Kenora (), previously named Rat Portage (french: Portage-aux-Rats), is a city situated on the Lake of the Woods in

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada, close to the

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

boundary, and about east of

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

by road. It is the seat of

Kenora District Kenora District is a district and census division in Northwestern Ontario, Canada. The district seat is the City of Kenora. It is geographically the largest division in Ontario: at , it covers 38 percent of the province's area, making it large ...

. The history of the name extends beyond the time of white settlers arriving in the region. The name Rat Portage had its origin in the Ojibwa name Waszush Onigum, which roughly translated, means portage to the country of the

muskrat The muskrat (''Ondatra zibethicus'') is a medium-sized semiaquatic rodent native to North America and an introduced species in parts of Europe, Asia, and South America. The muskrat is found in wetlands over a wide range of climates and habitat ...

s. A shortened and somewhat corrupted version, Rat Portage, was adopted by the Hudson’s Bay Company in naming their post, then located on Old Fort Island on the Winnipeg River. When the post was moved to the mainland and a town grew up around it, the name Rat Portage was assumed by the community. The town of Rat Portage was renamed in 1905 by using the first two letters of itself and the neighbouring towns of Keewatin and Norman to form the present-day City of Kenora. In 2001, the towns of Kenora and Keewatin as well as the unincorporated communities of Norman and Jaffray Melick amalgamated under the ''

Municipal Act, 2001 The ''Municipal Act, 2001'' (the Act) is the main statute governing the creation, administration and government of municipalities in the Canadian province of Ontario, other than the City of Toronto. After being passed in 2001, it came into force ...

''. Kenora is the administrative headquarters of the

Anishinabe of Wauzhushk Onigum Anishinabe of Wauzhushk Onigum ( oj, Wazhashk-Onigam Anishinaabeg) is an Anishinaabe First Nation in northwestern Ontario. Its reserves include Kenora 38B and the shared reserve of Agency 30. It is a part of the Anishinabeg of Kabapikotawangag Re ...

, Obashkaandagaang Bay, and Washagamis Bay

First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...

band government In Canada, an Indian band or band (french: bande indienne, link=no), sometimes referred to as a First Nation band (french: bande de la Première Nation, link=no) or simply a First Nation, is the basic unit of government for those peoples subjec ...

Toponymy

The name "''Kenora''" was coined by combining the first two letters of ''Ke''ewatin, ''No''rman and ''Ra''t Portage. The traditional

Ojibwe The Ojibwe, Ojibwa, Chippewa, or Saulteaux are an Anishinaabe people in what is currently southern Canada, the northern Midwestern United States, and Northern Plains. According to the U.S. census, in the United States Ojibwe people are one of ...

name of Kenora is Wazhashk-Onigamiing, meaning ''place of the muskrat portage'', corresponding to the older English name of the settlement, ''Rat Portage''. The nearby First Nation band of the

retains this name as well.

History

Kenora is situated on the traditional territory of the

Ojibway The Ojibwe, Ojibwa, Chippewa, or Saulteaux are an Anishinaabe people in what is currently southern Canada, the northern Midwestern United States, and Northern Plains. According to the U.S. census, in the United States Ojibwe people are one of ...

people. Among the earliest Europeans in the Lake of the Woods area was explorer and fur trader

Pierre Gaultier de Varennes et de La Vérendrye Pierre is a masculine given name. It is a French form of the name Peter. Pierre originally meant "rock" or "stone" in French (derived from the Greek word πέτρος (''petros'') meaning "stone, rock", via Latin "petra"). It is a translation ...

. The first European,

Jacques de Noyon Jacques de Noyon (12 February 1668 – 12 May 1745) was a French Canadian explorer and coureur des bois. He is the first known European to visit the Boundary Waters region west of Lake Superior. Jacques de Noyon was born on 12 February 1668, in T ...

, sighted Lake of the Woods in 1688. Pierre de La Vérendrye established a secure French trading post,

Fort Saint Charles Fort Saint Charles (1732) on Lake of the Woods was the second post built by La Vérendrye during his expansion of trade and exploration west of Lake Superior. It was located on Magnuson's Island on the Northwest Angle of Minnesota, 3.5 miles ea ...

