Lac La Biche, Alberta

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For other uses, see Lac La Biche, Alberta (disambiguation).
Lac La Biche
Hamlet
Main street
Main street
Motto: Forestry Capital of Canada
Lac La Biche is located in Alberta
Lac La Biche
Lac La Biche
Location of Lac La Biche in Alberta
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Country  Canada
Province  Alberta
Region Northern Alberta
Census division 12
Municipal district Lac La Biche County
Founded October 4, 1798
Dissolved August 1, 2007[1]
Government
 • Mayor Template:Lac La Biche County Council
 • Governing body Template:Lac La Biche County Council
Area (2011)[2]
 • Total 6.20 km2 (2.39 sq mi)
Elevation[3] 560 m (1,840 ft)
Population (2011)[4][2]
 • Total 2,520
 • Density 407.8/km2 (1,056/sq mi)
 • Population centre 2,544
 • Population centre density 410.6/km2 (1,063/sq mi)
Time zone MST (UTC−7)
 • Summer (DST) MDT (UTC−6)
Postal code span T0A 2C0-T0A 2C2
Area code(s) -1+780
Highways Highway 55
Highway 36
Highway 881
Waterway Lac la Biche
Website laclabichecounty.com
Official name Notre Dame des Victoires / Lac La Biche Mission National Historic Site of Canada
Designated 1989

Lac La Biche is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada, within Lac La Biche County.[5] It is located approximately 220 kilometres (140 mi) northeast of the provincial capital of Edmonton, on the southern shore of Lac la Biche. Previously incorporated as a town, Lac La Biche amalgamated with Lakeland County to form Lac La Biche County on August 1, 2007.[1]

History

Historic voyageur highway

Statue of David Thompson
Lac La Biche Mission

Lac La Biche was on the historical voyageur route that linked the Athabaskan region to Hudson Bay. David Thompson and George Simpson used the fur trade route via the Beaver River from the main Methye Portage route that reached the Athabasca River.[6] David Thompson was the first known European to record his sojourn on Lac La Biche. Thompson, who referred to the lake as Red Deers Lake, arrived October 4, 1798 and built a trading post,[7] now known as Lac La Biche,[8] and overwintered there. He entered copious notes in his diary on the Nahathaway (the Cree), their customs, traditions, and the Western Forest Land, including the large supply of whitefish and beaver.[9]

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"The French-speaking element, mostly from Red River, coalesced around the Oblate mission that was established in 1853. It formed a community that was tightly knit, even though the influence of the church lessened and the trend was towards marrying out and establishing nuclear families. Living was largely off the land; logging and road work provided intermittent wage labour. Many of the adults were trilingual, speaking French and Cree as well as English."[10]

The Hudson's Bay Post at Lac La Biche was looted on April 26, 1885 during the Northwest Rebellion by members of Big Bear's band. Their plan to loot the nearby Roman Catholic Mission was stopped by the local Cree and Métis population.[11] Métis Scrip Records show many residents of the area were awarded scrip by the Government of Canada from 1885 until the 1920s.[8]

The Lac La Biche Mission is now a National Historic Site and Provincial Historic Resource. It was established in 1853 by Oblate missionaries and was the site of one of the first residential schools in Alberta.[12][13]

Demographics

According to Lac La Biche County's 2013 municipal census, the Hamlet of Lac La Biche, which comprises Ward 7,[1] had a population of 2,895 permanent residents.[14]

In the 2011 Census, the dissolved Town of Lac La Biche had a population of 2,520 living in 929 of its 1,038 total dwellings, a −8.6% change from its 2006 population of 2,758. With a land area of 6.18 km2 (2.39 sq mi), it had a population density of 407.8/km2 (1,056.1/sq mi) in 2011.[4]

As a population centre in the 2011 Census, Lac La Biche had a population of 2,544 living in 938 of its 1,047 total dwellings, a −7.8% change from its 2006 population of 2,758. With a land area of 6.2 km2 (2.4 sq mi), it had a population density of 410/km2 (1,063/sq mi) in 2011.[2]

In 2006, Lac La Biche had a population of 2,758 living in 1,169 dwellings, a 0.6% decrease from 2001. The former town has a land area of 6.18 km2 (2.39 sq mi) and a population density of 446.6/km2 (1,157/sq mi).[15]

Pertinent local ethnicities include the Lebanese, White Russians Old Believers, several First Nations reserves, and a French population.

Economy

The community is supported by the oil patch, logging, forestry, agriculture, and commercial fishing.

Attractions

Lac La Biche is home to the Lac La Biche Golf Course,[16] while numerous lakes and campgrounds provide outdoor recreation opportunities in the area, including Lakeland Provincial Park to the east.

Government

The Hamlet of Lac La Biche comprises Lac La Biche County's Ward 7.[1] Councillors Hajar Haymour and John Nowak represent Ward 7 on Lac La Biche County Council.[17]

Infrastructure

File:YLB.jpg
Aerial view of Lac La Biche (2010)
File:Lac la Biche from Lac La Biche.jpg
Lac la Biche from the west end of the community

Lac La Biche Airport (YLB) is located 1.5 NM west of Lac La Biche. It features a fully serviced 5,700 ft (1,700 m) by 100 ft (30 m) paved airstrip.

Education

The main campus of Portage College is located in Lac La Biche. The college has an ACAC hockey team named the Portage Voyageurs. The team's first season began in the fall of 2008.[18]

Northern Lights School Division No. 69
  • Vera M. Welsh Elementary School (K-3)
  • Aurora Middle School (4–8)
  • J.A. Williams High School (9–12)
  • Lac La Biche Off-Campus (8–12)

Media

Media outlets serving Lac La Biche and area include the Lac La Biche Post weekly newspaper[19] and the Big Dog 103.5 radio station.[20]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Thompson 1916, p. 304.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Barkwell 2013.
  9. ↑ Thompson 1916, pp. 304–305.
  10. ↑ Dickason 1999, p. 77.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Voyageur Athletics
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

Sources

  • Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  • Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  • Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. This is the full-text diary of David Thompson which includes numerous references to the Nahathaway in general and to the First Nations of the Lac la Biche region in particular. He describes their belief in life after death and consequences on the human soul for crimes and misdeeds.

External links

 Plamondon Fort McMurray Sir Winston Churchill Provincial Park
Athabasca Cold Lake
  Lac La Biche  
Boyle Vilna Bonnyville
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