Oka is a small village on the northern bank of the

Ottawa River The Ottawa River (, ) is a river in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. It is named after the Algonquin word "to trade", as it was the major trade route of Eastern Canada at the time. For most of its length, it defines the border betw ...

(''Rivière des Outaouais'' in French), northwest of

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Quebec, Canada. Located in the Laurentians valley on

Lake of Two Mountains Lake of Two Mountains (French: ''Lac des Deux Montagnes'') is part of the river delta widening of the Ottawa River in Quebec, Canada, at its confluence with the St. Lawrence River. Lake of Two Mountains has four outflows: Rivière des Mille Îl ...

, where the Ottawa has its confluence with the

St. Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (, ) is a large international river in the middle latitudes of North America connecting the Great Lakes to the North Atlantic Ocean. Its waters flow in a northeasterly direction from Lake Ontario to the Gulf of St. Lawren ...

, the town is connected via Quebec Route 344. It is located 50 km (30 miles) west of

. The area was first established in 1721 by

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Sulpician Fathers as a mission to serve the needs of Mohawk, Algonquin and Nipissing converts as well as of French settlers. In 1730, the mission site was moved about 1.5 km west along the shore to Pointe d'Oka (Oka's Point) close to where the first stone church was built in 1733, and around which church evolved the village that eventually became known as Oka. The Mohawks had been assigned to a west-side village that eventually became known as

Kanesatake Kanesatake () is a Mohawk (''Kanien'kéha:ka'') settlement on the shore of the Lake of Two Mountains in southwestern Quebec, Canada, at the confluence of the Ottawa and St. Lawrence rivers and about west of Montreal. People who reside in ''Kan ...

, but the Algonquins and the Nipissings had been assigned to an adjacent east-side village. Kanesatake's status is as interim land base within the meaning of the

Constitution Act, 1867 The ''Constitution Act, 1867'' ( 30 & 31 Vict. c. 3) (),''The Constitution Act, 1867'', 30 & 31 Victoria (U.K.), c. 3, http://canlii.ca/t/ldsw retrieved on 2019-03-14. originally enacted as the ''British North America Act, 1867'' (BNA Act), ...

, not as

Indian reserve In Canada, an Indian reserve () or First Nations reserve () is defined 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." ...

within the meaning of the

Indian Act The ''Indian Act'' () is a Canadian Act of Parliament that concerns registered Indians, their bands, and the system of Indian reserves. First passed in 1876 and still in force with amendments, it is the primary document that defines how t ...

History

Pre-crisis habitation

Oka is historically connected to the Sulpicians' two first Amerindian missions on Montreal island, the initial mission of La Montagne established in 1676 that was moved to Sault-au-Récollet mission established in 1696. This culminated in the King of France in 1718 granting the Sulpicians a concession named seigneurie du Lac-des-Deux-Montagnes with the view to relocating the Sault-au-Récollet Amerindian converts to new mission facilities located east of the Ottawa River at the confluence with Lac-des-Deux-Montagnes. The move from the Sault-au-Récollet mission to the Lac-des-Deux-Montagnes mission started in 1721 and was completed the next year. The Sulpicians' seigneurie du Lac-des-Deux-Montagnes was conditional on the Indians not abandoning the lands, failing which they would revert to the Crown, and was subject to the Sulpicians being indemnified by being given proprietorship of the land because of the need to construct a fort. Final concession was given in 1718. In 1721, under the direction of the Sulpician Maurice Quéré de Tréguron, Algonquin and Iroquois groups relocated on the north shore of Lac-des-Deux-Montagnes and on the east shore of the Ottawa River. The chosen site was advantageous for the conversion of the Indians and for their defense and that of the colony. To prepare their installation, the Sulpician M. Robert-Michel Gay, who was the mission Lac des Deux-Montagnes' first superior, made some clearing and built various buildings including a chapel, the missionary's house, a school intended for the Sisters of the Congregation Notre-Dame as well as cabins for the Indians. The Indian population increased considerably around 1727 when the Nipissings and the Algonquins of the Île-aux-Tourtes mission also came to the Lac-des-Deux-Montagnes mission site with their missionary Pierre-Élie Déperet. Between 1740 and 1742, seven oratories were established which are witness to the famous Calvary of Oka, work of the Sulpicians Hamon Guen and François Picquet. Francois dit Belleville (who arrived in Nouvelle-France in 1754) was the author of the bas-relief of the chapels of this pilgrimage site, which is the oldest in America. The missionary Louis-Urgel Lafontaine (1895–1930) was the last to preach in Iroquois anguageat the location. The Calvary was built by the Indians and only for them in order to evangelize them. The church, the presbytery and the outbuildings of Oka were set on fire on 15 June 1877. The present church was built between 1878 and 1883 according to the plans of the architects Perrault and Mesnard.