, to the south of present-day Kenora near the current Canada/U.S. border in 1732, and France maintained the post until 1763 when it lost the territory to the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

in the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

. Until then, it was the most northwesterly settlement of

New France New France (french: Nouvelle-France) was the area colonized by France in North America, beginning with the exploration of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Great Britain and Spai ...

. In 1836 the

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business div ...

established a post on Old Fort Island, and in 1861, the Company opened a post on the mainland at Kenora's current location. In 1878, the company surveyed lots for the permanent settlement of ''Rat Portage'' ("portage to the country of the muskrat") — the community kept that name until 1905, when it was renamed ''Kenora''. KenoraOjibwaTepee

Kenora was once claimed as part of the Province of Manitoba, and there are early references to Rat Portage, Manitoba. There was a long lasting argument between the two provinces known as the Ontario-Manitoba boundary dispute. Each province claimed the town as part of their territory and the dispute lasted from 1870 to 1884. Although Ottawa had ruled the town part of Manitoba in 1881, the issue was finally taken up with the

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is the highest court of appeal for the Crown Dependencies, the British Overseas Territories, some Commonwealth countries and a few institutions in the United Kingdom. Established on 14 Augus ...

which eventually decided in Ontario's favour. Kenora officially became part of the province of Ontario in 1889. Boundaries were drawn up for the provinces and the

Northwest Angle The Northwest Angle, known simply as the Angle by locals, and coextensive with Angle Township, is a pene-exclave of northern Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota. Except for surveying errors, it is the only place in the contiguous United State ...

on Lake of the Woods which definitively drew the borders between Ontario, Manitoba, and the U.S. state of

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

. Gold and the railway were both important in the community's early history: gold was first discovered in the area in 1850, and by 1893, 20 mines were operating within of Rat Portage, and the first Canadian ocean-to-ocean train passed through in 1886 on the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

. Among the entrepreneurs attracted to the town was the Hon. JEP Vereker, a retired British army officer and youngest son of the 4th

Viscount Gort Viscount Gort is the title of two peerages in British and Irish history. Gort is a small town in County Galway in the West of Ireland. The original title was in the Peerage of Ireland and is extant. A viscountcy with the same title as the Irish ...

. Later, a highway was built through Kenora in 1932, becoming part of Canada's first coast-to-coast highway in 1943, and then part of the

Trans-Canada Highway The Trans-Canada Highway ( French: ; abbreviated as the TCH or T-Can) is a transcontinental federal–provincial highway system that travels through all ten provinces of Canada, from the Pacific Ocean on the west coast to the Atlantic Ocean o ...

, placing the community on both of Canada's major transcontinental transportation routes. The original barrier to the completion of the highway concerned the crossing of the Winnipeg River at two locations. The single span arch bridges are among the longest of their type in North America. During the

Prohibition era Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacturing, manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption ...

in the United States, the Lake of the Woods served as a smuggler's route for the transport of alcohol. In December 1883, there was a large fire in Rat Portage, rendering 70 of the town's then population of 700 homeless. The

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...

was won by the

Kenora Thistles The Kenora Thistles, officially the Thistles Hockey Club, were a Canadian ice hockey team based in Kenora, Ontario. Founded in 1894, they were originally known as the Rat Portage Thistles. The team competed for the Stanley Cup, the ice hock ...

hockey team in 1907. The team featured such Hall of Famers as Billy McGimsie,

Tommy Phillips Thomas Neil Phillips (May 22, 1883 – November 30, 1923) was a Canadian professional ice hockey left winger. Like other players of his era, Phillips played for several different teams and leagues. Most notable for his time with the Kenora T ...

, and Art Ross, for whom the

Art Ross Trophy The Art Ross Trophy is awarded to the National Hockey League (NHL) player who leads the league in points at the end of the regular season. It was presented to the league by former player, General Manager, and head coach Art Ross. The trophy has ...

is named. Kenora is the smallest town to have won a major North American sports title. Rat Portage is mentioned in

Algernon Blackwood Algernon Henry Blackwood, CBE (14 March 1869 – 10 December 1951) was an English broadcasting narrator, journalist, novelist and short story writer, and among the most prolific ghost story writers in the history of the genre. The literary cri ...

