Matachewan

Last updated

Matachewan
Township of Matachewan
Matachewan ON 1.JPG
Motto: 
Where the highway ends... the adventure begins!
Canada Ontario location map 2.svg
Red pog.svg
Matachewan
Coordinates: 48°00′N80°39′W / 48.000°N 80.650°W / 48.000; -80.650
CountryCanada
Province Ontario
District Timiskaming
Incorporated1995
Government
  TypeTownship
  ReeveMark Stickel
  Federal riding Timmins-James Bay
  Prov. riding Timiskaming—Cochrane
Area
[1]
  Land543.58 km2 (209.88 sq mi)
Population
 (2016) [1]
  Total225
  Density0.4/km2 (1/sq mi)
Time zone UTC-5 (EST)
  Summer (DST) UTC-4 (EDT)
Postal Code
P0K 1M0
Area code(s) 705, 249
Website www.matachewan.com OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

Matachewan is a township in Timiskaming, Northeastern Ontario, Canada, located at the end of Ontario Highway 66 along the Montreal River. The name is derived from the Cree word for "meeting of the currents". [2]

Contents

The town's main economy is based on mineral mining, mainly gold mining, with some tourism.

History

Matachewan began as a trading post of the Hudson's Bay Company, called Fort Matachewan, located about 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) north of the present town site. It consisted only of a large depot and stores, with a church added later on. The local First Nations, who traded their furs here, would camp along the Montreal River but not settle permanently. [3]

Jake Davidson discovered gold in 1916 and teamed up with Weldy Young in 1930 to start the Young-Davidson mine. Sam Otisse staked a claim next to Davidson in 1917, which became the Matachewan Consolidated Mines. Alex Mosher staked claims which became the Ashley Gold Mine (1932-1936). [4]

The impetus to the town's growth came in the 1920s when mineral deposits, such as gold, copper, and molybdenite, were found in the area. From then on it experienced boom and bust cycles of typical mining towns, depending on the swings in commodity prices, but its economy has gradually shifted to forestry and tourism. [3]

In January 1976, the Improvement District of Matachewan was formed, and in 1995, it was incorporated as a township.

The Otisse Lake overflowed into mine tailings on 17 Oct. 1990, and 170,000 cubic metres of mine slimes entered the Matachewan River. [4]

In 2006, a medivac helipad was built to help accommodate the possibility of injuries that may occur at the Young-Davidson mine site. In 2008, an old and worn out wooden bridge over the Montreal River which was built in 1937 was replaced with a new steel-concrete reinforced structure for safety reasons regarding the heavy traffic to/from the mine. [5]

Geology

Matachewan is on the southwest portion of the Abitibi greenstone belt and within the Abitibi gold belt. Between 1933 and 1957, the Young-Davidson Mine and the Matachewan Consolidated Mine produced 9.6 million tonnes of ore containing 3.1 grams of gold per ton and 0.93 grams per ton of silver. Between 1979 and 1980, Pamour Porcupine Mines Limited open-pit mining produced 18,000 tonnes of ore containing more than 3.4 grams per ton of gold. [6]

Demographics

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1986 491    
1991 453−7.7%
1996 402−11.3%
2001 308−23.4%
2006 375+21.8%
2011 409+9.1%
2016 225−45.0%
Statistics Canada [7] [8] [1]

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Matachewan had a population of 268 living in 134 of its 202 total private dwellings, a change of 19.1% from its 2016 population of 225. With a land area of 539.56 km2 (208.33 sq mi), it had a population density of 0.5/km2 (1.3/sq mi) in 2021. [9]

Canada census – Matachewan community profile
2021 2016 2011
Population268 (+19.1% from 2016)225 (-45.0% from 2011)409 (9.1% from 2006)
Land area539.56 km2 (208.33 sq mi)543.58 km2 (209.88 sq mi)543.63 km2 (209.90 sq mi)
Population density0.5/km2 (1.3/sq mi)0.4/km2 (1.0/sq mi)0.75/km2 (1.9/sq mi)
Median age53.2 (M: 52.8, F: 53.2)52.7 (M: 52.2, F: 52.9)50.8 (M: 48.0, F: 52.5)
Private dwellings202 (total)  134 (occupied)166 (total) 260 (total) 
Median household income$67,500$57,216
Notes: 2011 population and housing figures corrected. [7]
References: 2021 [10] 2016 [11] 2011 [12] earlier [13] [14]
Matachewan as seen across the Montreal River. Matachewan ON 2.JPG
Matachewan as seen across the Montreal River.

