Athabasca /ˌæθəˈbæskə/ (2021 population 2,759), originally named Athabasca Landing, is a town in northern Alberta, Canada. It is located 145 km (90 mi) north of Edmonton at the intersection of Highway 2 and Highway 55, on the banks of the Athabasca River. It is the centre of Athabasca County. It was known as Athabasca Landing prior to August 4, 1913.[6]
Athabasca
Athabasca Landing (1877–1912) | |
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Town | |
Town of Athabasca | |
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Motto: Gateway to the Great New North | |
![]() Town boundaries | |
![]() ![]() Athabasca Location in Athabasca County Show map of Athabasca County![]() ![]() Athabasca Location in Alberta Show map of Alberta | |
Coordinates: 54°43′11″N 113°17′08″W | |
Country | Canada |
Province | Alberta |
Region | Northern Alberta |
Planning region | Upper Athabasca |
Municipal district | Athabasca County |
Founded[1] | 1877 |
Incorporated[2] | |
• Village | May 18, 1905 (as Athabasca Landing) |
• Town | September 19, 1911 |
• Name change | August 4, 1913 |
Government | |
• Mayor | Colleen Powell |
• Governing body | Athabasca Town Council |
• CAO | Rachel Ramey |
• MP | Shannon Stubbs (Conservative - Lakeland) |
• MLA | Glenn van Dijken (UCP - Athabasca-Barrhead-Westlock) |
Area (2021)[4] | |
• Land | 17.79 km2 (6.87 sq mi) |
Elevation | 533 m (1,750 ft) |
Population | |
• Total | 2,759 |
• Density | 155.1/km2 (402/sq mi) |
Time zone | UTC−7 (MST) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−6 (MDT) |
Forward sortation area | T9S |
Area codes | 780, 587, 825 |
Website | Official website |
Of Cree origin. Early spellings: Araubaska (Peter Pond) and Athapescow (Arrowsmith). Various interpretations of the meaning: "where there are reeds" (Douglas); "meeting place of many waters" (Voorhis). Town was first called Athabasca Landing about 1889; name changed to Athabaska in 1904 and changed back to Athabasca in 1948. The provisional district of Athabasca was established in 1882, embracing the northern parts of modern Alberta and Saskatchewan.[7]
Unlike many other towns in Alberta, Athabasca predates the railway. It was the terminus of the Edmonton to Athabasca Landing trail.[8] Athabasca lies on a southern protrusion of the Athabasca River. During the fur trade era, when rivers were the principal means of transportation, the Athabasca–Edmonton trail connected two different drainage basins. The Athabasca River flows north and is part of the Mackenzie River watershed, which leads to the Arctic Ocean. Edmonton lies across a height-of-land on the North Saskatchewan River in the Nelson River drainage basin, which empties into Hudson Bay. Edmonton was in Rupert's Land but not Athabasca. The trail allowed goods to be portaged back and forth between river systems. Once agricultural settlement occurred, the trail served a similar purpose. Eventually, road and rail links would trace the same path.
The North-West Mounted Police stationed officers at Athabasca Landing for the summer of 1892, due to increased traffic on the trail.[9] Inspector D.M. Howard, and eight constables, built a permanent post in 1893.
A massive forest fire in August 1913 destroyed a good portion of the town, including 30 businesses. There was no loss of life. Rebuilding of the town began immediately.[10]
The Athabasca Heritage Society put up signs through the downtown as well as along the riverfront that explain and depict the history. It has also published a historical walking tour that is available from the town office, library and visitor information centre.
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Town of Athabasca had a population of 2,759 living in 1,155 of its 1,325 total private dwellings, a change of -6.9% from its 2016 population of 2,965. With a land area of 17.79 km2 (6.87 sq mi), it had a population density of 155.1/km2 (401.7/sq mi) in 2021.[4]
In the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Town of Athabasca recorded a population of 2,965 living in 1,194 of its 1,313 total private dwellings, a -0.8% change from its 2011 population of 2,990. With a land area of 17.65 km2 (6.81 sq mi), it had a population density of 168.0/km2 (435.1/sq mi) in 2016.[11]
The town is home to Athabasca University, a major centre for distance education and the town's largest employer.[12]
The town has three public schools under the jurisdiction of Aspen View Public School Division No. 78:
Local news is provided by the Athabasca Advocate, an award-winning weekly newspaper.[13] Athabasca's local radio station is 94.1 CKBA-FM, Boom.
