Selkirk, Manitoba
Encyclopedia
Selkirk is a city in the western Canadian
province of Manitoba
, located about 22 km northeast of the provincial capital Winnipeg
on the Red River
, near (50°08′37"N 96°53′02"W) . As of the 2006 census, Selkirk had a population of 9,515.
The mainstays of the local economy are tourism
, a local steel mill
, and a major mental health facility
. A vertical lift bridge over the Red River connects Selkirk with the smaller town of East Selkirk
. The city is connected to Winnipeg
via Highway 9
and is served by the Canadian Pacific Railway
. Like all places in Manitoba, Selkirk has telephone Area code 204
, and the city has the postal code
prefix R1A. The city mostly borders the Rural Municipality of St. Andrews
, except to the east, where it borders the Rural Municipality of St. Clements
across the Red River.
The city was named in honour of Scotsman
Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk
, who obtained the grant to first establish a colony in the Red River area.
. The first settlers of the Red River Colony
arrived in 1813. Although the settlers negotiated a treaty with the Salteaux Indians of the area, the commercial rivalry between the Hudson's Bay Company and the North West Company
gave rise to violent confrontations between the settlers and the trading companies.
In recognition of the Earl's importance in bringing settlers to the region, the town was named Selkirk and incorporated in 1882.
The Selkirk Mental Health Centre, the largest mental health facility in the province, is a major employer in the city. The Centre's surroundings are a park-like campus on the outskirts of the city.
Gerdau
, owned by Gerdau S.A. of Porto Alegre, Brazil, operates a steel minimill in Selkirk. This steel mill ( known locally as MRM or "The Manitoba Rolling Mills") is also a major employer.
Selkirk is advertised as the Catfish Capital of the World, due to the large amounts of catfish
in the nearby Red River. This nickname was part of an advertising campaign to entice American
anglers
, who travel to Manitoba to fish for trophy-sized catfish. Selkirk is also home to Chuck the Channel Cat, a fiberglass representation of a catfish that measures 25 feet (7.6 m) long. The name Chuck was chosen to honour local sport fisherman Chuck Norquay, who drowned while doing what he loved best — fishing in the Red River. After Chuck was built in 1986, the town council decided to place Chuck in front of Smitty's Restaurant on Main Street.
The Marine Museum of Manitoba
, a collection of historical marine artifacts of Lake Winnipeg and the Red River area, is located in Selkirk. Selkirk is also the site of a Canadian Coast Guard
base.
The Selkirk Fair and Rodeo is held annually to celebrate the area's agricultural history. It celebrated its 130th anniversary in 2008.
Selkirk has three community newspapers: The Selkirk Enterprise, The Selkirk Record, and The Selkirk Journal.
Amphibex excavator icebreakers were at work breaking up ice flows on the Red River in 2009. Ice breakers and backhoes were to be strategically placed along the Red River Floodway, which might have needed to be opened before the ice was fully melted. Officials examined past ice jams and provided contingency plans if the Floodway jammed upstream of bridges or on tight corners.
ice hockey team who play in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League
. They play at the Selkirk Recreation Complex
. Selkirk is also home to the Selkirk Fishermen Junior B hockey team who play in the Keystone Junior Hockey League. The Selkirk Rivermen Hockey Club plays in the SIHL.
A major sporting event Selkirk hosted was the 2007 Women's World Ice Hockey Championships
(as co-host with Manitoba
's provincial capital, Winnipeg
). Canada
defeated the rival United States
team 5–1 on April 10 in the MTS Centre
of Winnipeg. In 2009, Selkirk played host to the 2009 Telus Cup with the Winnipeg Thrashers as the host team. The winners were the Notre Dame Hounds
who shut out the Calgary Buffaloes 4–0.
Selkirk is also home to the independent Steeltown Pro Wrestling promotion.
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...
province of Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, located about 22 km northeast of the provincial capital Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
on the Red River
Red River of the North
The Red River is a North American river. Originating at the confluence of the Bois de Sioux and Otter Tail rivers in the United States, it flows northward through the Red River Valley and forms the border between the U.S. states of Minnesota and North Dakota before continuing into Manitoba, Canada...