Oka crisis

In 1990, the small community gained international attention in what became known as the

Oka Crisis The Oka Crisis (), also known as the Mohawk Crisis or Kanehsatà:ke Resistance (), was a land rights, land dispute between a group of Mohawk people and the town of Oka, Quebec, Canada, over plans to build a golf course on land known as "The Pin ...

. It had approved development of a private golf course, to add nine holes and nearby luxury housing. The Mohawk of Kanesatake opposed this.: See timeline's notations in the 2 paragraphs immediately before and after March 11, 1990 event. Several years before the crisis the Mohawks had initiated and lost a land claim court case in which they tried to gain control of what they termed "historic land", land known from the early mission settlement as commons land, which including pasture land, "The Pines" forested land and a nearby aboriginal cemetery. The most recent claim had been in part rejected by the Federal courts. The Mohawks of Kanesatake initial response to the golf course development decision was to blockade a dirt road leading to "The Pines" land. The conflict escalated from there with the Sûreté du Québec enforcing on July 11 a Provincial injunction to dismantle this first barricade, which resulted in shots being fired on both sides, one SQ officer being killed, the SQ abandoning several of their vehicles and the Mohawk Warriors erecting a new barricade this time across Route 344, the main road access to Oka and Kanesatake.Riopel & Béland 2020. See timeline's notation for July 11, 1990 event. By the end of July, there were at least 1,000 people assembled in Oka's Paul-Sauvé Provincial Park in support for the Mohawks. Among them were delegations represented by Cree, Innus, Hurons-Wendats, Algonquins, Ojibwes, Micmacs and other Canadian First Nations people.Riopel & Béland 2020. See timeline's notation for July 29, 1990 event. During the confrontation lasting 78 days, the Quebec Police Force (Sûreté du Quebec) (and later Canadian Army units) confronted members of the

Mohawk nation The Mohawk, also known by their own name, (), are an Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous people of North America and the easternmost nation of the Haudenosaunee, or Iroquois Confederacy (also known as the Five Nations or later the ...

of the adjacent community of

. The latter were joined by other Mohawk and First Nations and Native American tribes. In addition, for several weeks, Mohawk at

Kahnawake The Kahnawake Mohawk Territory (, in the Mohawk language, ''Kahnawáˀkye'' in Tuscarora) is a First Nations reserve of the Mohawks of Kahnawà:ke on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River in Quebec, Canada, across from Montreal. Establi ...

blockaded the approach to the Mercier Bridge, a route that ran through their land. Negotiations finally led to the Mohawk re-opening the road. An SQ officer Corporal Lemay was shot and killed at a period of heightened tensions. Numerous people were arrested. The disputed area was acquired by the Canadian Federal Government as had been planned before the crisis. Development was stopped. Some in the media reported the Mohawks' opposition being based on the expansion of the golf course over what the Mohawks considered sacred land. This however was never the premise of contention. Instead, the dispute laid over persistent claims dating back to land right issues between the Sulpicians and Mohawks that related not to burial grounds or cemeteries, but to i) what was known as the commons lands including part of "The Pines", and, ii) that commenced at the onset of the British conquest, iii) the Mohawks allegiance to them, and, iv) the definite change of attitude of the Mohawks towards the French.

Geography

Oka is located 50 kilometers west of

, at the confluence of the

and the

lake of Two Mountains Lake of Two Mountains (French: ''Lac des Deux Montagnes'') is part of the river delta widening of the Ottawa River in Quebec, Canada, at its confluence with the St. Lawrence River. Lake of Two Mountains has four outflows: Rivière des Mille Îl ...

. Its territory covers a total area of 85.90 km2 of which 56.99 km2 is land and 28.91 km2 is water, mainly corresponding to lake of Two Mountains. The boundaries of the municipality are very complex because it encloses the Mohawk community of

, whose reserve is made up of several scattered lands, sometimes isolated from each other, within Oka itself. The municipality is completely crossed by route 344. From east to west, the road bears the names Chemin d'Oka, Rue Notre-Dame, Rue Saint-Michel and Rang Sainte-Philomène. The Rang de l’Annonciation, which crosses Oka from north to south, leads to the Oka-Hudson crossing. This allows to cross the

to reach the town of

Hudson Hudson may refer to: People * Hudson (given name) * Hudson (surname) * Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back * Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudson Rodrigues dos Santos, Brazilian f ...

