grimshaw, Alberta to Hay River making it the first community in the NWT to be linked with southern Canada.[8]
In 1959, the Northern Transportation Company Limited located their main base in Hay River and over the years developed the facilities. Today the base is the major staging point for the annual sealift along the Mackenzie River, via Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk and the communities of the Arctic Ocean, as far east as Taloyoak, Nunavut and west to Barrow, Alaska.[8][11]
By 1964, as part of the Pine Point Mine development, the Mackenzie Northern Railway was constructed. The railway, through Canadian National Railway in Edmonton, makes Hay River the northernmost point in Canada, and all of North America, which is connected to the continental railway system.[8][11] The Alaska Railroad is located farther north but is orphaned from the network.
In 1978, Hay River along with, the now abandoned, Pine Point hosted the fifth Arctic Winter Games.
[edit] Services
The community has a full hospital, the H.H. Williams Memorial Hospital, a woman's shelter/transition house, a dental clinic and an ambulance service.[12][13] The RCMP detachment has eight members and the South Mackenzie Correctional Centre is located here.[12] There are two grocery stores in Hay River, including the Northern Store, branches of both the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and the Royal Bank of Canada and both True Value and Home Hardware.[12][13] There is also a small Museum detailing the history of Hay River and the Hudson's Bay Company in Old Town.
Airlines servicing Hay River include the locally based Buffalo Airways, who provide scheduled flights to Yellowknife as well as charter services and a courier service throughout the north.[14][15] First Air provides scheduled services to Yellowknife with connections elsewhere.[16] Other companies offering charter services in Hay River include Landa Air, Carter Air Services (fixed-wing aircraft), Denendeh Helicopters and Remote Helicopters.[17]
Religious services include a Catholic church, an Anglican/Grace United church, a Baptist church, a Pentecostal church, and a Community Fellowship within New Town. There is also a Jehovah's Witness Kingdom Hall along the highway coming into town. On the Katl'odeeche First Nations Reserve there are a small Catholic church, and a larger Pentecostal church. There is also an Anglican church that was destroyed in the 2008 Hay River ice breakup. The religious diversity in Hay River exceeds the outward appearance given by these services.
[edit] Education
The town is part of the South Slave Divisional Education Council and supports four schools, Harry Camsell School, Princess Alexandra Middle School, Ecole Boreal Francophone School and Diamond Jenness Secondary School.[18] Harry Camsell is for primary school and serves students from kindergarten to Grade 3.[19] Princess Alexandra, named for and opened by Princess Alexandra in 1967,[20] is a middle school and serves Grade 4 to Grade 7.,[21] Ecole Boreale is a francophone school that was opened in 2005 and works with students of all grades. Diamond Jenness, named for scientist and anthropologist Diamond Jenness and opened in 1973,[22] is the high school and serves Grade 8 to Grade 12.[23] The town also supports a Community Learning Centre and a Career Centre.[12]
[edit] Media and communications
CKHR-FM 107.3 is a community radio station in Hay River, and the only station in Hay River to maintain local studios; it is owned and operated by the Hay River Community Service Society. Other radio stations in Hay River are repeaters of stations based in Yellowknife: CBDJ-FM (93.7), broadcasting CBC Radio One from CFYK; CJCD-FM-1 (100.1), rebroadcasting CJCD-FM; and CHRR-FM (101.9) a community radio station aimed at First Nations people, rebroadcasting CKLB-FM.[17]
The Hay River Community Service Society also controls television broadcasting and it is paid for through property taxes. Channels include CIHC-TV channel 5, a community channel; CH4435 channel 8, rebroadcasting Radio-Canada through CBFT Montreal; and CH4160 channel 12, repeating the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network; among other channels. CBC-owned CBEBT-1 channel 7 is the local CBC North television channel, repeating CFYK-TV Yellowknife.
The Hub is an independent, weekly newspaper published by Chris Brodeur. The editor is Patrick Teskey. Besides Hay River, the paper is available in Yellowknife, Enterprise, Fort Smith, Inuvik, Fort Providence, Fort Resolution and Grande Prairie.[24]
Internet services are provided by SSI Micro and Bell Sympatico, land based telephone by Northwestel and cell phones by NMI Mobility.[13][17]
[edit] Climate
Hay River has a subarctic climate with summer lasting for about three months. Although winter temperatures are usually below freezing, every month of the year has seen temperatures above 10˚C (50˚F). Rainfall, which can occur throughout the year, averages 203.1 mm (8.0 in) and snowfall 125 cm (49.2 in). From December to January on average there are 58.7 days when the wind chill is below −30, which indicates that frostbite may occur within 10 – 30 minutes.[25][26]
