Wemotaci | |
---|---|
First Nations reserve | |
Coordinates: 47°54′25″N73°47′00″W / 47.90694°N 73.78333°W | |
Country | Canada |
Province | Quebec |
Region | Mauricie |
Census division | La Tuque |
Settled | 1806 (trading post) |
Founded | 1853 (reserve) |
Government | |
• Chief | Francois Neashish |
• Federal riding | Saint-Maurice—Champlain |
• Prov. riding | Laviolette |
Area | |
• Total | 33.30 km2 (12.86 sq mi) |
• Land | 31.55 km2 (12.18 sq mi) |
Population (2021) [2] | |
• Total | 1,142 |
• Density | 36.2/km2 (94/sq mi) |
Time zone | UTC-5 (EST) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
Postal Code | G0X 3R0 |
Area code | 819 |
Website | www.wemotaci.com |
Wemotaci (designated as Weymontachie 23 until 1997) is a First Nations reserve on the north shore of the Saint-Maurice River at the mouth of the Manouane River in the Mauricie region of Quebec, Canada. Together with the Obedjiwan and the Coucoucache Indian Reserve No. 24, it belongs to the Atikamekw First Nation. [3]
The reserve, an enclave within the city of La Tuque, is bordered to the west and south by the Saint-Maurice River, whereas its eastern boundary is about 3.8 kilometres (2.4 mi) long, and its northern boundary is 7.8 kilometres (4.8 mi). It is accessible by gravel road from La Tuque's town centre through the hamlet of Sanmaur that is on the opposite shore of the Saint-Maurice River. Also at this location, the Canadian National Railway crosses the river and has a siding at Sanmaur.
The local economy is based on the art and craft, shops and services, forestry, trapping, construction, tourism, transport and outfitters.
Like many other native names, Wemotaci underwent many spelling variations over time. The oldest reference to the toponym is from 1724. In 1827, it was written as Montachene, and in 1829 as Weymontachinque, in 1830 as Waimootansking, in 1832 as Weymontachingue and Warmontashingen, in 1837 as Warmontaching. The 1932 spelling of Weymontachingue on the map of John Arrowsmith became the most common form until 1986, when it was replaced by Weymontachie, as demanded by the local band council. The standardized writing of the Atikamekw language spells it as Wemotaci, which was made official in March 1997. [4]
The area of the upper Saint-Maurice River had long been the homeland and hunting grounds of the Atikamekw indigenous people. Some sources claim that the North West Company had already established a trading post at this place between 1770 and 1780, but this remains doubtful. Confirmation of the existence of a trading post at Wemotaci came in 1806, when Jean-Baptiste Perrault built the first structures for fur trading. In 1821, the post was taken over by the Hudson's Bay Company. [4]
In 1851, the Government enacted the allotment of 230,000 acres (930 km2) of land as reserves for the use and benefit of the "Indian" tribes residing in Lower Canada. Two years later, these lands were distributed among the Atikamekw, Algonquins, and Abenakis by John Rolph, Commissioner of Crown Lands. On August 9, 1853, this was made official by the Governor General in Council. [5]
But the Atikamekw didn't give up their nomadic life and settle on the reserve. And it wasn't until 1895 that the reserve was surveyed. The construction of a dam and the National Transcontinental Railway led to the growth of the Sanmaur settlement, which in turn attracted the Atikamekw to the reserve at the beginning of the 20th century. In 1939 however, the Hudson's Bay Company left Weymontachingue and due to lack of funding for maintenance of the village, its population stopped growing after 1950, when its inhabitants began to leave and settled either in Sanmaur or in other nearby villages. [4]
In the 1970s, the village revitalized. A new village was built closer to its namesake mountain. In 1971, the Federal Government bought the lands of the Hudson's Bay Company and these were subsequently added to the reserve. [4] [5]
In May 2010, many residents of Wemotaci were evacuated as a forest fire threatened their homes. [6]
2016 | 2011 | |
---|---|---|
Population | 1213 (1.6% from 2011) | 1194 (11.3% from 2006) |
Land area | 31.02 km2 (11.98 sq mi) | 31.02 km2 (11.98 sq mi) |
Population density | 38.5/km2 (100/sq mi) | 38.5/km2 (100/sq mi) |
Median age | 23.1 (M: 23.2, F: 22.8) | 20.3 (M: 20.4, F: 20.3) |
Total private dwellings | 305 | 347 |
Median household income |
Historic populations: [11]
Mother tongue: [2]
There are two schools on the reserve: [3]
The Cree are a North American Indigenous people. They live primarily in Canada, where they form one of the country's largest First Nations.
La Tuque is a city located in north-central Quebec, Canada, on the Saint-Maurice River, between Trois-Rivières and Chambord. The population was 11,129 at the 2021 Canadian census, most of which live within the urban area. At over 28,000 km2 (11,000 sq mi), it is the largest city in Canada by area.
