Patuanak ()is a community in northern

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

, Canada. It is the administrative headquarters of the

Dene The Dene people () are an Indigenous group of First Nations who inhabit the northern boreal, subarctic and Arctic regions of Canada. The Dene speak Northern Athabaskan languages and it is the common Athabaskan word for "people". The term ...

First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...

reserve near Churchill River and the north end of

Lac Île-à-la-Crosse Lac Île-à-la-Crosse is a Y-shaped lake in the north-central region of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan along the course of the Churchill River (Hudson Bay), Churchill River. At the centre of the "Y" ...

. In Dene, it sounds similar to ''Boni Cheri'' (Bëghą́nı̨ch’ërë). The community consists of the Northern Hamlet of Patuanak with 64 residents governed by a

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, 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 responsibilitie ...

and 2 councillors and the adjoining Wapachewunak 192D reserve of the English River First Nation with 482 residents (Canada Census 2011). The reserve is governed by a Chief and six councillors. Patuanak is about 92 km (57 mi.) north of Beauval at the end of Highway 918.

History

Patuanak is located west of the Shagwenaw Rapids on the Churchill River. The community stretches for a mile and a half along the shoreline, with the reserve near the year-round open water below the rapids and the non-Treaty homes facing onto Shagwenaw Lake. Most of the families now at Patuanak traditionally lived down river at Primeau Lake, Dipper Lake and Knee Lake or Cree Lake. As in most northern communities, 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 ...

set up a store at Patuanak to replace those further down the Churchill River, which made Patuanak a fur-buying centre. In 1916, Father Louis Moraud became the resident priest of Patuanak and served the English River Band area until his death in 1965. The main denomination is

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 ...

. Patuanak's permanent population remained small until 1968 when all the people in the surrounding areas began moving in. In 1968, the school opened at Patuanak and many families moved in so their children could attend. Prior to 1968, the children were sent to the Indian Residential schools at Beauval and Ile a la Crosse, while their families went north to trap. The traditional activities of the people of Patuanak can be seen on all sides during visitations, such as moose hide tanning, beadwork of various sorts and birch toboggans. Patuanak people are employed in a wide variety of jobs such as the mines at Rabbit Lake and Key Lake, government jobs or Band office employed.

Cross Island

On April 27, 1885, during the

North-West Rebellion The North-West Rebellion (), was an armed rebellion of Métis under Louis Riel and an associated uprising of Cree and Assiniboine mostly in the District of Saskatchewan, against the Government of Canada, Canadian government. Important events i ...

, most of the personnel and dependants of the Hudson's Bay Company Post and the Roman Catholic Mission of Île-à-la-Crosse, who were alarmed at the looting of the Green Lake Post the previous day, fled to a small wooded island north of Patuanak and were helped by the Denesuline of the area. On May 24, the exiles erected a large cross on their island of refuge (now known as Cross Island ) and returned to Île-à-la-Crosse on May 29.

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population 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 ...

, Patuanak 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. Wapachewunak 192D is part of the English River Dene Nation. As of May 2012, the total membership of English River Dene First Nation was 1,451 with 774 members living on-reserve and 677 members living off-reserve.

References

{{authority control Division No. 18, Saskatchewan Indian reserves in Saskatchewan Northern hamlets in Saskatchewan Dene communities

History

Cross Island

Demographics

See also

References