| Climate data for Hay River/Merlyn Carter Airport | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 10.7 (51.3) |
13.9 (57.0) |
15.6 (60.1) |
24.1 (75.4) |
33.3 (91.9) |
34.0 (93.2) |
35.0 (95.0) |
36.7 (98.1) |
30.0 (86.0) |
25.0 (77.0) |
15.0 (59.0) |
12.2 (54.0) |
36.7 (98.1) |
| Average high °C (°F) | −18.4 (−1.1) |
−14.7 (5.5) |
−8.2 (17.2) |
3.0 (37.4) |
11.6 (52.9) |
18.0 (64.4) |
21.1 (70.0) |
19.6 (67.3) |
13.2 (55.8) |
4.1 (39.4) |
−7.9 (17.8) |
−15.8 (3.6) |
2.1 (35.8) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −23.1 (−9.6) |
−20.2 (−4.4) |
−14.4 (6.1) |
−2.7 (27.1) |
6.1 (43.0) |
12.6 (54.7) |
15.9 (60.6) |
14.5 (58.1) |
8.5 (47.3) |
0.4 (32.7) |
−11.9 (10.6) |
−20.3 (−4.5) |
−2.9 (26.8) |
| Average low °C (°F) | −27.6 (−17.7) |
−25.6 (−14.1) |
−20.6 (−5.1) |
−8.4 (16.9) |
0.7 (33.3) |
7.0 (44.6) |
10.6 (51.1) |
9.3 (48.7) |
3.8 (38.8) |
−3.3 (26.1) |
−15.9 (3.4) |
−24.8 (−12.6) |
−7.9 (17.8) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −47.8 (−54.0) |
−48.3 (−54.9) |
−44.4 (−47.9) |
−38.9 (−38.0) |
−18.9 (−2.0) |
−5.6 (21.9) |
1.0 (33.8) |
−1.1 (30.0) |
−11.7 (10.9) |
−24.3 (−11.7) |
−40.8 (−41.4) |
−47.2 (−53.0) |
−48.3 (−54.9) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 16.4 (0.646) |
14.6 (0.575) |
13.7 (0.539) |
12.2 (0.48) |
24.8 (0.976) |
32.8 (1.291) |
41.9 (1.65) |
50.5 (1.988) |
39.6 (1.559) |
33.8 (1.331) |
24.2 (0.953) |
16.0 (0.63) |
320.4 (12.614) |
| Source: Environment Canada[27] | |||||||||||||
[edit] Demographics
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | %± | |
| 1996 | 3,793 |
|
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| 1997 | 3,781 | -0.3% | |
| 1998 | 3,769 | -0.3% | |
| 1999 | 3,782 | 0.3% | |
| 2000 | 3,756 | -0.7% | |
| 2001 | 3,725 | -0.8% | |
| 2002 | 3,678 | -1.3% | |
| 2003 | 3,682 | 0.1% | |
| 2004 | 3,830 | 4.0% | |
| 2005 | 3,844 | 0.4% | |
| 2006 | 3,777 | -1.7% | |
| 2007 | 3,844 | 1.8% | |
| 2008 | 3,787 | -1.5% | |
| 2009 | 3,724 | -1.7% | |
| Sources: NWT Bureau of Statistics[6] | |||
Hay River has a population of 3,648, and the nearby Hay River Reserve (Katl'odeeche First Nation) another 309,[28] according to the 2006 Census.[3] The aboriginal population in Hay River is 1,600, up from 1,565 at the 2001 Census, and is made up of First Nations, Métis people and Inuit.[29] The main languages in the town are South Slavey, Chipewyan, Michif and English.[10] In 2009 the Government of the Northwest Territories reported that the population was 3,724 with an average yearly growth rate of -0.1 from 1996.[6]
[edit] Notable people
- Paul Delorey, professional curler and former MLA and speaker in the Northwest Territories Legislature.
- Brendan Green, Canadian Team Biathlete, that participated in the 2010 Winter Olympics in the Men's 4x7.5 km Relay.
- Jane Groenewegen, current member of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories from Hay River South
- Joe McBryan (Buffalo Joe), president and owner of Buffalo Airways featured on Ice Pilots NWT
- Mikey McBryan, Buffalo Airways General Manager and featured on Ice Pilots NWT
- Rob McVicar, goaltender for the Vancouver Canucks
- John Pollard, member of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories from 1987 until 1995
- Geoff Sanderson, former NHL player
- Donald Morton Stewart, former mayor and speaker of the Northwest Territories Legislature
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Hay River elects new mayor and council
- ^ Community Governance Data List
- ^ a b 2006 Canada Census, Hay River
- ^ Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre - official names
- ^ Canada Flight Supplement. Effective 0901Z 15 December 2011 to 0901Z 9 February 2012
- ^ a b c d Hay River - Statistical Profile at the GNWT
- ^ "Tongue twisters". Up Here Magazine. 2011 January/February. http://www.uphere.ca/node/654. Retrieved 28 January 2011.
- ^ a b c d e Hay River history
- ^ MACA Regions
- ^ a b c Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories, Hay River profile
- ^ a b NTCL services
- ^ a b c d Infrastructure profile
- ^ a b c Northwestel
- ^ Buffalo Airways passenger services
- ^ Buffalo Airways courier service
- ^ First Air
- ^ a b c Hay River profile
- ^ South Slave Divisional Education Council
- ^ Harry Camsell School
- ^ Princess Alexandra School - About our school
- ^ Princess Alexandra School
- ^ Diamond Jenness School - About our school
- ^ Diamond Jenness School
- ^ The Hub
- ^ Wind Chill Hazards and Risk of Frostbite
- ^ "Canadian Climate Normals 1971-2000". http://www.climate.weatheroffice.ec.gc.ca/climate_normals/results_e.html?Province=NWT%20&StationName=&SearchType=&LocateBy=Province&Proximity=25&ProximityFrom=City&StationNumber=&IDType=MSC&CityName=&ParkName=&LatitudeDegrees=&LatitudeMinutes=&LongitudeDegrees=&LongitudeMinutes=&NormalsClass=A&SelNormals=&StnId=1664&. Retrieved 12 March 2008.
- ^ Environment Canada—Canadian Climate Normals 1971–2000. Retrieved 17 June 2011.
- ^ 2006 Canada Census, Hay River Reserve
- ^ 2006 Canada Census - Aboriginal profile
[edit] Further reading
- DiLabio, R. N. W. Kimberlitic Indicator Minerals in the Geological Survey of Canada's Archived Till Samples Results of Analysis of Samples from Victoria Island and the Hay River Area, Northwest Territories. [Canada]: Geological Survey of Canada, 1997.