's famous 1910 story, "The Wendigo". On 22 November 1965, around 400 Aboriginal protesters, inspired by the

Selma to Montgomery marches The Selma to Montgomery marches were three protest marches, held in 1965, along the 54-mile (87 km) highway from Selma, Alabama, to the state capital of Montgomery. The marches were organized by nonviolent activists to demonstrate the ...

against white supremacy and racial discrimination in the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

, undertook a quarter mile march against anti-indigenous racism along Main Street to Legion Hall, where they expressed their grievances to the city's mayor and councilors. This march became widely referred to as Canada's first civil rights march. Husky the Muskie, Kenora, Ontario (0082)

Husky the Muskie, Kenora, Ontario (0082)

In 1967, the year of the

Canadian Centennial The Canadian Centennial was a yearlong celebration held in 1967 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Canadian Confederation. Celebrations in Canada occurred throughout the year but culminated on Dominion Day, July 1, 1967. Commemorative coins w ...

, Kenora erected a sculpture known as

Husky the Muskie Huskie the Muskie is the nickname of a outdoor sculpture depicting a muskellunge in Kenora, Ontario's McLeod Park. The first Huskie was constructed in 1967 as a potential Canadian Centennial project by Jules Horvath and Bob Selway from Deluxe Sign ...

. It has become the town's mascot and one of its most recognizable features. A dramatic bank robbery took place in Kenora on May 10, 1973. An unknown man entered the

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC; french: Banque canadienne impériale de commerce) is a Canadian multinational banking and financial services corporation headquartered at CIBC Square in the Financial District of Toronto, Ontario. ...

heavily armed and wearing a "

dead man's switch A dead man's switch (see alternative names) is a switch that is designed to be activated or deactivated if the human operator becomes incapacitated, such as through death, loss of consciousness, or being bodily removed from control. Originally a ...

", a device utilising a clothespin, wires, battery and dynamite, where the user holds the clothespin in the mouth, exerting force on the clothespin. Should the user release the clothespin, two wires attached to both sides of the pin complete an electrical circuit, sending current from the battery, detonating the explosives. After robbing the bank, the robber exited the CIBC, and was preparing to enter a city vehicle driven by undercover police officer Don Milliard. A sniper, Robert Letain, positioned across the street, shot the robber, causing the explosives to detonate and kill the robber. Most of the windows on the shops on the main street were shattered as a result of the blast. Later, Kenora Police submitted DNA samples from the robber's remains to a national database to identify him; however, the suspect was never positively identified. The importance of the logging industry declined in the second part of the 20th century, and the last log boom was towed into Kenora in 1985. The tourist and recreation industries have become more important.

Geography

Neighbourhoods

In addition to the former towns of Keewatin and Jaffray Melick, the city includes the neighbourhoods of Norman, Rabbit Lake, Rideout, Pinecrest, Minto, and Lakeside. Keewatin forms the westernmost section of the City of Kenora. Norman was a small community halfway between the village of Keewatin and Rat Portage. The Village of Keewatin was founded in 1877 while the Village of Norman was founded in 1892; both communities amalgamated with Rat Portage in 1905 to form the Township of Kenora. Keewatin eventually separated and was founded as a Township in 1908. The Jaffray Melick neighbourhood is the north-easternmost section of the City of Kenora. The Township of Jaffray was founded in 1894 and the Township of Melick in 1902; the two townships were amalgamated in 1908 as Jaffray and Melick, and renamed as Jaffray Melick in 1911. Compared to Keewatin, Norman, and Rat Portage, Jaffray Melick is the most rural community, with few retail stores and one golf course, Beauty Bay, on Black Sturgeon lake.

Climate

Kenora has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

''Dfb'') with warm summers and cold, dry winters. Its climate is influenced by continental air masses. Winters are cold with a January high of and a low of . Temperatures below occur on 45 days. The average annual snowfall is , which is lower than places to the east as it is influenced by the dry air of continental high pressure zones, resulting in relatively dry winters. Summers are warm with a July high of and a low of and temperatures above occur on 5.3 days. The average annual precipitation is , with most of it being concentrated in the summer months with June being the wettest month and February the driest. During the winter Kenora will get precipitation mostly in the form of snow, other forms of winter precipitation include ice, sleet, and freezing rain. Snow cover usually lasts from November till March, about 154 days or 42% of the year. The city frequently gets thunderstorms during the summer, averaging 24 days a year with thunderstorms. The highest temperature ever recorded in Kenora was on 11 July 1936. The coldest temperature ever recorded was on 20 January 1943.

