Mackenzie, British Columbia
Encyclopedia
Mackenzie is a District Municipality within the Fraser-Fort George Regional District in central British Columbia
, Canada
. The settlement is located at the south end of Williston Lake
. The townsite, established by Alexandra Forest Industries, was named for Sir Alexander MacKenzie (1764–1820). Mackenzie's two main industries are logging
and tourism
. Sawmills, such as Canfor's
Mackenzie sawmill, are major employers in town.
; First Beach is used primarily for recreational swimming, and Second Beach includes a boat launch. Mackenzie has a ski hill just east of the main town and is 45 minutes away from Powder King
ski resort as well as Little Mac a small hill in town. Several lakes that are great for fishing spots.
Mackenzie Golf and Country Club is a challenging, semi-private, nine-hole golf course with a driving range and is within walking distance of most of the town, including the RV park.
(which also serves McLeod Lake
), and Mackenzie and Morfee Elementary Schools. The schools are operated by the Prince George School District (No. 57)
. Mackenzie also has several religious establishments, including a Sikh
temple and Catholic
, Baptist
, and Anglican churches, and a Living Joy Christian Center.
Mackenzie has its own Royal Canadian Mounted Police
detachment, a volunteer fire department and a municipal hospital.
reservoir, the largest dammed lake in British Columbia. Mackenzie is also home of the world's largest tree crusher.
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The settlement is located at the south end of Williston Lake
Williston Lake
Williston Lake is a reservoir created by the W. A. C. Bennett Dam and is located in the Northern Interior of British Columbia, Canada.-Geography:...
. The townsite, established by Alexandra Forest Industries, was named for Sir Alexander MacKenzie (1764–1820). Mackenzie's two main industries are logging
Logging
Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...
and tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
. Sawmills, such as Canfor's
Canfor
Canfor Corporation is a Canadian integrated forest products company based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The company traces its roots to the late 1930s, when brothers-in-law John G. Prentice and L.L.G. "Poldi" Bentley and their families left their native Austria just before the outbreak of World...
Mackenzie sawmill, are major employers in town.
Recreation
Mackenzie is a destination for outdoor sports enthusiasts. In the winter, Mackenzie hosts dog sled racing, cross-country skiing, and snowmobiling competitions. Morfee Mountain overlooks Mackenzie and is a popular destination for local hiking and an off-road vehicle destination. Mackenzie has a swimming pool, indoor and outdoor skating rinks, a curling rink, and two developed beaches on Morfee LakeMorfee Lake
Morfee Lake is approximately 1.5 kilometers from the Alexander Mackenzie Hotel. It is a short distance from the town of Mackenzie, British Columbia. During winter months ice fishing becomes the sport of choice....
; First Beach is used primarily for recreational swimming, and Second Beach includes a boat launch. Mackenzie has a ski hill just east of the main town and is 45 minutes away from Powder King
Powder King Mountain Resort
Powder King is a ski resort in the Pine Pass, which traverses the Hart Ranges of the Northern Rockies in northern British Columbia, Canada along Highway 97....
ski resort as well as Little Mac a small hill in town. Several lakes that are great for fishing spots.
Mackenzie Golf and Country Club is a challenging, semi-private, nine-hole golf course with a driving range and is within walking distance of most of the town, including the RV park.
Community Facilities
Community facilities include a recreation center that houses the public library, gym, pool, curling rink and ice rink. There is also an art centre, a museum, two shopping malls and three schools: Mackenzie Secondary SchoolMackenzie Secondary School
Mackenzie Secondary is a public high school in Mackenzie, British Columbia part of School District 57 Prince George. It is the only high school in the town of Mackenzie. The school opened in 1970. As of March 2010, the school has 240 students in grades 8–12....
(which also serves McLeod Lake
McLeod Lake, British Columbia
McLeod Lake is an unincorporated community located on Highway 97 in northern British Columbia, Canada, north of Prince George. It is notable for being the first continuously inhabited European settlement established west of the Rocky Mountains in present-day Canada...
), and Mackenzie and Morfee Elementary Schools. The schools are operated by the Prince George School District (No. 57)
School District 57 Prince George
School District 57 Prince George is a school district in central British Columbia. It covers a large area of the province around the city of Prince George. This includes communities of McBride, Valemount, and Mackenzie.-Schools:...
. Mackenzie also has several religious establishments, including a Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
temple and Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
, Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
, and Anglican churches, and a Living Joy Christian Center.
Mackenzie has its own Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
detachment, a volunteer fire department and a municipal hospital.
Tourist attractions
Mackenzie is less than 10 km east of Williston LakeWilliston Lake
Williston Lake is a reservoir created by the W. A. C. Bennett Dam and is located in the Northern Interior of British Columbia, Canada.-Geography:...
reservoir, the largest dammed lake in British Columbia. Mackenzie is also home of the world's largest tree crusher.