and the Vaudreuil-Soulanges peninsula. The relief is marked by the Oka hills, which are part of the Monteregian Hills. Rather flat to the south, the center and north of Oka are characterized by hilly terrain. Its minimum altitude is 20 meters (at the lake of Two Mountains) while its maximum altitude reaches 238 meters (at the mount Bleu). The subsoil contains a

niobium Niobium is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Nb (formerly columbium, Cb) and atomic number 41. It is a light grey, crystalline, and Ductility, ductile transition metal. Pure niobium has a Mohs scale of mineral hardness, Mohs h ...

deposit. The land, for its part, is mainly occupied by large woodlands as well as agriculture. The Petite Rivière crosses the northeastern tip of the municipality towards the west. The territory is watered by the Serpents River and several other streams (Varin, Girard, Rousse). The Grande Baie marsh constitutes a wetland with ecological value. Around fifteen species of migratory birds in decline stay there.

Climate

Oka 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 cold ...

( Dfb) with warm, rainy summers and long, cold winters.

Demographics

Population trend: * Population in 2021: 3,968 (2016 to 2021 population change: 3.8%) * Population in 2016: 3,824 * Population in 2011: 3,969 * Population in 2006: 3,300 * Population in 2001: 3,194 * Population in 1996: 1,514 * Population in 1991: 1,658 * Population in 1986: 1,532 * Population in 1981: 1,541 * Population in 1976: 1,483 * Population in 1971: 1,446 * Population in 1966: 1,369 * Population in 1961: 1,375 * Population in 1956: 1,243 * Population in 1951: 1,110 * Population in 1941: 825 * Population in 1931: 664 * Population in 1921: 1,617 * Population in 1911: 1,601 * Population in 1901: 1,571 * Population in 1891: 1,466 * Population in 1881: 1,342 Private dwellings occupied by usual residents: 1,616 (total dwellings: 1,683) Mother tongue: * French as first language: 90.0% * English as first language: 5.2% * English and French as first language: 1.7% * Other as first language: 2.3%

Attractions

In the summertime, the community's long stretch of beachfront along the

and the

, and its

marina A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : "related to the sea") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo ...

draw people to the area from

and neighboring cities. Another attraction is the Abbey of Notre-Dame du Lac, famous for its Oka cheese produced by

Trappists The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (, abbreviated as OCSO) and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe, are a Religious order (Catholic), Catholic religious o ...

monks there. A small

ferry A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...

service operates between Oka and the town of

across the Ottawa River. During the winter months, a toll

ice bridge An ice bridge is a frozen natural structure formed over seas, bays, rivers or lake surfaces. They facilitate migration of animals or people over a water body that was previously uncrossable by terrestrial animals, including humans. The most signi ...

provides access on this route. There is also connection with the AMT Deux-Montagnes Train to and from Montreal's Central Station and Deux-Montagnes Station by the Oka Express

minibus A minibus, microbus, or minicoach is a passenger-carrying motor vehicle that is designed to carry more people than a multi-purpose vehicle or minivan, but fewer people than a full-size bus. In the United Kingdom, the word "minibus" is us ...

Infrastructure

Highway 344 passes through Oka. The Oka Express goes to the Deux-Montagnes station and Terminus Saint-Eustache

Education

The

Commission scolaire de la Seigneurie-des-Mille-Îles The Commission scolaire de la Seigneurie-des-Mille-Îles (CSSMI) is a former francophone school district in the Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. It comprises several primary schools and high schools across municipalities in the Laurentides reg ...

(CSSMI) operates French language public schools. Schools include: *

École secondaire d'Oka École secondaire d'Oka (ESO) is a public Francophone secondary school in Oka, Quebec, operated by the Commission scolaire de la Seigneurie-des-Mille-Îles The Commission scolaire de la Seigneurie-des-Mille-Îles (CSSMI) is a former francophone ...

* École des Pins Some portions are instead zoned to École de l'Amitié in Saint-Placide. The

Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board The Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board (SWLSB, , CSSWL) is a school board headquartered in Rosemère, Quebec in Greater Montreal. It officially came into existence in July 1998 when English-language schools from eight former school boards were amalg ...

(SWLSB) operates Anglophone public schools. Mountainview Elementary School and Saint Jude Elementary School, both in Deux-Montagnes, serve this community. Lake of Two Mountains High School in Deux-Montagnes is the zoned high school.LAKE OF TWO MOUNTAINS HS ZONE
"

. Retrieved on September 4, 2017.

References

External links

*
Official Website
{{Authority control Municipalities in Quebec Populated places established in 1721 Incorporated places in Laurentides Greater Montreal 1721 establishments in the French colonial empire Populated places on the Ottawa River