Culture

Matachewan is known for celebrating local cultures every July during the Matachewan Villages Festival event.

Transportation

Provincial highways:

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timmins</span> City in Ontario, Canada

Timmins is a city in northeastern Ontario, Canada, located on the Mattagami River. The city is the fourth-largest city in the Northeastern Ontario region with a population of 44,819 (2023). The city's economy is based on natural resource extraction. It is supported by industries related to lumbering, and to the mining of gold, zinc, copper, nickel, and silver. Timmins serves as a regional service and distribution centre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kirkland Lake</span> Town in Ontario, Canada

Kirkland Lake is a town and municipality in Timiskaming District of Northeastern Ontario. The 2016 population, according to Statistics Canada, was 7,981.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timiskaming District</span> District in Ontario, Canada

Timiskaming is a district and census division in Northeastern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario. The district was created in 1912 from parts of Algoma, Nipissing, and Sudbury districts. In 1921, Cochrane District was created from parts of this district and parts of Thunder Bay District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Larder Lake, Ontario</span> Township in Ontario, Canada

Larder Lake is an incorporated municipal township and eponymous constituent dispersed rural community in Timiskaming District in Northeastern Ontario, Canada. It is located along Ontario Highway 66 and Ontario Highway 624 at the north-western part of the lake bearing the same name. The area of the township is 229.65 km2 (88.67 sq mi) and includes the geographic townships of Hearst, McVittie and Skead.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">McGarry, Ontario</span> Township in Ontario, Canada

McGarry is an incorporated township in Timiskaming District in Northeastern Ontario, Canada. It includes the communities of Virginiatown, North Virginiatown, and Kearns. The township borders with Quebec to the east, along Highway 66 between Kirkland Lake and Rouyn-Noranda. The northern border of the township forms part of the border between Timiskaming District and Cochrane District. Highway 66 was rerouted in 2017 because of concerns that aging mine shafts under the road could cause it to collapse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wawa, Ontario</span> Municipality in Ontario, Canada

Wawa is a township in the Canadian province of Ontario in the Algoma District. Formerly known as the Township of Michipicoten, named after a nearby river of that name, the township was officially renamed in 2007 for its largest and best-known community of Wawa, located on the western shores of Wawa Lake.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greenstone, Ontario</span> Municipality in Ontario, Canada

Greenstone is a single-tier municipality in the Canadian province of Ontario with a population of 4,636 according to the 2016 Canadian census. It stretches along Highway 11 from Lake Nipigon to Longlac and covers 2,767.19 km2 (1,068.42 sq mi).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black River-Matheson</span> Township in Ontario, Canada

Black River-Matheson is a township in the Cochrane District of the Canadian province of Ontario. The municipality is astride the Black River, for which it is partly named. The Matheson railway station was serviced by the Northlander until 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenora District</span> District in Ontario, Canada

Kenora District is a district and census division in Northwestern Ontario, Canada. The district seat is the City of Kenora.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unorganized Thunder Bay District</span> Unorganized area in Ontario, Canada

Unorganized Thunder Bay District is an unorganized area in northwestern Ontario, Canada in Thunder Bay District. It comprises all parts of the district that are not part of an incorporated municipality or a First Nations reserve.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unorganized North Algoma District</span> Unorganized area in Ontario, Canada

Unorganized North Algoma District is an unorganized area in northeastern Ontario, Canada, comprising all areas in Algoma District, north of the Sault Ste. Marie to Elliot Lake corridor, which are not part of an incorporated municipality or a First Nation. It covers 44,077.03 km2 (17,018.24 sq mi) of land, and had a population of 6050 in 2021. Many of these communities were/are stations on the Algoma Central Railway or were logging/mining towns.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red Lake, Ontario</span> Municipality in Ontario, Canada

Red Lake is a municipality with town status in the Canadian province of Ontario, located 535 km (332 mi) northwest of Thunder Bay and less than 100 km (62 mi) from the Manitoba border. The municipality consists of six small communities—Balmertown, Cochenour, Madsen, McKenzie Island, Red Lake and Starratt-Olsen—and had a population of 4,107 people in the Canada 2016 Census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gauthier, Ontario</span> Township municipality in Ontario, Canada

Gauthier is a township municipality in Timiskaming District the Northeastern Ontario, Canada. The township had a population of 138 in the Canada 2016 Census. Its main population centre is Dobie, located just north of Ontario Highway 66, 18.5 kilometres (11.5 mi) east of Kirkland Lake.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sioux Narrows-Nestor Falls</span> Township in Ontario, Canada

