Moosonee
Script error: No such module "Settlement short description".Page Module:Infobox/styles.css has no content.Page Template:Infobox settlement/styles.css has no content.
Moosonee | |
|---|---|
| Town of Moosonee | |
| Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:InfoboxImage/data' not found. | |
| Page Template:Infobox settlement/columns/styles.css has no content.
Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:InfoboxImage/data' not found. | |
| Script error: No such module "Infobox mapframe". | |
| Lua error in Module:Location_map at line 526: Unable to find the specified location map definition: "Module:Location map/data/Ontario" does not exist. | |
| Coordinates: Lua error: callParserFunction: function "#coordinates" was not found. | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | Ontario |
| Region | Northeastern Ontario |
| District | Cochrane |
| Settled | 1903 |
| Incorporated | 2001 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Wayne Taipale[2] |
| • MP | Gaétan Malette (Conservative) |
| • MPP | Guy Bourgouin (ONDP) |
| Area (2021)[3] | |
| • Land | Script error: No such module "ConvertIB". |
| • Urban | Script error: No such module "ConvertIB". |
| Population (2021)[3] | Template:Fix comma category |
| Population (2021)[3] | |
• Total | Template:Fix comma category |
| • Density | Script error: No such module "ConvertIB". |
| • Urban | Template:Fix comma category |
| • Urban density | Script error: No such module "ConvertIB". |
| Template:Pluralize from text | Template:Pluralize from text |
| Time zone | UTC−05:00 (EST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−04:00 (EDT) |
| Postal code | |
| Template:Pluralize from text | 705Template:Force singularTemplate:Pluralize from text |
| Website | Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:If preview' not found. |
Script error: No such module "Check for conflicting parameters".
Moosonee (/ˌmuːsəˈniː/) is a town in Northeastern Ontario, Canada, on the Moose River. It is considered to be "the Gateway to the Arctic" and has Ontario's only saltwater port.[5] Nearby, on Moose Factory Island, is the older community of Moose Factory to which it is connected by water taxi in the summer and ice road in the winter.
There is no road connection to the community but flights are provided by Air Creebec, North Star Air and Thunder Airlines via Moosonee Airport.[6][7][8] Moosonee is also the railhead of the Polar Bear Express a combined passenger and freight train operated by Ontario Northland Railway. In Moosonee, goods are transferred to barges and aircraft for transport to more northerly communities. The community was the site of a fur trading post set up in 1903 by Revillon Frères, competitors to the Hudson's Bay Company, which later bought out Revillon.
Moosonee formerly held the status of a development area, the only community in the province with that designation, and was governed by a locally-elected board subject to formal appointment by the Ontario provincial government. It became incorporated as a town effective 1 January 2001, with an elected mayor and four-person council.
History
In 1900, Annie Hardisty and her two daughters were the first settlers on the site.[9] Significant development began on 6 June 1903, four canoes and a crew of 21 persons of the Revillon Frères company arrived on the banks of the Moose River near the much older Moose Factory to establish the Moose River Post. This Parisian furrier had ambitious plans to set up a chain of fur trading posts in direct competition with the Hudson's Bay Company, including five on James Bay. But it suffered a setback when their supply ship that carried all the provisions shipwrecked near Fort George (Chisasibi).[10] The Revillon Frères Museum is located on First Street.
Moose River Post became the most important location for Revillon Frères and was quickly expanded with a staff house, carpenter's shop, warehouse, and sawmill. The buildings were spaced far apart as a preventive measure to minimize the spread of fire. By 1912, it was reported that "the whole line of good substantial buildings, built principally for their French Canadian employees, stretches along the river front for nearly a mile northward from the residence of the inspector."[10]
Moose River Post (and Moose Factory) were prosperous but isolated. It was supplied only once per year by ship coming from Montreal around the Labrador Peninsula. Mail arrived only four times per year, twice by canoe and twice by toboggan. During World War I, Revillon Frères' chartered supply ship was requisitioned for war service. So from then on until 1932, the post was supplied by scows from Pagwa on the National Transcontinental Railway coming down the Pagwachuan, Kenogami, and Albany Rivers.[10]
In 1932, the Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway was extended from Cochrane to Moose River Post, that was renamed at that time to Moosonee, derived from the Cree word Script error: No such module "Lang". meaning "at the Moose [River]". In 1936, Revillon Frères sold its Canadian operations to the Hudson's Bay Company and the Moosonee post closed.[5][10] The HBC also exited the fur trade and opened a retail store in Moosonee (now Northern Store, part of The North West Company). With the end of the fur trade business, Moosonee's economy became centred on transportation.[11]
In 1962, Moosonee became the site of RCAF Station Moosonee that was part of NORAD's Pinetree Line chain of radar stations. It closed in 1975 and some of its buildings were used by the Town after the closure, including the base swimming pool and recreation centre.[12]
In 1968, the town was classified as a development area board. In November 2000, it was incorporated as the Town of Moosonee.[5]
The town is governed by a mayor and four councillors. As of 2023, the mayor is Wayne Taipale and the councillors are Theresa Chavez, Sheldon Ross, Diane Ryder, and Carman Tozer.[2]
Geography
Moosonee is located near the mouth of the Moose River, approximately Template:Cvt south of James Bay. It is not particularly far north, being located at 51°N, roughly the same latitude as Saskatoon and Calgary, but is colder because of its proximity to Hudson Bay and isolated by its lack of road access to the rest of Ontario.
