Battleford | |
---|---|
Town | |
Nicknames: "The Battlefords", "South Battleford" | |
Coordinates: 52°44′18″N108°18′55″W / 52.73833°N 108.31528°W | |
Country | Canada |
Province | Saskatchewan |
Census division | 12 |
Rural Municipality | Battle River |
Post office founded | 1877 |
Incorporated (town) | 1904 |
Government | |
• Mayor | Ames Leslie |
• CAO | Landon Chambers |
• Governing body | Battleford Town Council |
Area | |
• Total | 23.33 km2 (9.01 sq mi) |
Population (2021) | |
• Total | 4,400 |
• Density | 174.2/km2 (451/sq mi) |
• National population rank (out of 5,008) | 867 |
Time zone | UTC−6 (Central Standard Time) |
Postal code | S0M 0E0 |
Area code | 306 |
Highways | Highway 4 |
Waterways | North Saskatchewan Battle River |
Website | www |
[1] [2] |
Battleford (2011 population 4,065) is a town located across the North Saskatchewan River from the City of North Battleford, in Saskatchewan, Canada.
Battleford and North Battleford are collectively referred to as "The Battlefords" by Saskatchewan residents, as well as on highway signage. Although there has been occasional talk of the two communities merging, as of 2023 they remain separate entities. The local economy is fuelled mainly by agriculture. Battleford is bordered by the Rural Municipality of Battle River No. 438, as well as by the city of North Battleford and a small section of the Rural Municipality of North Battleford No. 437.
The 1973 western Alien Thunder was partially filmed in Battleford.
Census | Population |
---|---|
1901 | 609 |
1911 | 1,335 |
1921 | 1,229 |
1931 | 1,096 |
1941 | 1,336 |
1951 | 1,319 |
1961 | 1,627 |
1971 | 1,803 |
1981 | 3,565 |
1991 | 4,107 |
2001 | 3,820 |
2006 | 3,685 |
2011 | 4,065 |
The Battleford area was the site of numerous independent and Hudson's Bay Company fur trading houses dating from the 1770s. [3] William Holmes [4] operated a post for the North West Company just above the confluence of the Battle and Saskatchewan rivers in 1784. [5] At least three posts were in use between 1868 and 1914. [6] The town was founded in 1875 as a fur trading post and North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) fort. Its post office opened in 1877. [7] Between 1876 and 1883, Battleford was the territorial capital of the North-West Territories (now Alberta, Saskatchewan, Nunavut, northern Quebec, northern Ontario and the Northwest Territories) and the NWMP fort (Fort Battleford) located there played an important role in the 1885 North-West Rebellion. It is also the terminus of the historic Swift Current-Battleford Trail.
On March 30, 1885, during the North-West Rebellion, the town of Battleford was looted by a party of Cree people, who were short on food due to declining bison populations. When the Cree approached Battleford, the 500 residents [8] fled to the nearby North-West Mounted Police post, Fort Battleford. The Crees then took food and supplies from the abandoned stores and houses. Two people were murdered during the looting. Crooked Leg was accused of killing John Payne, and Man Without Blood was accused of killing a farmer named Tremont. They were convicted of murder and hanged later that year.
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Battleford had a population of 4,400 living in 1,758 of its 1,877 total private dwellings, a change of -0.7% from its 2016 population of 4,429. With a land area of 23.26 km2 (8.98 sq mi), it had a population density of 189.2/km2 (489.9/sq mi) in 2021. [9]
2021 | 2011 | |
---|---|---|
Population | 4,400 (-0.7% from 2016) | 4,065 (+10.3% from 2006) |
Land area | 23.26 km2 (8.98 sq mi) | 23.33 km2 (9.01 sq mi) |
Population density | 189.2/km2 (490/sq mi) | 174.2/km2 (451/sq mi) |
Median age | 41.6 (M: 40.4, F: 42.4) | 40.6 (M: 39.9, F: 41.1) |
Private dwellings | 1,877 (total) 1,758 (occupied) | 1,652 (total) |
Median household income | $91,000 |
National historic sites in Battleford include Fort Battleford National Historic Site of Canada, [14] Battleford Court House National Historic Site of Canada [15] and Old Government House / Saint-Charles Scholasticate National Historic Site of Canada. The Old Government House, built in 1878–1879, was destroyed by fire in 2003 and was the seat of Territorial Government from 1878 to 1883 [16] [17]
The Battleford Land Registry Office built between 1877 and 1878 is the last remaining building on Battleford's Government Ridge that dates from the Territorial era. [18] Other heritage buildings include the District Court House, [19] the Town Hall / Opera House, [20] the Former Land Titles Building, [21] the Station Building, [22] the Fred Light Museum (St. Vital School), [23] St. Vital Church, [24] Gardiner Church [25] and the Former Bank of Montreal Building. [26]
The local newspaper is The Battlefords News Optimist . It is published weekly on Thursday and has circulation in the surrounding area.
Three local radio stations serve the area; CJNB, CJCQ-FM ("Q98"), and CJHD-FM ("93.3 Beach Radio [27] "). Some Saskatoon radio stations can also be received.
The Battlefords are served by CFQC-TV-2 channel 6, an analogue repeater of CTV station CFQC-DT Saskatoon.
The North-West Rebellion, also known as the North-West Resistance, was an armed resistance movement by the Métis under Louis Riel and an associated uprising by First Nations Cree and Assiniboine of the District of Saskatchewan against the Canadian government. Many Métis felt that Canada was not protecting their rights, their land, and their survival as a distinct people.