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; french: Statistique Canada), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and cultur ...

, Kenora 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. The median household income in 2005 for Kenora was $59,946, which is slightly below the Ontario provincial average of $60,455.

Economy

Forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. Th ...

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...

and

mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic via ...

are the three largest sectors of the Kenora economy. The population balloons in the spring and summer to almost double the normal population when summer residents move in. The Lake of the Woods and numerous smaller lakes situated all around Kenora are the major draw for cottagers who summer here. Many are from the neighbouring province of Manitoba and the state of Minnesota.

Tourism

Kenora, a site of natural attractions, has visitors from all over the world year round. In the summer months visitors come to the area to undertake activities including swimming, biking, fishing, hiking, and boating. Kenora's tourist industry is also active during the winter months as visitors come not only to observe its natural environment but also to partake in ice fishing, snowboarding, skiing (both downhill and cross country) and snowmachining. Kenora has two travel information centres. One is the newly renovated (2011) pavilion, located on the Harbourfront (the blue and grey building on Bernier Dr). The second information centre, called the Discovery Centre, opened July 22, 2011, and serves visitors year-round from its location at 931 Lake View Drive (just off of highway 17 West aka the Trans Canada highway).

Arts and culture

The Lake of the Woods Museum and Douglas Family Art Centre are located at The MUSE. Harbourfront, a park on the shore of Lake of the Woods, hosts the city's annual winter and summer festivals, as well as concerts. Huskie the Muskie, a statue of a fighting

muskellunge The muskellunge ''(Esox masquinongy)'', often shortened to muskie, musky or lunge is a species of large freshwater predatory fish native to North America. It is the largest member of the pike family, Esocidae. Origin of name The name "muskell ...

, is located in McLeod Park. The city's downtown core has a public arts project, with 20 murals depicting the region's history painted on buildings in the business district. The city is home to a major international freshwater bass fishing tournament. Kenora is sometimes stereotyped as an archetypal "

hoser ''Hoser'' or ''hose-head'' is a slang term originating in Canada that is used to reference or imitate Canadians. The term "hoser", long used by certain groups of Canadians, is a comedic label given to someone that gained popularity and notoriety ...

" community, evidenced by the phrase "Kenora dinner jacket" as a nickname for a hoser's

flannel shirt Flannel is a soft woven fabric, of various fineness. Flannel was originally made from carded wool or worsted yarn, but is now often made from either wool, cotton, or synthetic fiber. Flannel is commonly used to make tartan clothing, blankets, b ...

. St. Alban's Anglican Cathedral is in Kenora. The now defunct

ice hockey won the

in 1907, making Kenora the smallest city to have ever won the trophy. Many local contemporary ice hockey clubs pay homage to the team by using its name, including the town's amateur, junior, and senior-level men's team.

Government

Kenora is represented in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

Eric Melillo Eric Melillo (born March 27, 1998) is a Canadian politician who was elected to represent the riding of Kenora in the House of Commons of Canada in the 2019 Canadian federal election. Melillo is the youngest Conservative MP ever elected in Cana ...

, and in the

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA, french: Assemblée législative de l'Ontario) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by ...

MPP MPP or M.P.P. may refer to: * Marginal physical product * Master of Public Policy, an academic degree * Member of Provincial Parliament (Ontario), Canada * Member of Provincial Parliament (Western Cape), South Africa * ''Merriweather Post Pavilio ...

Greg Rickford Greg Rickford (born September 24, 1967) is a Canadian politician. He is the Minister of Northern Development and Minister of Indigenous Affairs in the Executive Council of Ontario under Premier Doug Ford. He represents the Kenora-Rainy River r ...

of the

Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario The Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (french: Parti progressiste-conservateur de l'Ontario), often shortened to the Ontario PC Party or simply the PCs, colloquially known as the Tories, is a centre-right political party in Ontario, Canada ...