Climate
Moosonee has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfb) with subarctic influences, which gives the town warm summers and cold winters that are sometimes severe. James Bay acts as a thermal reservoir to moderate spring and fall temperatures. Freeze-up on the Moose River normally occurs between late November and mid-December, with mean daily minimum January temperatures approximately −25 °C (−13 °F). Spring break-up, or spring thaw, usually occurs in April. Mean annual precipitation is Template:Cvt, and mean annual snowfall is Template:Cvt. Precipitation is somewhat higher in summer than at other times of the year. Severe thunderstorms can occur from time to time. Moosonee used to have a subarctic climate with a yearly mean temperature of −1.3 °C (29.7 °F), but due to global warming that temperature has risen to Template:Cvt.[13][14]
The highest temperature ever recorded in Moosonee was 37.8 °C (100.0 °F) on 31 July 1975.[13] The coldest temperature ever recorded, at (Moose Factory), was −48.9 °C (−56.0 °F) on 24 January 1935.[15]
Demographics
In the 2021 Canadian census conducted by Statistics Canada, Moosonee had a population of 1,512 living in 487 of its 629 total private dwellings, a change of Script error: No such module "Percentage". from its 2016 population of 1,481. With a land area of Template:Cvt, it had a population density of Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Sortkey' not found. in 2021.[3]
In 2021, 86.0 per cent of residents spoke English as their mother tongue, 8.5 per cent Indigenous (mainly Cree), 1.0 per cent French, and 4.4 per cent other languages. The population are mainly First Nations (66.8 per cent), 32.5 per cent non-indigenous and 1 per cent Métis.[3]
Page Template:Canada census/styles.css has no content.
| 2021 | 2016 | 2011 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 1,512 (+2.1% from 2016) | 1,481 (-14.1% from 2011) | 1,725 (-14.0% from 2006) |
| Land area | 547.83 km2 (211.52 sq mi) | 546.72 km2 (211.09 sq mi) | 550.12 km2 (212.40 sq mi) |
| Population density | 2.8/km2 (7.3/sq mi) | 2.7/km2 (7.0/sq mi) | 3.1/km2 (8.0/sq mi) |
| Median age | 29.8 (M: 28.8, F: 30.6) | 28.1 (M: 26.9, F: 29.1) | 27.6 (M: 27.2, F: 27.9) |
| Private dwellings | 629 (total) 487 (occupied) | 633 (total) | 635 (total) |
| Median household income | $94,000 | $73,370 |
Page Module:Historical populations/styles.css has no content.
Historical census populations – Moosonee | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Population figures based on revised counts. Population counts are not adjusted for boundary changes. Source: Statistics Canada[3][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Attractions and tourism
Tourism agencies recommend the Polar Bear Express as a "great rail excursion" in summer, between Cochrane and Moosonee, to view the "hydroelectric dams, isolated homes and perhaps even some wildlife."[27]
A private company offers freighter-canoe ferry across the Moose River to Moose Factory where Centennial Park exhibits 19th-century buildings from the fur-trading era.[28]
Notable attractions in Moosonee include:
- Railway Car Museum – displaying the cultural history of the area in an old Baggage Car of the Temiskaming & Northern Ontario Railway.
- MNR Interpretive Centre – displays and videos at the office of the Ministry of Natural Resources highlighting the wildlife, geological, and geographical features of the region.
- Excursions to the bird sanctuaries of Shipsands Island and the Southern James Bay.
