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magazine / so07 / indepth
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The Mackenzie Delta:
The people
Relive Lisa's week long adventure in the Arctic as she ventures
into new places, meeting new faces.
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Community profiles
Location:
67°26'N and 134°53'W |
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Fort McPherson
Fort McPherson lies along the east side of the Peel River, 121 kilometres to the south of Inuvik.
Founded in 1840 as a Hudson Bay Company trading post, Fort McPherson was home to the Gwich'in.
The area was first known as Teetl'it zheh, "the town at the head waters." The name
was derived from Teetl'it njik, the native name for the Peel River. By 1848 it was renamed
for the HBC's chief trader Murdoch McPherson. During the Yukon Gold Rush, the community
was a stop for many prospectors on their way to Dawson. In 1972, local resident Wally Firth
became the first northern Native Member of Parliament in Canada. Today, Fort McPherson is a
small community of 823, according to a 2005 Statistical profile.
Links:
Gwich'in Social & Cultural Institute - Fort McPherson
Statistics Canada - Fort McPherson
Location:
68°13'N and 135°00'W |
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Aklavik
Aklavik lies on the coast of the Peel Channel inside the Mackenzie Delta and was the hub
of Western Artic in the 1920s. A bustling community with a prosperous economy based on trapping
and fishing, it also became home to the RCMP headquarters, the Roman Catholic Mission and
a Hudson Bay Company Fur Trading Post. In the 1950s the community suffered from severe flooding
and erosion. As a result, the federal government looked for a new location for the town.
The new community, Inuvik, was constructed approximately 58 kilometres west. Many businesses
relocated to the new destination. However, many residents chose to remain in Aklavik. With
a population just over 700, the community is home to many Inuvialuit and Gwich'in who
continue the traditional lifestyles of hunting, fishing and trapping.
Links:
Gwich'in Tribal Council - Aklavik
Gwich'in Social & Cultural Institute - Aklavik
Statistics Canada - Aklavik
Location:
68°21'N and 133°43'W |
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Inuvik
Found at the end of the Dempster Highway, Inuvik was the new hub of Western Artic in the
1950s. Government planners favoured the area for its vast, even land and began construction
to replace Aklavik in 1955. In addition to housing all the government and businesses formerly
located in Aklavik, Inuvik has a hospital, school and airport. In the 1970s, the discovery
of oil and natural gas triggered a boom. However, the bubble burst when oil prices dropped
in the 1980s and the area Canadian Forces Base closed. Today Inuvik still plays the role
of government and transportation center of the area. It is now the largest town above the
Arctic Circle in Canada with a population of approximately 4,000.
Links:
Inuvik.ca - Inuvik Community
profile
Statistics
Canada - Inuvik
Gwich'in Social & Cultural
Institute - Inuvik
Legislative
Assembly of the Northwest Territories - Inuvik
Location:
69°27'N and 133°02'W |
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Tuktoyaktuk
With a community name that translates to "looks like a caribou," Tuktoyaktuk
was historically home to Inuit and to Alaskan whalers. In the 1890s, the community's
population was destroyed by influenza brought in by American whalers. Years later, the area
was repopulated by residents of Alaska and Herschel Island, and members of the Hudson Bay
Company who were setting up another trading post. By 1950, the town had a Christian mission,
a school and RCMP agency. There is limited access to the community – by air year round
through Inuvik, by barge in the summer and by ice road in the winter. Today's Tuktoyaktuk
prospers through the transportation, petroleum and resource exploration industries. Like
its neighbouring northern communities, the residents tend to lead traditional lifestyles
of hunting and trapping.
Links:
Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories - Tuktoyaktuk
Tuktoyaktuk Travel & Tourism
Location:
67°27'N and 133°44'W |
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Tsiigehtchic
Where the Arctic Red River and the Mackenzie River
meet sits a small town with a population of less than 200 – Tsiigehtchic. Historically
a summer fishing camp, the community also became a central trading point for the Gwichya Gwich'in
and the neighbouring Slavey and Inuvialuit. At the end of summer, residents would migrate to
the Richardson Mountains where they would spend the winter hunting, returning to Tsiigehtchic
for the summer fishing season. Over time a more permanent population established itself. A
trading post and church were erected in the town, and the construction of the Dempster Highway
brought several more residents. Today, they continue to make a living by trapping, hunting
and fishing.
Links:
Legislative
Assembly of the Northwest Territories - Tsiigehtchic
Gwich'in Social & Cultural
Institute - Tsiigehtchic
Statistics
Canada - Tsiigehtchic
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Between June and August, Inuvik residents have 56 days of 24 hour sunlight. In the winter, mainly in December, there are 30 days of sunless skies.
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