Deline, Northwest Territories
Encyclopedia
The Charter Community of Délįne is located in the Sahtu Region
of the Northwest Territories
, Canada
on the western shore of Great Bear Lake
and is 544 km (338 mi) northwest of Yellowknife. Délįne means "where the waters flow", a reference to the headwaters of the Great Bear River, Sahtúdé.
The population as of the 2006 Census
was 525, mainly Sahtu
Dene
people speaking North Slavey
. In 2009 the Government of the Northwest Territories reported that the population was 565 with an average yearly growth rate of -1.0 from 1996.
was discovered at the Eldorado Mine
, some 250 km (155.3 mi) away, on the eastern shore, at Port Radium
. During World War II
, the Canadian government took over the mine and began to produce uranium
for the then-secret American
nuclear bomb
project
. The town became a permanent settlement in 1952 with the building of a school.
The Dene from Délįne, who were conscripted as ore carriers, were not informed about the risks of radioactivity
or how to protect themselves. Most of those men who participated began to die of cancer
in the 1960s.
According to oral history, while canoeing on Great Bear Lake in the early part of the 20th century, a Délįne elder reached a precipice where he had a vision of a great city burning, of people who comported First Nations
features enduring great suffering. According to tradition, this precipice is where uranium was later discovered.
of the Hudson's Bay Company
as the staging area and winter quarters for Sir John Franklin
's second Arctic
expedition. It was constructed at one of the most productive Dene fisheries in the Mackenzie River
drainage basin
.
The original fort was excavated by the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre
in 1987. The excavation uncovered beads, rings, and buttons indicating the extent of trade between the Dene and Europeans. The site is protected by the Northwest Territories Archaeological Sites Regulations.
. Through the council they are in negotiations with the Government of Canada
for a land claims settlement.
s, a mother and two cubs, were seen in the community, which is 480 kilometres (298.3 mi) south of the Arctic Ocean
. The bears, which were harassing dogs, and posed a danger to local people were shot by a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
due to the lack of wildlife officers with tranquillisers. A biologist with the Government of the NWT
took samples from the bears, which are marine mammal
s and usually remain near the ocean. The biologist stated that the animals were starving and that they were unable to take fat samples and their muscles were starting to break down. A biologist with the University of Alberta
said that the unusual sighting was "...probably an indication of something changing broadly over an ecosystem,".
Sahtu Region
The Sahtu Region is one of five administrative regions in the Northwest Territories in Canada. The region consists of five communities with the regional office situated in Norman Wells. With the exception of Norman Wells the communities are predominately First Nations.-Communities:The Sahtu Region...
of the Northwest Territories
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada.Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, and Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
on the western shore of Great Bear Lake
Great Bear Lake
Great Bear Lake is the largest lake entirely within Canada , the third or fourth largest in North America, and the seventh or eighth largest in the world...
and is 544 km (338 mi) northwest of Yellowknife. Délįne means "where the waters flow", a reference to the headwaters of the Great Bear River, Sahtúdé.
The population as of the 2006 Census
Canada 2006 Census
The Canada 2006 Census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population. Census day was May 16, 2006. The next census following will be the 2011 Census. Canada's total population enumerated by the 2006 census was 31,612,897...
was 525, mainly Sahtu
Sahtu
The Sahtú are an Aboriginal peoples of Canada Dene people living in the vicinity of Great Bear Lake , Northwest Territories, Canada...
Dene
Dene
The Dene are an aboriginal group of First Nations who live in the northern boreal and Arctic regions of Canada. The Dené speak Northern Athabaskan languages. Dene is the common Athabaskan word for "people" . The term "Dene" has two usages...
people speaking North Slavey
Slavey language
Slavey is an Athabaskan language spoken among the Slavey First Nations of Canada in the Northwest Territories where it also has official status....
. In 2009 the Government of the Northwest Territories reported that the population was 565 with an average yearly growth rate of -1.0 from 1996.
Pitchblende
The area became prominent when pitchblendeUraninite
Uraninite is a radioactive, uranium-rich mineral and ore with a chemical composition that is largely UO2, but also contains UO3 and oxides of lead, thorium, and rare earth elements...
was discovered at the Eldorado Mine
Eldorado Mine
Eldorado Mine is located at Port Radium, Northwest Territories, Canada.It is also known as Port Radium, a name adopted for use at this specific site after 1942...
, some 250 km (155.3 mi) away, on the eastern shore, at Port Radium
Port Radium, Northwest Territories
Port Radium is a mining area on the eastern shore of Great Bear Lake, Northwest Territories, Canada. It included the settlement of Cameron Bay and the Eldorado Mine and Echo Bay Mine. The name Port Radium did not come into use until 1936 and at the time it was in reference to the region as a whole...
. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the Canadian government took over the mine and began to produce uranium
Uranium
Uranium is a silvery-white metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table, with atomic number 92. It is assigned the chemical symbol U. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons...
for the then-secret American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
nuclear bomb
Nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The first fission bomb test released the same amount...
project
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development program, led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada, that produced the first atomic bomb during World War II. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army...
. The town became a permanent settlement in 1952 with the building of a school.
The Dene from Délįne, who were conscripted as ore carriers, were not informed about the risks of radioactivity
Radioactive decay
Radioactive decay is the process by which an atomic nucleus of an unstable atom loses energy by emitting ionizing particles . The emission is spontaneous, in that the atom decays without any physical interaction with another particle from outside the atom...
or how to protect themselves. Most of those men who participated began to die of cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
in the 1960s.
According to oral history, while canoeing on Great Bear Lake in the early part of the 20th century, a Délįne elder reached a precipice where he had a vision of a great city burning, of people who comported First Nations
First Nations
First Nations is a term that collectively refers to various Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis. There are currently over 630 recognised First Nations governments or bands spread across Canada, roughly half of which are in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia. The...
features enduring great suffering. According to tradition, this precipice is where uranium was later discovered.
John Franklin
Originally called Fort Franklin (until 1 June 1993), it was constructed by Peter Warren DeasePeter Warren Dease
Peter Warren Dease was a Canadian fur trader and arctic explorer.-Early life:Peter Warren Dease was born at Michilimackinac on January 1, 1788, the fourth son of Dr. John Dease, captain and deputy agent of Indian Affairs, and Jane French, Catholic Mohawk from Caughnawaga...
of the Hudson's Bay Company
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
as the staging area and winter quarters for Sir John Franklin
John Franklin
Rear-Admiral Sir John Franklin KCH FRGS RN was a British Royal Navy officer and Arctic explorer. Franklin also served as governor of Tasmania for several years. In his last expedition, he disappeared while attempting to chart and navigate a section of the Northwest Passage in the Canadian Arctic...
's second Arctic
Arctic
The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...
expedition. It was constructed at one of the most productive Dene fisheries in the Mackenzie River
Mackenzie River
The Mackenzie River is the largest river system in Canada. It flows through a vast, isolated region of forest and tundra entirely within the country's Northwest Territories, although its many tributaries reach into four other Canadian provinces and territories...
drainage basin
Drainage basin
A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...
.
The original fort was excavated by the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre
Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre
The Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre is the Government of the Northwest Territories' museum and archives. Located in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada, the PWNHC acquires and manages objects and archival materials that represent the cultures and history of the Northwest...
in 1987. The excavation uncovered beads, rings, and buttons indicating the extent of trade between the Dene and Europeans. The site is protected by the Northwest Territories Archaeological Sites Regulations.
Land claims
Délįne is represented by the Deline First Nation and belong to the Sahtu Dene CouncilSahtu Dene Council
The Sahtu Dene Council is a council that represents the Sahtu people of the Northwest Territories, Canada. The council is in negotiations with the Government of Canada for a land claims settlement, the Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement, for the four Dene communities in the...
. Through the council they are in negotiations with the Government of Canada
Government of Canada
The Government of Canada, formally Her Majesty's Government, is the system whereby the federation of Canada is administered by a common authority; in Canadian English, the term can mean either the collective set of institutions or specifically the Queen-in-Council...
for a land claims settlement.
Polar bears
On 2 April 2008 three polar bearPolar Bear
The polar bear is a bear native largely within the Arctic Circle encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the world's largest land carnivore and also the largest bear, together with the omnivorous Kodiak Bear, which is approximately the same size...
s, a mother and two cubs, were seen in the community, which is 480 kilometres (298.3 mi) south of the Arctic Ocean
Arctic Ocean
The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region, is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceanic divisions...
. The bears, which were harassing dogs, and posed a danger to local people were shot by a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
due to the lack of wildlife officers with tranquillisers. A biologist with the Government of the NWT
Politics of Northwest Territories
The Politics of Northwest Territories involves not only the governance of the Northwest Territories but also the social, economic and political issues specific to the territory...
took samples from the bears, which are marine mammal
Marine mammal
Marine mammals, which include seals, whales, dolphins, and walruses, form a diverse group of 128 species that rely on the ocean for their existence. They do not represent a distinct biological grouping, but rather are unified by their reliance on the marine environment for feeding. The level of...
s and usually remain near the ocean. The biologist stated that the animals were starving and that they were unable to take fat samples and their muscles were starting to break down. A biologist with the University of Alberta
University of Alberta
The University of Alberta is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta and Henry Marshall Tory, its first president, it is widely recognized as one of the best universities in Canada...
said that the unusual sighting was "...probably an indication of something changing broadly over an ecosystem,".