The Tidewater Provincial Park is on nearby Charles Island, adjacent to Moose Factory Island.
Christ the King Basilica is a Roman Catholic minor basilica that served as the cathedral of the Diocese of Moosonee (1936–2018).
Services
Moosonee has two elementary schools, Moosonee Public School and Bishop Belleau Separate School (Roman Catholic) that offer kindergarten through grade eight. Bishop Belleau School also provides a French Language Instructional Unit for children who are entitled to be educated in French. There is a public high school, Northern Lights Secondary School, that provides grades nine through twelve. Northern College's Moosonee campus provides some post-secondary programs.
Health services are provided through the Moosonee Health Clinic of the Weeneebayko Area Health Authority (merger of the former James Bay General Hospital and the Weeneebayko Health Ahtuskaywin, which operated Weeneebayko General Hospital in Moose Factory).
Payukotayno (pronounced pay-k-ta-no) Family Services provide child care and social assistance to Moosonee, Moose Factory, Attawapiskat First Nation, Fort Albany First Nation, Kashechewan First Nation and Peawanuck. Payukotayno is a recognized Ontario Children's Aid society and means 'one family' in Cree.
As of 2020 a "satellite Trades Centre" was being operated in the community by Northern College "linked to the ... Timmins Campus"; courses included technology, trades and apprenticeship programs.[29]
Transportation
The town is billed as "a major transportation hub for Ontario’s Far North".[29]
As of 2020, the MV Niska 1 ferry was operating between Moosonee and Moose Factory island, carrying passengers and vehicles.[30]
Moosonee station and yard
Script error: No such module "Labelled list hatnote".
The main method of access is by Ontario Northland Railway, which reached the town in 1932 and provides passenger and freight train service to Cochrane.[11] Ontario Northland's Polar Bear Express train runs from Moosonee station to Cochrane station six days per week during the summer months and five days per week during the rest of the year. Moosonee station is located at the end of First Street and has a small station building, freight shed, diesel shed and an outdoor yard to store trains. Tickets are sold by phone or at the offices Cochrane, Moosonee, Moose Factory and Timmins. The train will stop on demand in some locations as part of the flag stop service.[31]
There are also two freight trains per week. During the summer and early fall shipping season, goods can be transported from Moosonee by barge. In January 2007, responsibility for the Port of Moosonee was transferred from the federal government to the Town of Moosonee. The Polar Bear Express Passenger Train transports cars, canoes, ATVs, and snowmobiles as long as they are booked in advance notice. It is one of only two motorail services in North America.
Airport
The town is also accessible via the Moosonee Airport, served with scheduled flights by Air Creebec, and Thunder Airlines,[6][7] and cargo service through North Star Air. In the summer months floatplanes can land at Moosonee Water Aerodrome
Roads
Moosonee is inaccessible by road. The nearest road outside of Moosonee ends at Otter Rapids, Template:Cvt south of Moosonee. During the early months of 2008, a winter road was open between Moosonee and the provincial road system at Otter Rapids. This road was built to support the twinning of the electric transmission lines that run from Otter Rapids to Moosonee. Local residents report it taking five or six hours to get to Timmins from Moosonee via Otter Rapids and Smooth Rock Falls. This road was not in service in 2009. In late 2009, members of the Moose Cree First Nation voted for the construction of a seasonal winter road south to Otter Rapids.
During the winter, ice roads are plowed and maintained on the ice across the Moose River to Moose Factory and winter roads are maintained to the coastal First Nations communities of Fort Albany, Kashechewan and Attawapiskat. In recent years, much of the traffic heading up north has been destined for the Victor Diamond Mine operated by De Beers Canada to the west of Attawapiskat.
In January 2021, the 311 km (193 mi) James Bay Winter Ice Road was under construction, to connect Attawapiskat, Kashechewan, Fort Albany and Moosonee.[32] It opened some time in winter 2021 and was said to accept loads up to 50,000 kilograms in weight. The road was operated by Kimesskanemenow LP, "a limited partnership between the four communities it connects".[33]
Feasibility studies have been undertaken on the construction of a permanent all-season road to the communities of Moosonee, Fort Albany, Kashechewan and Attawapiskat River.[34] The project, if undertaken, will entail a "coastal road" connecting the four communities with each other, as well as a road to link the coastal road to the provincial highway system at Fraserdale, Kapuskasing or Hearst.[35]
Communications
Moosonee has a local radio station, CHMO 1450 AM, that is generally operated by volunteers, plus a rebroadcasting facility for CBC Radio One Northern Ontario from CBCS-FM Sudbury on 1340 AM. Most homes subscribe to either Creecable cable TV or a satellite TV service to receive their programming, following the 2012 closure of the local CBC Television and TVOntario repeaters.