. Kenora has been served by two

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

s since the municipal amalgamation in 2000. Dave Canfield served from 2000 until 2006, when he was defeated by Len Compton in the 2006 municipal election; Compton did not run in the 2010 municipal election, however, and Canfield was re-elected as his successor. Some residents of Kenora, citing dissatisfaction with the level of government service provided to the region by the provincial government, have proposed that the region secede from Ontario to join the province of

Infrastructure

Transportation

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 ...

offers passenger service to

Redditt Redditt is an unincorporated community in Unorganized Kenora District in northwestern Ontario, Canada. It is on the MacFarlane River, and located at the northern terminus of Ontario Highway 658, north of Kenora. Redditt is also the name of ...

on the CN transcontinental rail line, approximately 30 minutes and north of Kenora. The CP transcontinental rail line passes directly through town.

Kenora Airport Kenora Airport is located east northeast of Kenora, Ontario, Canada. The airport is classified as an airport of entry by Nav Canada and is staffed by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) on a call-out basis from the Fort Frances-Internation ...

is located east northeast of the city centre. M.S. Kenora is a cruise located at the waterfront. Highway 17 passes through Kenora's urban core, and the Highway 17A Kenora By-Pass goes around the city. Both routes are designated as part of the

. Highway 658 extends northerly from Kenora to Redditt.

Kenora Transit Kenora Transit is a small public transportation system in the city of Kenora in Northwestern Ontario, Canada, close to the Manitoba border and less than east of Winnipeg. Service consists of three bus routes which operate between 7:00am and 6:3 ...

operates three routes, from Monday to Saturday, 7:00am to 6:30pm.

Health care

Kenora's hospital, Lake of the Woods District Hospital, has three facilities in the city: the hospital itself, Morningstar Rehabilitation Centre, and Mental Health and Addictions services, located in St. Joseph's Health Centre.

Housing

Since Kenora is one of two judicial districts in

Northwestern Ontario Northwestern Ontario is a secondary region of Northern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario which lies north and west of Lake Superior and west of Hudson Bay and James Bay. It includes most of subarctic Ontario. Its western boundary is the ...

, it has disproportionate housing shortage as people from across the region with little to no social support in Kenora are unable to find places to stay after release from prison or while waiting in the city before their court dates. The situation worsened in 2013, when the judge in the

Rainy River District Rainy River District is a district and census division in Northwestern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario. It was created in 1885. It is the only division in Ontario that lies completely in the Central Time Zone, except for the townshi ...

moved and the position and its responsibilities was transferred to Kenora.

Military

The federal government maintains an armoury (Kenora Armoury at 800-11th Avenue North) in Kenora for the 116th Independent Field Battery, RCA.

Education

Two school boards and a community college function in the Kenora Area. The

Keewatin-Patricia District School Board The Keewatin-Patricia District School Board (known as English-language Public District School Board No. 5A prior to 1999) oversees public education in the Kenora District of northwestern Ontario. Its jurisdiction includes a geographic area of 6,5 ...

operates one high school (

Beaver Brae Secondary School Beaver Brae (BBSS) (2016 population 600) is a secondary school situated in Kenora, Ontario, Canada. Beaver Brae Secondary School is home to grades seven through twelve and has 65 staff members. The school offers trades, college, and university l ...

) and four elementary schools (Keewatin Public School, Evergreen School, King George IV School, and Valleyview School). The

Kenora Catholic District School Board Kenora Catholic District School Board (KCDSB, known as English-language Separate District School Board No. 33B prior to 1999) is a separate school system serving the Kenora District in Ontario. The Kenora Catholic District School Board oversees e ...

operates one high school (Saint Thomas Aquinas High School) and three elementary schools (École Ste. Marguerite-Bourgeois, Pope John Paul II School and St. Louis School). The elementary school, officially named Pope John Paul II, amalgamated approximately 350 students from the former Mount Carmel and Our Lady of the Valley schools. École Ste. Marguerite-Bourgeois is a

French immersion French immersion is a form of bilingual education in which students who do not speak French as a first language will receive instruction in French. In most French-immersion schools, students will learn to speak French and learn most subjects s ...

school.

