Patuanak, Saskatchewan
Encyclopedia
Patuanak is a Dene
reserve
near the Churchill River
. In Dene, it sounds like Boni Cheri.
It is 89 kilometres north of Beauval, Saskatchewan
.
As in most northern communities, the Hudson's Bay Company set up a store at Patuanak to replace the ones further down the Churchill River therefore Patuanak became a fur-buying centre.
In 1916 Father Louis Moraud became the resident priest of Patuanak and served the English River Band area until his death in 1965. The main denomination is Roman Catholic.
Patuanak's permanent population remained small until 1968 when all the people in the surrounding areas began moving in.
In 1968, the school opened at Patuanak and many families moved in so their children could attend. Prior to 1968, the children were sent to the mission schools at Beauval and Ile a la Crosse, while their families went north to trap.
The traditional activities of the people of Patuanak can be seen on all sides during visitations, such as moose hide tanning, beadwork of various sorts and birch toboggans.
Patuanak people are employed in a wide variety of jobs such as the mines at Rabbit Lake and Key Lake, government jobs or Band office employed.
The quality of life in Patuanak owes much in the way residents have combined their cultural past with today's new opportunities.
English River First Nation
Dene
The Dene are an aboriginal group of First Nations who live in the northern boreal and Arctic regions of Canada. The Dené speak Northern Athabaskan languages. Dene is the common Athabaskan word for "people" . The term "Dene" has two usages...
reserve
Indian reserve
In Canada, an Indian reserve is specified by the Indian Act as a "tract of land, the legal title to which is vested in Her Majesty, that has been set apart by Her Majesty for the use and benefit of a band." The Act also specifies that land reserved for the use and benefit of a band which is not...
near the Churchill River
Churchill River (Hudson Bay)
The Churchill River is a major river in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Canada. From the head of the Churchill Lake it is 1,609 km long. It was named after John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough and governor of the Hudson's Bay Company from 1685 to 1691...
. In Dene, it sounds like Boni Cheri.
It is 89 kilometres north of Beauval, Saskatchewan
Beauval, Saskatchewan
Beauval, Saskatchewan is a small community located in Northern Saskatchewan, Canada. It was founded in the early 20th century as a Roman Catholic mission and as a transportation center.-History:...
.
History
A Dene community of about 800 people, Patuanak is located west of the Shagwanew Rapids on the Churchill River. The pleasant and spacious community stretches for a mile and a half along the shoreline, with the reserve near the year-round open water below the rapids and the non-Treaty homes facing onto Shagwenew Lake. Most of the families now at Patuanak traditionally lived down river at Primeau Lake, Dipper Lake and Knee Lake or Cree Lake.As in most northern communities, the Hudson's Bay Company set up a store at Patuanak to replace the ones further down the Churchill River therefore Patuanak became a fur-buying centre.
In 1916 Father Louis Moraud became the resident priest of Patuanak and served the English River Band area until his death in 1965. The main denomination is Roman Catholic.
Patuanak's permanent population remained small until 1968 when all the people in the surrounding areas began moving in.
In 1968, the school opened at Patuanak and many families moved in so their children could attend. Prior to 1968, the children were sent to the mission schools at Beauval and Ile a la Crosse, while their families went north to trap.
The traditional activities of the people of Patuanak can be seen on all sides during visitations, such as moose hide tanning, beadwork of various sorts and birch toboggans.
Patuanak people are employed in a wide variety of jobs such as the mines at Rabbit Lake and Key Lake, government jobs or Band office employed.
The quality of life in Patuanak owes much in the way residents have combined their cultural past with today's new opportunities.
External links
English River First Nation