The Saint-Maurice River flows north to south in central Quebec from Gouin Reservoir to empty into the Saint Lawrence River at Trois-Rivières, in the province of Quebec, in Canada. From its source at Gouin Reservoir, located at the same latitude as the Lac Saint-Jean, the river has a total drop of about 405 metres (1,329 ft), to finally reach the St. Lawrence river at Trois-Rivières. The river is 563 km long and has a drainage basin of 43,300 square kilometres (16,700 sq mi). Saint-Maurice River is one of the most important tributaries of the St. Lawrence River.
Mauricie is a traditional and current administrative region of Quebec. La Mauricie National Park is contained within the region, making tourism in Mauricie popular. The region has a land area of 35,860.05 km² and a population of 266,112 residents as of the 2016 Census. Its largest cities are Trois-Rivières and Shawinigan.
Lake Manouane is a lake in central Quebec, Canada. It is just north-east of Kempt Lake, mostly within the boundaries of the City of La Tuque. It should not be confused with more northerly Lake Manouane in the Peribonka River watershed.
La Romaine, also known as Unamenshipit in Innu-aimun, is an Innu First Nations reserve in the Côte-Nord region of Quebec, Canada, at the mouth of the Olomane River on the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. It belongs to the Innu band of Unamen Shipu. Being an enclave within the Municipality of Côte-Nord-du-Golfe-du-Saint-Laurent, it is geographically within Le Golfe-du-Saint-Laurent Regional County Municipality but administratively not part of it. Directly adjacent to the reserve is the community of La Romaine consisting of a small French-speaking population.
Pessamit, is a First Nations reserve and Innu community in the Canadian province of Quebec, located about 50 kilometres (31 mi) southwest from Baie-Comeau along the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River at the mouth of the Betsiamites River. It is across the river directly north of Rimouski, Quebec. It belongs to the Pessamit Innu Band.
Grandes-Piles is a village municipality in the Mauricie region of the province of Quebec in Canada.
Mashteuiatsh is a First Nations reserve in the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec, Canada, about 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) north from the centre of Roberval. It is the home to the Pekuakamiulnuatsh First Nation. It is located on a headland jutting out on the western shores of Lake Saint-Jean known as Pointe-Bleue, in the geographic township of Ouiatchouan, and belongs to the Montagnais du Lac St-Jean Innu band. It is geographically within the Le Domaine-du-Roy Regional County Municipality but administratively not part of it.
Obedjiwan is a First Nations reserve and village on the north shore of Gouin Reservoir in the Mauricie region of Quebec, Canada. It belongs to the Atikamekw of Opitciwan band of the Atikamekw Nation.
Coucoucache was a tiny First Nation reserve, in Cloutier Township, on the north shore of Reservoir Blanc on the Saint-Maurice River in the Mauricie region of Quebec, Canada. It belonged to the Atikamekw First Nation of Wemotaci but had no permanent population in recent decades.
Manawan, officially named communauté Atikamekw de Manawan, is a First Nations reserve on the south-western shores of Lake Métabeskéga in the Lanaudière region of Quebec, Canada. It belongs to the Atikamekw of Manawan band of the Atikamekw Nation.
The Manouane River flows from west to east in the Haute-Mauricie (Upper-Mauricie), at northwest of La Tuque, in the administrative region of Lanaudière and Mauricie, in the Province of Quebec, Canada. The river basin is mostly covered by forest.
Sanmaur is a village in the Haute-Mauricie, in La Tuque, in Québec, Canada. Sanmaur was incorporated into the city of La Tuque in 2003.
The Vermillon River flows in the territory of La Tuque, in Upper-Mauricie, in the administrative region of Mauricie, in Quebec, Canada.
The Lake Châteauvert is located on the path of the Manouane River, at the west of Saint-Maurice River in the territory of La Tuque, in Mauricie, in Quebec, in Canada.
The Rivière Blanche flows eastwards, draining the region between Casey and Wemotaci, in La Tuque, in Mauricie, Quebec, in Canada. The “Rivière Blanche” is the main tributary of the Manouane River, and is part of the watershed of Saint-Maurice River.
The Jean-Pierre River is a tributary of the Jean-Pierre Bay, on the south shore of the Gouin Reservoir, flowing into the territory of the town of La Tuque, into the administrative region of Mauricie, in Quebec, in Canada.
The Kikendatch Bay is a freshwater body that leads to the Gouin Reservoir, in the territory of La Tuque, in Haute-Mauricie, in the administrative region of Mauricie, in the province of Quebec, in Canada.
The La Loutre dam is a river infrastructure downstream from the Gouin Dam. This dam is the second on the Saint-Maurice River from the source. It is located in the city of La Tuque, in Mauricie, in the province of Quebec, in Canada.