Confederation College Confederation College is a provincially funded college of applied arts and technology in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1967, and has campuses in Dryden, Fort Frances, Greenstone, Kenora, Marathon, Sioux Lookout, Red Lake a ...

has a Kenora campus and serves post-secondary and adult education needs in the city and surrounding area. Housed within the college is Contact North, which offers Kenora residents local access to university and college programs not directly offered by the college campus. Contact North is Ontario's most extensive distance education network providing access to education and training opportunities in remote locations of Northern Ontario through a network of access centres. Contact North works with 13 colleges and universities. There is also an Indigenous college and education facility added called Seven Generations, located in the building that once housed Lakewood Junior High School before becoming Seven Generations Education Institute. It prepares Indigenous and Non-Indigenous students for work within the community and surrounding region.

Geological Significance

One of Earth's earliest

supercontinents In geology, a supercontinent is the assembly of most or all of Earth's continental blocks or cratons to form a single large landmass. However, some geologists use a different definition, "a grouping of formerly dispersed continents", which leav ...

, a large landmass comprising several of today's

continents A continent is any of several large landmasses. Generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria, up to seven geographical regions are commonly regarded as continents. Ordered from largest in area to smallest, these seven ...

, predating

Pangaea Pangaea or Pangea () was a supercontinent that existed during the late Paleozoic and early Mesozoic eras. It assembled from the earlier continental units of Gondwana, Euramerica and Siberia during the Carboniferous approximately 335 million y ...

by 2.4 billion years, has been termed ''

Kenorland Kenorland was one of the earliest known supercontinents on Earth. It is thought to have formed during the Neoarchaean Era c. 2.72 billion years ago (2.72 Ga) by the accretion of Neoarchaean cratons and the formation of new continental crust. ...

'' by geologists, named after the Kenoran orogeny (also called the Algoman orogeny), which in turn was named after the town of Kenora, Ontario. In Kenora, rocks and geomagnetic evidence have been found which support Kenorland's creation approximately 2.72 billion years ago (2.72 Ga) as a result of a series of accretion events and the formation of new continental crust, demarcating the earliest identifiably known land on Earth.

Media

The major news source in Kenora is the ''

Kenora Daily Miner and News The ''Kenora Miner and News'' is a weekly publication based in Kenora, Ontario. The ''Miner and News'' is delivered free throughout the region every Thursday. The ''Miner and News'' is owned by Postmedia. The paper was formerly known as the ''K ...

'', one of Canada's smallest daily newspapers.

Radio

* FM 89.5 -

CJRL-FM CJRL-FM is a Canadian radio station, broadcasting at 89.5 FM in Kenora, Ontario. The station broadcasts an adult contemporary format branded as ''89.5 The Lake''. The station was originally launched in 1938 as CKCA 1420 kHz. In 1941, CKCA ...

("89.5 The Lake"),

adult contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...

* FM 93.5 - CKSB-7-FM,

Ici Radio-Canada Première Ici Radio-Canada Première (formerly Première Chaîne) is a Canadian French language, French-language radio network, the news and information service of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (known as Société Radio-Canada in French), the Public ...

(relays CKSB-10-FM,

) * FM 98.7 - CBQX-FM,

CBC Radio One CBC Radio One is the English-language news and information radio network of the publicly owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It is commercial-free and offers local and national programming. It is available on AM and FM to 98 percent of Ca ...

(relays CBQT-FM,

Thunder Bay Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario and the second most populous (after Greater Sudbury) municipality in Northern Ontario; its population ...

) * FM 104.5 - CKQV-FM-2 ("Q104"),

hot adult contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet ...

(relays CKQV-FM, Vermilion Bay)

Television

Kenora was Canada's smallest (and North America's second smallest) television market, served by only one television station,

CJBN-TV CJBN-TV, VHF analogue channel 13, was a Global- affiliated television station licensed to Kenora, Ontario, Canada. The station was owned by Shaw Communications under its cable systems unit, and was not part of the Shaw Media unit which was ...

channel 13, a

Global Global means of or referring to a globe and may also refer to: Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 1989 * ''Global'' (Todd Rundgren album), 2015 * Bruno ...

affiliate that ceased broadcasting in January 2017. The Kenora region is not designated as a mandatory market for digital television conversion. The

outlets of

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French-l ...

(

CBWT-DT CBWT-DT (channel 6) is a CBC Television station in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It has common ownership with Ici Radio-Canada Télé station CBWFT-DT (channel 3). Both stations share studios on Portage Avenue and Young Street in Downtown Winnipeg ...