, near (50°08′37"N 96°53′02"W) . As of the 2006 census, Selkirk had a population of 9,515.
The mainstays of the local economy are tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
, a local steel mill
Steel mill
A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel.Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon. It is produced in a two-stage process. First, iron ore is reduced or smelted with coke and limestone in a blast furnace, producing molten iron which is either cast into pig iron or...
, and a major mental health facility
Psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental hospitals, are hospitals specializing in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Psychiatric hospitals vary widely in their size and grading. Some hospitals may specialise only in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients...
. A vertical lift bridge over the Red River connects Selkirk with the smaller town of East Selkirk
East Selkirk, Manitoba
East Selkirk is a community in the Rural Municipality of St. Clements in the Canadian province of Manitoba. It is directly across the Red River from Selkirk, Manitoba....
. The city is connected to Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
via Highway 9
Manitoba Provincial Highway 9
Provincial Trunk Highway 9 is a provincial highway in the Canadian province of Manitoba. It runs from Winnipeg north to Gimli....
and is served by the Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
. Like all places in Manitoba, Selkirk has telephone Area code 204
Area code 204
204 is the North American telephone area code for the Canadian province of Manitoba, encompassing the province. 204 is one of the original 86 area codes assigned in 1947 in the contiguous United States and the then-nine-province extent of Canada....
, and the city has the postal code
Canadian postal code
A Canadian postal code is a six-character string that forms part of a postal address in Canada. Like British and Dutch postcodes, Canada's postal codes are alphanumeric. They are in the format A0A 0A0, where A is a letter and 0 is a digit, with a space separating the third and fourth characters...
prefix R1A. The city mostly borders the Rural Municipality of St. Andrews
St. Andrews, Manitoba
St. Andrews is a rural municipality in Manitoba, Canada. It is located to the north-east of Winnipeg and the Red River demarcates the eastern boundary of the municipality. St. Andrews contains the communities of Clandeboye, Petersfield, and Lockport . It is part of Manitoba census division 13....
, except to the east, where it borders the Rural Municipality of St. Clements
St. Clements, Manitoba
St. Clements is a rural municipality in Manitoba, Canada. It is located to the north-east of Winnipeg, stretching from East St. Paul and Birds Hill Provincial Park in the south to Lake Winnipeg and Grand Beach Provincial Park to the north. The Red River demarcates the western boundary of the...
across the Red River.
The city was named in honour of Scotsman
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk
Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk
Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk was a Scottish peer. He was born at Saint Mary's Isle, Kirkcudbrightshire, Scotland. He was noteworthy as a Scottish philanthropist who sponsored immigrant settlements in Canada at the Red River Colony.- Early background :Douglas was the seventh son of Dunbar...
, who obtained the grant to first establish a colony in the Red River area.
History
The present-day city is near the center of the 160,000 square mile (530,000 km2) area purchased by the Earl of Selkirk from the Hudson's Bay CompanyHudson'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...
. The first settlers of the Red River Colony
Red River Colony
The Red River Colony was a colonization project set up by Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk in 1811 on of land granted to him by the Hudson's Bay Company under what is referred to as the Selkirk Concession. The colony along the Red River of the North was never very successful...
arrived in 1813. Although the settlers negotiated a treaty with the Salteaux Indians of the area, the commercial rivalry between the Hudson's Bay Company and the North West Company
North West Company
The North West Company was a fur trading business headquartered in Montreal from 1779 to 1821. It competed with increasing success against the Hudson's Bay Company in what was to become Western Canada...
gave rise to violent confrontations between the settlers and the trading companies.
In recognition of the Earl's importance in bringing settlers to the region, the town was named Selkirk and incorporated in 1882.
Economy and tourism
Gerdau
Gerdau
Gerdau is the largest producer of long steel in America, with steel mills in Brazil, Argentina, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, India, Mexico, Peru, Spain, the United States, Uruguay and Venezuela. It also holds 40% stake in the Spanish company Sidenor and has a joint...