Sioux Narrows-Nestor Falls is a township in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in the Kenora District. It is located on the eastern shores of Lake of the Woods along Ontario Highway 71.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Porcupine Gold Rush</span> 1909 gold rush in Northern Ontario, Canada

The Porcupine Gold Rush was a gold rush that took place in Northern Ontario starting in 1909 and developing fully by 1911. A combination of the hard rock of the Canadian Shield and the rapid capitalization of mining meant that smaller companies and single-man operations could not effectively mine the area, as opposed to earlier rushes where the gold could be extracted through placer mining techniques. Although a number of prospectors made their fortune, operations in the area are marked largely by the development of larger mining companies, and most people involved in the mining operations were their employees.

The Abitibi greenstone belt is a 2,800-to-2,600-million-year-old greenstone belt that spans across the Ontario–Quebec border in Canada. It is mostly made of volcanic rocks, but also includes ultramafic rocks, mafic intrusions, granitoid rocks, and early and middle Precambrian sediments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James, Ontario</span> Township in Ontario, Canada

James is an incorporated township in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in Timiskaming District. The primary community within the township is Elk Lake, which is located at the junction of Ontario Highway 65 and Ontario Highway 560.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abitibi gold belt</span> Region of Canada that extends from Wawa, Ontario to Val-dOr, Quebec

The Abitibi gold belt is a region of Canada that extends from Wawa, Ontario to Val-d'Or, Quebec. Located within the mineral-rich Abitibi greenstone belt, the gold belt is an established gold mining district having produced over 100 mines, and 170 million ounces of gold since 1901. Timmins, a town founded in 1912 following the Porcupine Gold Rush and subsequent creation of the Hollinger Mines, McIntyre Mines and Dome Mine, which was one area in the region that experienced a gold rush, beginning in 1909. The Kerr Addison Mine in Virginiatown was at one time Canada's largest gold producing mine. Many of the towns readily acknowledge gold mining as part of their history, some being named after gold. One of Canada's 'large roadside attractions' is a 12-foot replica of a 1908 gold sovereign built to commemorate Canada's first gold coin which was made using gold from the Kerr Addison owned Kerr-Addison mine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Young-Davidson mine</span> Canadian gold mine

The Young-Davidson mine is a gold mine near Matachewan, Ontario in the Kirkland Lake area. It is one of the largest underground gold mines in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matachewan Consolidated mine</span> Canadian gold mine

The Matachewan Consolidated mine is a former gold mine near Matachewan, Ontario, Canada, in the Kirkland Lake area.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Census Profile, 2016 Census: Matachewan, Township". Statistics Canada. 8 February 2017. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  2. Hamilton, William (1978). The Macmillan Book of Canadian Place Names. Toronto: Macmillan. p. 158. ISBN   0-7715-9754-1.
  3. 1 2 "About Matachewan". Township of Matachewan. Archived from the original on January 7, 2009. Retrieved 2009-07-31.
  4. 1 2 Barnes, Michael (1995). Gold in Ontario. Erin: The Boston Mills Press. pp. 62–63. ISBN   155046146X.
  5. Perry Kong (April 30, 2007). "The Community Where Adventure Begins" (PDF). Northern News. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 23, 2014. Retrieved February 9, 2012.
  6. Powell, W.G.; Kilbourne, M.W.; Hodgson, C.J. (1991). "Gold Related Geology of the Matachewan Camp". Society of Economic Geologists. Archean Gold Deposits of the Matachewan-Kirkland Lake-Larder Lake Area, Ontario, Canada (Guidebook Series Vol. II): 72.
  7. 1 2 "Corrections and updates". Statistics Canada. 2012-10-24. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
  8. 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011 census
  9. "Population and dwelling counts: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (municipalities), Ontario". Statistics Canada. February 9, 2022. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  10. "2021 Community Profiles". 2021 Canadian Census . Statistics Canada. February 4, 2022. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  11. "2016 Community Profiles". 2016 Canadian Census . Statistics Canada. August 12, 2021. Retrieved 2019-07-17.
  12. "2011 Community Profiles". 2011 Canadian Census . Statistics Canada. March 21, 2019. Retrieved 2014-02-04.
  13. "2006 Community Profiles". 2006 Canadian Census . Statistics Canada. August 20, 2019.
  14. "2001 Community Profiles". 2001 Canadian Census . Statistics Canada. July 18, 2021.