Riverton is an unincorporated urban community in the

Municipality of Bifrost – Riverton The Municipality of Bifrost – Riverton is a rural municipality (RM) in the Canadian province of Manitoba. History The municipality was incorporated on January 1, 2015 via the amalgamation of the RM of Bifrost and the Village of Riverton. It ...

within the

Canadian province Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North ...

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 ...

that held village status prior to January 1, 2015. It is located approximately 110 kilometres north 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 ...

. The

CPR Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is an emergency procedure consisting of chest compressions often combined with artificial ventilation in an effort to manually preserve intact brain function until further measures are taken to restore sponta ...

's train conductor is reputed to have named the community. Riverton is a descriptive which replaced the earlier name, Icelandic River. Icelandic River was named in 1875 by an Icelandic expedition as a prelude to Riverton. Originally known as White River, it appears on Arrowsmith's map of 1821, and as White Mud on Palliser's map of 1865. The main economy is

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

. The Freshwater Fish Marketing Corporation operates a fish-packing factory on the banks of the Icelandic River, which passes through the centre of Riverton. Other industries include

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

and the service sector, with manufacturing being done by ECB (Erosion Control Blanket) a distant third. Being in a unique position on the west shore of

Lake Winnipeg Lake Winnipeg (french: Lac Winnipeg, oj, ᐑᓂᐸᑲᒥᐠᓴᑯ˙ᑯᐣ, italics=no, Weenipagamiksaguygun) is a very large, relatively shallow lake in North America, in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Manitoba, Canada. I ...

, Riverton services the northern communities via a

winter road A winter road is a seasonal road only usable during the winter, i.e. it has to be re-built every year. This road typically runs over land and over frozen lakes, rivers, swamps, and sea ice.Proskin et al, 2011. Guidelines for the Construction an ...

. It is on the way to

Hecla-Grindstone Provincial Park Hecla-Grindstone Provincial Park is a provincial park in Manitoba, Canada, which includes Hecla Island, Grindstone (the area located on the mainland peninsula along the west shore of Lake Winnipeg), Black Island and a number of other small island ...

and many people from Winnipeg stop in or pass by the community on the way to

cottage country Cottage country is a common name in Ontario, New Brunswick, and other regions of Canada for areas that are popular locations for recreation, recreational properties such as cottages and summer homes. Cottage country is often socially, culturally, ...

each summer.

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 ...

, Riverton had a population of 475 living in 215 of its 254 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 538. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.

Education

* Riverton Collegiate Institute * Riverton Early Middle School

Notable people

Reggie Leach Reginald Joseph Leach (born April 23, 1950) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey right winger who played 13 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Boston Bruins, California Golden Seals, Philadelphia Flyers, and Detroit Red ...

, former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

player * Gunnar Thorvaldson, Conservative senator,

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The Senate is modelled after the B ...

Solar eclipse

Riverton was the closest community to the point of maximum totality for the

solar eclipse of February 26, 1979 A total solar eclipse occurred at the Moon's descending node of the orbit in North America on February 26, 1979. A solar eclipse is an astronomical phenomenon that occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly o ...

. This total solar eclipse was part of Saros cycle 120, Series 59. Riverton hosted astronomers and eclipse chasers from across the world, providing free rooms to many of the visitors.

References

External links

* {{Manitoba Designated places in Manitoba Former villages in Manitoba Populated places disestablished in 2015 2015 disestablishments in Manitoba Unincorporated communities in Interlake Region, Manitoba