Ontera, formerly Ontario Northland Telecommunications, but now owned by Bell, provides telecommunications service in Moosonee (NPA-NXX 705-336).
Footnotes
Page Template:Reflist/styles.css has no content.
References
Page Template:Reflist/styles.css has no content.
- ^ Script error: No such module "Template wrapper".
- ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."2022 – 2024 Town Council". Retrieved 16 September 2023.
- ^ a b c d e Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population - Profile table - Moosonee, Town Ontario [Census subdivision] & Moosonee Ontario [Population centre]". Statistics Canada. 1 February 2023. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
- ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Moosonee, Ontario [Population centre] Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Government of Canada - Statistics Canada. Retrieved 15 July 2025.
- ^ a b c Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."About Ontario: Moosonee". Queen's Printer for Ontario. Archived from the original on 18 October 2012. Retrieved 22 December 2010.
- ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Air Creebec Destinations". Retrieved 16 September 2023.
- ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Thunder Airlines Flight Schedule". Retrieved 16 September 2023.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."TOWN OF MOOSONEE". Retrieved 15 March 2021.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Moosonee Community Profile" (PDF). Wakenagun Community Futures Development Corporation. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 22 December 2010.
- ^ a b c d Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Revillon Frères, The Moosonee Development Area Board, 2002
- ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Main Page". Town of Moosonee. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.James Marsh. "Moosonee". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved 22 December 2010.
- ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
climatewas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Canada, Environment and Climate Change (9 February 2011). "Canadian Climate Normals 1961–1990 Station Data – Climate – Environment and Climate Change Canada". climate.weather.gc.ca. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Moose Factorywas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."2021 Community Profiles". 2021 Canadian census. Statistics Canada. 4 February 2022. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."2016 Community Profiles". 2016 Canadian census. Statistics Canada. 12 August 2021. Retrieved 10 June 2019.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."2011 Community Profiles". 2011 Canadian census. Statistics Canada. 21 March 2019. Retrieved 9 February 2012.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.1986 Census: Population - Census Divisions and Census Subdivisions (PDF). Statistics Canada. September 1987. p. 60. ISBN 0-660-53450-9. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.91 Census: Census Divisions and Census Subdivisions - Population and Dwelling Counts (PDF). Statistics Canada. April 1992. p. 62. ISBN 0-660-57115-3. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.96 Census: A National Overview - Population and Dwelling Counts (PDF). Statistics Canada. April 1997. p. 101. ISBN 0-660-59283-5. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Population and Dwelling Counts, for Canada, Provinces and Territories, and Census Subdivisions (Municipalities), 2001 and 1996 Censuses - 100% Data (Ontario)". Statistics Canada. 15 August 2012. p. 13. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Use with caution (revision of 2001 population data". 16 December 2008. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), 2006 and 2001 censuses - 100% data (Ontario)". Statistics Canada. 20 August 2021. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), 2011 and 2006 censuses (Ontario)". Statistics Canada. 25 July 2021. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), 2016 and 2011 censuses – 100% data (Ontario)". Statistics Canada. 8 February 2017. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."EXPLORE & DO". Archived from the original on 2 March 2022. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Top 5 Kid-Approved Vacations in Ontario That Won't Break the Bank". 5 February 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
- ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Moosonee Campus". Retrieved 14 March 2021.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."MV Niska". Retrieved 15 March 2021.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Travelling on the Train". Archived from the original on 2 March 2022. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Construction of the James Bay Winter Road underway". 13 January 2021. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."The James Bay Winter Road is Open to Heavy Loads up io 50 000 kgs". Retrieved 14 March 2021.
- ^ "Ontario's far north one step closer to building all-season road". CBC Sudbury, 17 September 2017.
- ^ "All Season Road" Script error: No such module "webarchive".. Mushkegowuk Council.
External links
Page Module:Side box/styles.css has no content.Page Template:Sister project/styles.css has no content.
Page Module:Side box/styles.css has no content.Page Template:Sister project/styles.css has no content.
Template:Geographic location Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Navbox/configuration' not found. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Authority control/config' not found.
.jpg){kind=link}