Athabasca experiences a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfb) that borders on a subarctic climate (Köppen Dfc). The highest temperature ever recorded in Athabasca was 38.3 °C (101 °F) on July 18, 1941.[14] The coldest temperature ever recorded was −54.4 °C (−66 °F) on January 11, 1911.[15]
Climate data for Athabasca, 1981–2010 normals, extremes 1900–present | |||||||||||||
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Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 13.3 (55.9) |
16.1 (61.0) |
20.0 (68.0) |
31.7 (89.1) |
34.4 (93.9) |
34.5 (94.1) |
38.3 (100.9) |
34.5 (94.1) |
32.2 (90.0) |
28.9 (84.0) |
21.1 (70.0) |
15.0 (59.0) |
38.3 (100.9) |
Average high °C (°F) | −8.5 (16.7) |
−4.8 (23.4) |
1.2 (34.2) |
10.2 (50.4) |
16.8 (62.2) |
20.4 (68.7) |
22.7 (72.9) |
21.6 (70.9) |
15.9 (60.6) |
8.7 (47.7) |
−2.3 (27.9) |
−7.2 (19.0) |
7.9 (46.2) |
Daily mean °C (°F) | −13.4 (7.9) |
−10.4 (13.3) |
−4.3 (24.3) |
3.9 (39.0) |
10.3 (50.5) |
14.3 (57.7) |
16.6 (61.9) |
15.4 (59.7) |
9.9 (49.8) |
3.5 (38.3) |
−6.3 (20.7) |
−11.9 (10.6) |
2.3 (36.1) |
Average low °C (°F) | −18.1 (−0.6) |
−15.7 (3.7) |
−9.7 (14.5) |
−2.3 (27.9) |
3.8 (38.8) |
8.2 (46.8) |
10.5 (50.9) |
9.2 (48.6) |
3.9 (39.0) |
−1.7 (28.9) |
−10.4 (13.3) |
−16.5 (2.3) |
−3.2 (26.2) |
Record low °C (°F) | −54.4 (−65.9) |
−53.9 (−65.0) |
−43.9 (−47.0) |
−31.7 (−25.1) |
−12.2 (10.0) |
−7.2 (19.0) |
−5.0 (23.0) |
−6.7 (19.9) |
−15.0 (5.0) |
−26.7 (−16.1) |
−45.6 (−50.1) |
−48.9 (−56.0) |
−54.4 (−65.9) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 22.5 (0.89) |
14.9 (0.59) |
17.2 (0.68) |
25.7 (1.01) |
49.0 (1.93) |
87.4 (3.44) |
103.7 (4.08) |
58.1 (2.29) |
37.5 (1.48) |
22.1 (0.87) |
20.6 (0.81) |
20.0 (0.79) |
478.7 (18.85) |
Average rainfall mm (inches) | 0.6 (0.02) |
0.6 (0.02) |
1.4 (0.06) |
15.5 (0.61) |
46.5 (1.83) |
87.4 (3.44) |
103.7 (4.08) |
58.1 (2.29) |
37.1 (1.46) |
14.1 (0.56) |
1.9 (0.07) |
0.4 (0.02) |
367.3 (14.46) |
Average snowfall cm (inches) | 21.9 (8.6) |
14.3 (5.6) |
15.9 (6.3) |
10.2 (4.0) |
2.5 (1.0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0.4 (0.2) |
8.0 (3.1) |
18.7 (7.4) |
19.6 (7.7) |
111.4 (43.9) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.2 mm) | 8.3 | 6.5 | 6.6 | 6.4 | 9.7 | 14.0 | 15.2 | 12.4 | 10.4 | 7.4 | 7.0 | 8.9 | 112.8 |
Average rainy days (≥ 0.2 mm) | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 4.1 | 9.3 | 14.0 | 15.2 | 12.4 | 10.0 | 5.9 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 74.0 |
Average snowy days (≥ 0.2 cm) | 8.1 | 6.1 | 5.8 | 2.4 | 0.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.4 | 1.8 | 6.2 | 8.4 | 39.9 |
Source: Environment Canada[16][14][15][17][18][19] |
Health care is provided at the Athabasca Healthcare Centre.
In hopes of finding an alternate route to send its goods north, in the spring of 1874 the Hudson's Bay Company sent a scout to survey the terrain from Fort Edmonton to the south loop of the Athabasca River and the idea of Athabasca Landing was born.
In 1892 the first summer detachment of the NWMP began operating at Athabasca Landing, and in 1893, Inspector D.M. Howard, with eight constables, established a permanent outpost at Athabasca Landing to regulate the rapidly increasing northward traffic.
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