, owned by Gerdau S.A. of Porto Alegre, Brazil, operates a steel minimill in Selkirk. This steel mill ( known locally as MRM or "The Manitoba Rolling Mills") is also a major employer.
Selkirk is advertised as the Catfish Capital of the World, due to the large amounts of catfish
Catfish
Catfishes are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the heaviest and longest, the Mekong giant catfish from Southeast Asia and the second longest, the wels catfish of Eurasia, to detritivores...
in the nearby Red River. This nickname was part of an advertising campaign to entice American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
anglers
Fisherman
A fisherman or fisher is someone who captures fish and other animals from a body of water, or gathers shellfish. Worldwide, there are about 38 million commercial and subsistence fishermen and fish farmers. The term can also be applied to recreational fishermen and may be used to describe both men...
, who travel to Manitoba to fish for trophy-sized catfish. Selkirk is also home to Chuck the Channel Cat, a fiberglass representation of a catfish that measures 25 feet (7.6 m) long. The name Chuck was chosen to honour local sport fisherman Chuck Norquay, who drowned while doing what he loved best — fishing in the Red River. After Chuck was built in 1986, the town council decided to place Chuck in front of Smitty's Restaurant on Main Street.
The Marine Museum of Manitoba
Marine Museum of Manitoba
The Marine Museum of Manitoba, at Selkirk, Manitoba, was established in 1972 to gather ships, artifacts, and items relating to shipping, to tell the story of the development and the operation of transportation on Lake Winnipeg and the Red River...
, a collection of historical marine artifacts of Lake Winnipeg and the Red River area, is located in Selkirk. Selkirk is also the site of a Canadian Coast Guard
Canadian Coast Guard
The Canadian Coast Guard is the coast guard of Canada. It is a federal agency responsible for providing maritime search and rescue , aids to navigation, marine pollution response, marine radio, and icebreaking...
base.
The Selkirk Fair and Rodeo is held annually to celebrate the area's agricultural history. It celebrated its 130th anniversary in 2008.
Selkirk has three community newspapers: The Selkirk Enterprise, The Selkirk Record, and The Selkirk Journal.
Amphibex excavator icebreakers were at work breaking up ice flows on the Red River in 2009. Ice breakers and backhoes were to be strategically placed along the Red River Floodway, which might have needed to be opened before the ice was fully melted. Officials examined past ice jams and provided contingency plans if the Floodway jammed upstream of bridges or on tight corners.
Sports
Selkirk is home to the Selkirk SteelersSelkirk Steelers
For the American football team, see Pittsburgh Steelers. For other uses, see Steelers .The Selkirk Steelers are a Canadian Junior "A" ice hockey team from Selkirk, Manitoba, Canada...
ice hockey team who play in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League
Manitoba Junior Hockey League
The Manitoba Junior Hockey League is a Junior 'A' ice hockey league operating in the Canadian province of Manitoba. The MJHL is one of eleven Junior 'A' Hockey Leagues in Canada and is a member of the Canadian Junior Hockey League ....
. They play at the Selkirk Recreation Complex
Selkirk Recreation Complex
The Selkirk Recreation Complex is an arena located in Selkirk, Manitoba. It has been home to various junior, senior and minor hockey teams including the Selkirk Steelers. It co-hosted the 2007 Women's World Ice Hockey Championships with the MTS Centre in Winnipeg. The venue has a capacity of...
. Selkirk is also home to the Selkirk Fishermen Junior B hockey team who play in the Keystone Junior Hockey League. The Selkirk Rivermen Hockey Club plays in the SIHL.
A major sporting event Selkirk hosted was the 2007 Women's World Ice Hockey Championships
2007 Women's World Ice Hockey Championships
The 2007 Women's World Ice Hockey Championships were held between April 3, 2007 and April 10, 2007 in Winnipeg and Selkirk, Manitoba, Canada. There were no championships in 2006 due to the Torino Olympic tournament...