North Battleford is a city in west-central Saskatchewan, Canada. It is the seventh largest city in the province and is directly across the North Saskatchewan River from the Town of Battleford. Together, the two communities are known as "The Battlefords". North Battleford borders the Rural Municipality of North Battleford No. 437, as well as the North Battleford Crown Colony.
Fort Saskatchewan is a city along the North Saskatchewan River in Alberta, Canada. It is 25 kilometres (16 mi) northeast of Edmonton, the provincial capital. It is part of the Edmonton census metropolitan area and one of 24 municipalities that constitute the Edmonton Metropolitan Region Board. Its population in the 2021 federal census was 27,088.
Battlefords—Lloydminster is a federal electoral district in Saskatchewan, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 1997.
Fort Qu'Appelle is a town in Canadian province of Saskatchewan located in the Qu'Appelle River valley 70 km (43 mi) north-east of Regina, between Echo and Mission Lakes of the Fishing Lakes. It is not to be confused with the once-significant nearby town of Qu'Appelle. It was originally established in 1864 as a Hudson's Bay Company trading post. Fort Qu'Appelle, with its 1,919 residents in 2006, is at the junction of Highway 35, Highway 10, Highway 22, Highway 56, and Highway 215. The 1897 Hudson's Bay Company store, 1911 Grand Trunk Pacific Railway station, Fort Qu'Appelle Sanatorium, and the Treaty 4 Governance Centre in the shape of a teepee are all landmarks of this community. Additionally, the Noel Pinay sculpture of a man praying commemorates a burial ground, is a life-sized statue in a park beside Segwun Avenue.
Martensville is a city located in Saskatchewan, Canada, just 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) north of Saskatoon, 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) west of the city of Warman and 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) southwest of Clarkboro Ferry which crosses the South Saskatchewan River. It is a bedroom community of Saskatoon. It is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Corman Park No. 344. The community is served by the Saskatoon/Richter Field Aerodrome located immediately west of the city across Highway 12, as well as by Saskatoon's John G. Diefenbaker International Airport, only a few miles to the south.
Fort Battleford was the sixth North-West Mounted Police fort to be established in the North-West Territories of Canada, and played a central role in the events of the North-West Rebellion of 1885. It was here Chief Poundmaker was arrested, and where six Cree and two Stoney men were hanged for murders committed in the Frog Lake Massacre and the Looting of Battleford. In reference to the hanging, Prime Minister John A. Macdonald said in a letter that "the executions... ought to convince the Red Man that the White Man governs."
Cumberland House is a community in Census Division No. 18 in northeast Saskatchewan, Canada on the Saskatchewan River. It is the oldest community in Saskatchewan and has a population of about 2,000 people. Cumberland House Provincial Park, which provides tours of an 1890s powder house built by the Hudson's Bay Company, is located nearby.
Blaine Lake is a town in central Saskatchewan, Canada. It is located 85 km north of Saskatoon, 104 km southwest of Prince Albert and 104 km east of North Battleford at the junction of Highway 12 and Highway 40. Nearby are the urban centres of Shellbrook and Rosthern. Blaine Lake is considered the "Gateway to the Northern Lakes" due to its proximity to fishing, hunting and camping sites, as well as its convenient location at a junction of two highways.
Cut Knife is a town located in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan on Highway 40, northwest of Saskatoon and 55 km west of North Battleford. The population of Cut Knife in 2011 was 517.
Highway 16 is a provincial highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It is the Saskatchewan section of the Yellowhead Highway, and also the Trans-Canada Highway Yellowhead section. The main purpose of this highway is to connect Saskatchewan with Canadian cities such as Edmonton and Winnipeg. The highway runs from the Alberta boundary in Lloydminster to the Manitoba boundary near Marchwell. Major cities it passes through are Saskatoon, North Battleford in the central part of the province, Yorkton in the far east and Lloydminster to the far west.
Duck Lake is a town in the boreal forest of central Saskatchewan, Canada. Its location is 88 km (55 mi) north of Saskatoon and 44 km (27 mi) south of Prince Albert on highway 11, in the rural municipality of Duck Lake. Immediately to the north of Duck Lake is the south block of the Nisbet Provincial Forest.
Elrose is a town located just to the north of the Coteau Hills. It is south of Rosetown and north of Swift Current on Highway 4 and Highway 44. A community in the middle of an agricultural economy, Elrose has also become a local hub of activity in the oil industry. The town is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Monet No. 257.
Battleford Court House is the facility located in Battleford to provide a public forum used by the Saskatchewan legal system to adjudicate disputes and dispense civil, labour, administrative and criminal justice under its laws.
Raymore is a town in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan, located 110 km north of Regina.
Harris is a village in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan within the Rural Municipality of Harris No. 316 and Census Division No. 12. It was the site of the Great Ruby Hoax in 1914. Harris was named for Richard Elford Harris, an early settler to the area.
There are numerous heritages and cultural attractions in the province of Saskatchewan. Museums, dinosaur digs, aboriginal cultural and heritage sites, art galleries, professional sport venues, spas, handcraft, antique and tea shops, agricultural tours, theatre and archaeological sites comprise over 600 varied Saskatchewan institutions.
Green Lake is a northern village in Saskatchewan, Canada. Its residents are predominantly Métis people. Green Lake is located northeast of Meadow Lake, and northwest of Big River. It lies in the southern boreal forest, and takes its name from nearby Green Lake. Fishing, tourism, and farming, are the major industries.
The Looting of Battleford began at the end of March, 1885, during the North-West Rebellion, in the town of Battleford, Saskatchewan, then a part of the Northwest Territories.