Timiskaming is a First Nations reserve in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue

Abitibi-Témiscamingue

Abitibi-Témiscamingue is a region located in western Quebec, Canada, along the border with Ontario. It became part of the province in 1898. It has a land area of 57,674.26 km2 . As of the 2006 census, the population of the region was 143,872 inhabitants.-History:The land was first occupied...

 region of Quebec

Quebec

Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....

, Canada, just north of the head of Lake Timiskaming

Lake Timiskaming

Lake Timiskaming is a large freshwater lake on the provincial border between Ontario and Quebec, Canada. The lake, which forms part of the Ottawa River, is in length and covers an area of almost . Its water level ranges between and above sea-level, with a mean annual average of . The lake is...

. It belongs to the Timiskaming First Nation, an Algonquin band. It is geographically within the Témiscamingue Regional County Municipality

Témiscamingue Regional County Municipality, Quebec

Témiscamingue is a county regional municipality in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region of western Quebec, Canada. The county seat is Ville-Marie....

 but administratively not part of it.

History

In 1853, following the proposed distribution by Commissioner of Crown Lands John Rolph, the Governor General in Council assigned the Nipissing, Algonquin, and Ottawa Indians of the Timiscaming region a reserve of 38400 acres (15,539.9 ha), located along the Ottawa River

Ottawa River

The Ottawa River is a river in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. For most of its length, it now defines the border between these two provinces.-Geography:...

, and originally known as Temiscamingue Reserve. But piece-by-piece, the reserve was reduced in size when the Indians ceded lots back to the government in 1897, 1898, every year from 1905 to 1917, 1939, 1953, and 1955. But many of these surrenders are now being disputed.

On July 30, 2002, the reserve's name was changed to Timiskaming.

Demographics

As of December 2009, the band counted 1672 members, of which 609 persons are living in the community.

Population trend:

• Population in 2006: 505 (2001 to 2006 population change: -5.4 %)
• Population in 2001: 549 (or 534 when adjusted to 2006 boundary)
• Population in 1996: 478
• Population in 1991: 361

Private dwellings occupied by usual residents: 170 (total dwellings: 193)

Mother tongue:

• English as first language: 80.2 %
• French as first language: 10.4 %
• English and French as first language: 0 %
• Other as first language: 9.4 %

Economy

The reserve's economy is tied to the adjacent town of Notre-Dame-du-Nord and mostly based on logging, farming, construction, and tourism. There are about 15 enterprises on the reserve. The Timiskaming First Nation administration employs about 70 persons.

Education

There is only one school on the reserve: Kiwetin School, providing pre-Kindergarten to secondary grade 2. It had an enrolment of 65 students in 2008-2009.