(as co-host with Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
's provincial capital, Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
). 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...
defeated the rival United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
team 5–1 on April 10 in the MTS Centre
MTS Centre
The MTS Centre is an indoor sports arena and entertainment venue in downtown Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada and home of the Winnipeg Jets of the National Hockey League. It is located on the former Eaton's site and is owned and operated by True North Sports & Entertainment. The 440,000 square feet ...
of Winnipeg. In 2009, Selkirk played host to the 2009 Telus Cup with the Winnipeg Thrashers as the host team. The winners were the Notre Dame Hounds
Notre Dame Hounds
The Notre Dame Hounds are a Junior "A" team based out of Wilcox, Saskatchewan. They play out of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League. The Hounds also had a Junior "B" team that played out of the South Saskatchewan Junior B Hockey League, but the team folded after the 2005-06 Season. The team...
who shut out the Calgary Buffaloes 4–0.
Selkirk is also home to the independent Steeltown Pro Wrestling promotion.
Demographics
Selkirk had a population of 9,515 people in 2006, which was a decrease of 2.4% from the 2001 census count. The median household income in 2005 for Selkirk was $42,502, which is below the Manitoba provincial average of $47,875.Places
- Selkirk—Red RiverSelkirk—Red RiverSelkirk—Red River was a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1988 to 1997....
former federal electoral district - Selkirk Water AerodromeSelkirk Water AerodromeSelkirk Water Aerodrome, , is an aerodrome located north of Selkirk, Manitoba, Canada....
- Selkirk AirportSelkirk AirportSelkirk Airport, , is located north of Selkirk, Manitoba, Canada....
- Red River TrailsRed River TrailsThe Red River Trails were a network of ox cart routes connecting the Red River Colony and Fort Garry in British North America with the head of navigation on the Mississippi River in the United States...
- Fort GibraltarFort GibraltarIn the early 19th century fur-trading was the main industry of Western Canada. Two companies had an intense competition over the trade. The first, the Hudson's Bay Company was a London, England-based organization. The second, the North West Company was based in Montreal...
fur-trading post destroyed by early Selkirk settlers - Fort Maurepas (Canada) fur trading post built 1734 near the present town
Sports
- Terry Ball hockey player
- Rich Chernomaz hockey player
- Paul Goodman (ice hockey)Paul Goodman (ice hockey)Paul Goodman was a Canadian ice hockey goaltender who played three seasons in the NHL with the Chicago Black Hawks. Mike Karakas, the regular goaltender was injured and unable to play game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals. Chicago used substitution goalie Alfie Moore. Moore won the game 3-1 over Toronto...
hockey player - Alfie MichaudAlfie MichaudAlfie Michaud is a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender who played briefly in the National Hockey League with the Vancouver Canucks...
Hockey player (goaltender) - Harry Oliver (ice hockey) hockey player
- Bullet Joe SimpsonBullet Joe SimpsonHarold Edward Joseph "Bullet Joe" Simpson was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who played for the Edmonton Eskimos and New York Americans. In 1932 Simpson was a member of the Winnipeg Hockey Club which won the World Championships and Olympic gold medal for Canada.He was born in...
Soldier, hockey player and coach who was flag bearer for Canada at 1932 Olympics - Jimmy SkinnerJimmy SkinnerJames Donald "Jimmy" Skinner was the Head Coach, Chief Scout and Farm Director, Director of Player Personnel, Director of Hockey Operations, Assistant General Manager, and General Manager for the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League.He is credited with starting the tradition of kissing...
hockey coach - Neil Wilkinson hockey player
- Andrew MurrayAndrew Murray (ice hockey)Andrew Murray is a professional ice hockey player who currently plays for the San Jose Sharks of the National Hockey League.-Playing career:...
hockey player
Politicians
- Duane Nicol, City Councillor 2002–Present
- David BjornsonDavid BjornsonDavid Bjornson was a member of the Canadian House of Commons from 1988 to 1993, serving in the 34th Canadian Parliament for the Progressive Conservative party in the Selkirk riding. By career, he is an electrician....
, Member of Parliament 1988-1993 - Gregory DewarGregory DewarGregory Dewar is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He is currently a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba.Dewar was born in Selkirk, Manitoba, the grandson of former Mayor Ben Massey. He was educated at the University of Winnipeg, and worked as a small businessman prior to entering...
