Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a province in western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dak ...
, Canada is a
town
A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world.
Origin and use
The word "town" shares an ori ...
in the
Assiniboine River
The Assiniboine River (''; french: Rivière Assiniboine'') is a river that runs through the prairies of Western Canada in Saskatchewan and Manitoba. It is a tributary of the Red River. The Assiniboine is a typical meandering river with a sing ...
Valley, where the Whitesand River joins the Assiniboine River. It is northeast of
Yorkton
Yorkton is a city located in south-eastern Saskatchewan, Canada. It is about 450 kilometres north-west of Winnipeg and 300 kilometres south-east of Saskatoon and is the sixth largest city in the province.
As of 2017 the census population of the ...
Highway 5
Route 5, or Highway 5, may refer to routes in the following countries:
International
* Asian Highway 5
* European route E05
* European route E005
Argentina
* National Route 5
Australia New South Wales
* M5 Motorway (Sydney)
* The De ...
Keeseekoose First Nation
The Keeseekoose First Nation ( oj, Giizhigoons Anishinaabeg) is a Saulteaux band government located in Kamsack, Saskatchewan. The band is named for Chief Kiishikouse (''kîšîkôns'', ''Giizhigoons'', "little sky"), who signed an adhesion to Tr ...
In 1904, land was surrendered from the Coté First Nation for the
Canadian Northern Railway
The Canadian Northern Railway (CNoR) was a historic Canadian transcontinental railway. At its 1923 merger into the Canadian National Railway , the CNoR owned a main line between Quebec City and Vancouver via Ottawa, Winnipeg, and Edmonton.
Man ...
station and the town site of Kamsack. Between 1905 and 1907 additional land was allocated, the northern sections of which were returned to
Indian reserve
In Canada, an Indian reserve (french: réserve indienne) 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."
In ...
status. In 1913 a further two-mile strip of land on the southern boundary was given, but returned in 1915 when it was identified the Coté people had lost too much of their best agricultural land. In 1963, further acres surrendered in 1905 were also reconstituted as reserve land. The interest in and surrender of land from the reserve’s southern boundary—nearest the Kamsack town site—resulted in part from speculation of its value for settlement.
The lands around what is now Kamsack were settled in the 1880s by a handful of agricultural settlers. The farming area around Kamsack was well settled by 1905. These farms consisted of a variety of ethnic groups which are still present to this day:
Doukhobors
The Doukhobours or Dukhobors (russian: духоборы / духоборцы, dukhobory / dukhobortsy; ) are a Spiritual Christian ethnoreligious group of Russian origin. They are one of many non-Orthodox ethno-confessional faiths in Russia a ...
,
Ukrainians
Ukrainians ( uk, Українці, Ukraintsi, ) are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe. The native language of the Ukrainians is Ukrainian. The majority of Ukrainians are Eastern Ort ...
,
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
ans,
Americans
Americans are the citizens and nationals of the United States of America.; ; Although direct citizens and nationals make up the majority of Americans, many dual citizens, expatriates, and permanent residents could also legally claim Ame ...
and Eastern Canadians were all among the early settlers to the area.
In 1903 the Canadian National Railway and Kamsack railway station were built which literally forced the birth of Kamsack. The town is still today served by
Via Rail
Via Rail Canada Inc. (), operating as Via Rail or Via, is a Canadian Crown corporation that is mandated to operate intercity passenger rail service in Canada. It receives an annual subsidy from Transport Canada to offset the cost of operating ...
passenger service.
The name Kamsack came from an early post office of the same name, which was located in one of the early settlers' homes.
The name "Kamsack" came from a native word meaning "something vast and large". In the 1900s, the Doukhobor village called Nadezhda (russian: Надежда, 'Hope'), some 15 km to the northwest of Kamsack, was the site of the annual general meetings of the Doukhobor community of Saskatchewan. By around 1910, the meeting site has shifted to the village of Veregin, some 10 km west of Kamsack, where a permanent Doukhobor central office was established.
The first buildings were constructed in 1904 along the north side of the Canadian National Railway
Right-of-way
Right of way is the legal right, established by grant from a landowner or long usage (i.e. by prescription), to pass along a specific route through property belonging to another.
