Little Grand Rapids is a community in east central

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 ...

, Canada, near the

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

border. It is located approximately 280 kilometers or 173 miles north-northeast from

Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

. It is a fly-in community, with only a winter road. Planes fly into Little Grand Rapids Airport. It features a

Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; , GRC) is the Law enforcement in Canada, national police service of Canada. The RCMP is an agency of the Government of Canada; it also provides police services under contract to 11 Provinces and terri ...

detachment and a

Northern Store The North West Company Inc. is a multinational Canadian grocery and retail company which operates stores in Canada's western provinces and northern territories; the US states of Alaska and Hawaii; and several other countries and US territo ...

. It is at the mouth of the Berens River on Family Lake, which is part of the

Lake Winnipeg Lake Winnipeg () is a very large, relatively shallow lake in North America, in the Canadian province of Manitoba. Its southern end is about north of the city of Winnipeg. Lake Winnipeg is Canada's sixth-largest freshwater lake and the third- ...

watershed.

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 Statistics Canada (StatCan; ), 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 culture. It is headquartered in ...

, Little Grand Rapids had a population of 0 living in 0 of its 0 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 15. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.

History

In 1801, the

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), originally the Governor and Company of Adventurers of England Trading Into Hudson’s Bay, is a Canadian holding company of department stores, and the oldest corporation in North America. It was the owner of the ...

established a wintering post called Big Fall or Great Fall in the area, reporting to

Osnaburgh House Mishkeegogamang First Nation is an Ojibway band government ( First Nation) in the Canadian province of Ontario. Until 1993, the band was called the Osnaburgh First Nation, with various settlements at times being called New Osnaburgh, Osnaburgh Ho ...

. It operated until 1805, and again from at least 1816 to 1821. In 1865, the outpost was reestablished by William McKay, and was called Grand Rapid, named after the rapids on the Berens River. It was supplied from

York Factory York Factory was a settlement and Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) factory (trading post) on the southwestern shore of Hudson Bay in northeastern Manitoba, Canada, at the mouth of the Hayes River, approximately south-southeast of Churchill. York ...

until 1871, and then from

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

via

and the Berens River. In 1888, it became a full trading post and renamed to Little Grand Rapids in order to distinguish it from Grand Rapids post on the west side of Lake Winnipeg. In the early 20th century, the outposts at Pikangikum, Deer Lake, and Poplar River were operated from the Little Grand Rapids post. In 1921, the last

York boat The York boat was a type of inland boat used by the Hudson's Bay Company to carry furs and trade goods along inland waterways in Rupert's Land, the watershed stretching from Hudson Bay to the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains. It was named aft ...

was used to supply the post from Berens River. In 1941, a lightning fire destroyed all the buildings and the post was rebuilt half a mile to the east. In 1959, the post became part of the HBC Northern Stores Department, which was divested by HBC in 1987 to

The North West Company The North West Company Inc. is a multinational Canadian grocery and retail company which operates stores in Canada's western provinces and northern territories; the US states of Alaska and Hawaii; and several other countries and US territor ...

, which still operates a Northern Store in Little Grand Rapids.

References

{{Authority control Designated places in Manitoba Hudson's Bay Company trading posts Northern communities in Manitoba