Manitoba provincial politician - Ron FewchukRon FewchukRon Fewchuk was a member of the Canadian House of Commons from 1993 to 1997 at the Selkirk—Red River electoral district. He was a businessperson by career....
Member of Parliament 1993-1997 - Ed HelwerEd HelwerEdward Russell Helwer is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served as a Progressive Conservative member of the Manitoba legislature from 1988 to 2003...
member of the Manitoba legislature 1988-2003 - Hugh McFadyenHugh McFadyenHugh Daniel McFadyen is a lawyer and politician in Manitoba, Canada. Since 2006, he has been leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba and Leader of the Opposition in the Manitoba legislature. Following his party's loss in the 2011 election he announced that he would resign as...
, Manitoba politician, MLA - Howard PawleyHoward PawleyHoward Russell Pawley, PC, OC, OM is a Canadian politician and professor who was the 18th Premier of Manitoba from 1981 to 1988.-Personal life:...
, MLAMember of the Legislative AssemblyA Member of the Legislative Assembly or a Member of the Legislature , is a representative elected by the voters of a constituency to the legislature or legislative assembly of a sub-national jurisdiction....
Selkirk 1969-1988;Premier of Manitoba 1981-1988 - Sam UskiwSam UskiwSamuel Uskiw is a politician and political fundraiser in Manitoba, Canada. He was a New Democratic member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1966 to 1986, and served as a cabinet minister in the governments of Edward Schreyer and Howard Pawley...
Manitoba politician, born in East Selkirk
General
- Ellen ReidEllen ReidEllen Reid provides backing vocals, piano, keyboards and accordion for the Canadian rock band Crash Test Dummies....
Keyboard player for the Canadian rock band Crash Test Dummies. - Trevor BorisTrevor BorisTrevor Boris is an Canadian comedian and writer from Winnipeg, Manitoba.-Television work:Boris is one of the stars of MuchMusic's Video on Trial, and is also a star of Stars Gone Wild...
comedian - Robert Atkinson DavisRobert Atkinson DavisRobert Atkinson Davis was a businessman and Manitoba politician who served as the fourth Premier of Manitoba....
businessman and politician, supported running the railway through Winnipeg instead of Selkirk - The Farrell Bros.The Farrell Bros.The Farrell Brothers are a rockabilly group from Selkirk, Manitoba, Canada. They also recently contributed a track to The Clash tribute album.-Current members:* Gordie Farrell - upright bass / Vocals /Guitar* Shawn Farrell- Guitar / Vocals...
rockabillyRockabillyRockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music, dating to the early 1950s.The term rockabilly is a portmanteau of rock and hillbilly, the latter a reference to the country music that contributed strongly to the style's development...
(music) group - John Tanner (narrator)John Tanner (narrator)John Tanner was captured by Shawnee American Indians as a child of ten, after his family had moved to territory on the Ohio River in present-day Kentucky. He grew up with the Ojibwa nation, becoming fully acculturated and learning the Saulteaux language...
explorer, guide, worked for the Selkirk colony - Paul ThorlaksonPaul ThorlaksonPaul Henrik Thorbjorn Thorlakson, CC was a Canadian physician and Chancellor of the University of Winnipeg....
Soldier, surgeon, Order of CanadaOrder of CanadaThe Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
, co-founder of the Winnipeg Clinic - Kevin PattersonKevin PattersonKevin Patterson is a Canadian medical doctor and writer. His short story collection, Country of Cold, won the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize in 2003...
doctor, writer, grew up in Selkirk - Sherisse StevensSherisse StevensSherisse Stevens is a singer and entertainer.From 1978 to 1983 she hosted the show "Circus" on CTV in Canada. At that time she was billed as Sherisse Lawrence....
singer and entertainer - Canadian Scots people of Scots ancestry living in Canada
- Michael RoweMichael RoweMichael "Mike" Rowe is a television writer, producer and comedian. He has written for Becker, The Nanny, Futurama and Family Guy, as well as writing the episode of The PJs, "A Race to His Credit".-Becker episodes:...
Canadian author and journalist, attended St. John's Cathedral Boy's School in Selkirk 1977-1981