A similar ''right of access'' also exists on land held by a gov ...
. These included a general store, drug store, pool room, hotel and post office. In the spring of 1905 the first school was opened in the Hallson building (named after a local businessman and town councillor). The village grew rapidly and by 1911 it had a population of over 500 people and was declared a town. The town continued to expand and by 1913 its assessment totalled C$1.2 million. In the summer of 1914 construction was started on the
waterworks
Water supply is the provision of water by public utilities, commercial organisations, community endeavors or by individuals, usually via a system of pumps and pipes. Public water supply systems are crucial to properly functioning societies. Thes ...
,
sewage system
Sewerage (or sewage system) is the infrastructure that conveys sewage or surface runoff (stormwater, meltwater, rainwater) using sewers. It encompasses components such as receiving drains, manholes, pumping stations, storm overflows, and scree ...
and electric light plant. By 1921 the population was in excess of 2,000 people and the expansion of services continued to take place.
During the depression years Kamsack suffered, as did all communities during the period, and as a result the town's population dropped to 1,800 people. This exodus of people was small compared to many other communities and Kamsack survived. During the summer of 1944 Kamsack once again faced adversity when it was hit by a
tornado
A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, altho ...
that is now referred to as the "Kamsack Cyclone." The devastation involved 400 homes and 100 businesses and caused over C$2 million damage. The rebuilding process began again with the help of the veterans returning from
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. As it turned out, this period turned into the biggest building
boom
Boom may refer to:
Objects
* Boom (containment), a temporary floating barrier used to contain an oil spill
* Boom (navigational barrier), an obstacle used to control or block marine navigation
* Boom (sailing), a sailboat part
* Boom (windsurfi ...
in the town's history.
This building period included business, public and residential sections of the town. Water and sewer systems were extended, streets were paved and cement sidewalks were built. The building boom continued right up to 1961 when the
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...
showed 2941 residents in the town. In the 1970s Kamsack saw its business district continue to grow with the arrival of the Royal Bank, the construction of the "Kamplex" (a dual purpose
hockey
Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...
and
curling
Curling is a sport in which players slide stones on a sheet of ice toward a target area which is segmented into four concentric circles. It is related to bowls, boules, and shuffleboard. Two teams, each with four players, take turns slidi ...
rink
Rink may refer to:
* Ice rink, a surface of ice used for ice skating
** Figure skating rink, an ice rink designed for figure skating
** Ice hockey rink, an ice rink designed for ice hockey
** Speed skating rink, an ice rink designed for speed ska ...
) and construction began on the new hospital.
Demographics
In the
2021 Census of Population
The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sli ...
conducted by Statistics Canada, Kamsack had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.
Shellmouth Reservoir
The Shellmouth Reservoir (also known as Lake of the Prairies) is a man-made reservoir on the Assiniboine River in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, Canada.
The Shellmouth Dam () is a multi-purpose, embankment dam built by the Prairie Farm Rehabilitatio ...
The public schools in Kamsack are part of Good Spirit School Division. Victoria School offers Pre-Kindergarten to Grade 4 and Kamsack Comprehensive Institute offers grades 5 to 12.
Parkland Regional College offers post-secondary education, SIAST and general interest classes.
People
Notable residents of Kamsack have included writers Eleanor Coerr,
Myrna Dey
Myrna Dey is a Canadian writer, whose debut novel ''Extensions'' was a longlisted nominee for the 2011 Scotiabank Giller Prize.John Newlove, jurist Wilbur Jackett and hockey players Jack Church,
Darcy Hordichuk
Darcy Hordichuk (born August 10, 1980) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey winger. He has previously played for the Vancouver Canucks, Nashville Predators, Atlanta Thrashers, Phoenix Coyotes, Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers.
Pla ...
,
Harold Phillipoff
Harold Michael Phillipoff (born February 14, 1956) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey left winger. He was drafted in the first round, 10th overall, by the Atlanta Flames in the 1976 NHL Amateur Draft. He played in 141 games in the Nati ...
List of place names in Canada of Indigenous origin
This list of place names in Canada of Indigenous origin contains Canadian places whose names originate from the words of the First Nations, Métis, or Inuit, collectively referred to as Indigenous Peoples. When possible the original word or phr ...