Radio-Canada The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

(

CBWFT-DT CBWFT-DT (channel 3) is an Ici Radio-Canada Télé station in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, serving the province's Franco-Manitoban population. It has common ownership with CBC Television station CBWT-DT (channel 6). Both stations share studios o ...

), CTV (

CKY-DT CKY-DT (channel 7) is a television station in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, part of the CTV Television Network. The station is owned and operated by network parent Bell Media, and maintains studios on Graham Avenue (adjacent to the Canada Life Cent ...

(

CKND-DT CKND-DT (channel 9) is a television station in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, part of the Global Television Network. The station is owned and operated by network parent Corus Entertainment, with studios on the 30th floor of 201 Portage in downtown ...

) and

Citytv Citytv is a Canadian television network owned by the Rogers Sports & Media subsidiary of Rogers Communications. The licence of the original Citytv station, granted the callsign of CITY-TV by the CRTC on November 25, 1971 to Cable Television Ass ...

(

CHMI-DT CHMI-DT (channel 13) is a television station licensed to Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, Canada, broadcasting the Citytv network to the Winnipeg area. Owned and operated by Rogers Sports & Media, the station has studios at 8 Forks Market Road (nea ...

) are piped in via cable.

Notable people

Gary Bergman Gary Gunnar Bergman (October 7, 1938 – December 8, 2000) was a Canadians, Canadian professional ice hockey player. A Defenceman (ice hockey), defenceman, Bergman played in the National Hockey League, NHL, mostly for the Detroit Red Wings. He was ...

, former NHL and Team Canada 1972 player * Glory Annen Clibbery, actress *

Ralph Connor Ralph (pronounced ; or ,) is a male given name of English, Scottish and Irish origin, derived from the Old English ''Rædwulf'' and Radulf, cognate with the Old Norse ''Raðulfr'' (''rað'' "counsel" and ''ulfr'' "wolf"). The most common forms ...

, writer * Tim Coulis, former NHL player * Phil Eyler, politician * Silas Griffis, member of the

Hockey Hall of Fame , logo = Hockey Hall of Fame Logo.svg , logo_upright = 0.5 , image = Hockey Hall of Fame, Toronto.jpg , caption = The Hall's present location on Yonge Street since 1992 , map_type = , former_name = , established = 1943 , location = 30 Y ...

Peter Heenan Peter Heenan, (February 19, 1875 – May 12, 1948) was a Canadian union leader and politician, and also served as a cabinet minister at the federal and provincial levels. Early life Born in Tullaree, near Newcastle, County Down, Irelan ...

, municipal/provincial/federal politician *

Robert Hilles Robert Hilles (born November 13, 1951) is a Canadian poet and novelist. He was born in Kenora, Ontario and grew up at Longbow Lake, Ontario. He left there in 1971 to attend university and later studied at the University of Calgary, earning a ...

, poet *

Tom Hooper Thomas George Hooper (born 5 October 1972)''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005''. 5d: 2485. is a British-Australian filmmaker. Hooper began making short films as a teenager and had his first professional short, ...

, member of the Hockey Hall of Fame * Kyle Koch, former CFL offensive guard (Toronto Argonauts) *

Victor Lindquist Victor Carl Lindquist (March 22, 1908 – November 30, 1983) was a Canadian ice hockey player who competed in the 1932 Winter Olympics. Lindquist was born in Gold Rock, Ontario. Lindquist led the Winnipeg Hockey Club, the Canadian team which wo ...

, Olympic hockey gold medal winner (1932) *

, MP * Bob Nault, former MP and Indian Affairs Minister * Dennis Olson, ice hockey player * Tom Phillips, member of the Hockey Hall of Fame *

Mike Richards Michael Richards (born 1949) is an American actor best known for playing Cosmo Kramer in ''Seinfeld''. Michael Richards or Mike Richards may also refer to the following people: Arts and entertainment *Mike Richards (television personality) (born ...

, ice hockey player *

, MPP and Ontario Minister of Energy, Northern Development and Mines * Rick St. Croix, former NHL goaltender and assistant coach for the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

* Jacques Schyrgens, painter * Mike Smith, silver medalist in the decathlon at the 1991 World Championships

References

Bibliography

Notes

External links

* * {{Authority control Cities in Ontario Hudson's Bay Company trading posts Portages in Canada Single-tier municipalities in Ontario