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Churchill (2006 Population 923) is a town on the shore of Hudson Bay in Manitoba, Canada, situated at the estuary of the Churchill River at Hudson Bay. The small community stands at an ecotone, on the Hudson Plains, at the juncture of three ecoregions: the boreal forest to the south, the Arctic tundra to the northwest, and the Hudson Bay to the north. Wapusk National Park lies immediately southwest of Churchill. It is most famous for the many polar bears that move toward the shore from inland in the autumn, leading to the nickname "Polar Bear Capital of the World" that has helped its growing tourism industry. Other popular nicknames include "Beluga Capital of the World." Canada's only significant port on the Arctic Ocean, Churchill is linked to the rest of the world only by the Hudson Bay Railway and by airplane.
[edit] HistoryA variety of nomadic Arctic people lived and hunted in this region. The Thule people arrived around 1000 A.D. from farther west, and later evolved into the present-day Inuit culture. The Dene people arrived around 500 from farther north. Since before the time of European contact, the region around Churchill has been predominantly inhabited by the Chipewyan and Cree peoples. Europeans first arrived in the area in 1619 when a Danish expedition led by Jens Munk wintered where Churchill would later stand. Only 3 of 64 expedition members survived the winter and journeyed back to Denmark.[2] After an abortive attempt in 1688-89, in 1717 the Hudson's Bay Company built the first permanent settlement - a log fort a few miles upstream from the mouth of the Churchill River. The trading post and river were named after John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, an ancestor of Winston Churchill, who was governor of the Hudson's Bay Company in the late 1600s. The fort was built mostly to capitalize on the northern trade, out of the reach of York Factory. It dealt mainly with the Chipewyan peoples living north of the boreal forest. Much of the fur came from as far away as Lake Athabaska and the Rocky Mountains. As part of the Anglo-French dispute for North America, in 1731-1741 the original fort was replaced with Prince of Wales Fort, a large stone fort on the western peninsula at the very mouth of the river. In 1782 the fort was captured by the French. Since they were greatly outnumbered, the English surrendered without firing a shot. The Europeans and all the trade goods were taken to France and an unsuccessful attempt was made to demolish the fort. The worst effect was on the local natives who had become dependent on trade goods from the fort. Many starved. The respective commanders were Samuel Hearne and La Perouse, both better known as explorers. In 1783, Hearne was released and returned to build a new fort a short distance upriver. Due to its distance from the lands of heavy competition between the North West Company and the Hudson's Bay Company, it remained a relatively stable, if not extravagantly profitable, source of furs. Between the years of decline in the fur trade and surfacing of western agricultural success, Churchill phased into and then back out of obsolescence. After decades of frustration over the monopoly and domination of the Canadian Pacific Railway and then the false promises of the Canadian Northern Railway,[citation needed] western governments banded together and fought for the creation of a major new northern shipping harbour on Hudson Bay, linked by rail from Winnipeg. Initially Port Nelson was selected for this purpose in 1912. After several years of effort and millions of dollars, this project was abandoned and Churchill was selected as the alternative after World War One. Surveys by the Canadian Hydrographic Service ship CSS Acadia opened the way for safe navigation. However, construction and use of the railroad was extremely slow and the rail line itself did not come to Churchill until 1929. Even once the link from farm to port was completed, commercial shipping took many more years to pick up. In 1932 John Walter Grant MacEwan was the first person to cross through Churchill customs as a passenger. This was purely due to his determination in taking the Hudson Bay route to Saskatchewan from Britain—most passengers returned via the Saint Lawrence River. This area was also the site of the Churchill Rocket Research Range, part of Canadian-American atmospheric research. Its first rocket was launched in 1956, and it continued to host launches for research and commercial satellites until closing in 1984. The site of the former rocket range now hosts the Churchill Northern Studies Centre, a facility for Arctic research. See Fort Churchill for the main article on this subject. [edit] Environment
The landscape around Churchill is strongly influenced by shallow soils caused by a combination of subsurface permafrost and Canadian shield rock formation. The Black Spruce dominant tree cover is sparse and stunted from these environmental constraints. There is also a noticeable ice pruning effect to the trees, as described by C. Michael Hogan.[3]
October and early November are the most feasible times to see the polar bears, hundreds of which wait on the vast peninsula until the water freezes on Hudson Bay so that they can return to hunt their primary food source, ringed seals. Local authorities maintain a so-called "polar bear jail" where bears (mostly adolescents) who persistently loiter in or close to town, are held after being tranquillised, pending release back into the wild when the bay freezes over. Polar bears were once thought to be solitary animals that would avoid contact with other bears except for mating. In the Churchill region, however, many alliances between bears are made in the fall. These friendships last only until the ice forms, then it is every bear for himself to hunt ring seals.
Thousands of beluga whales which move into the warmer waters of the Churchill River estuary during July and August to calf, are a major summer attraction.
Churchill is also a destination for bird watchers from late May until August.[4] Each year, 10,000-12,000 eco-tourists visit, about 400-500 of whom are birders. Birders have recorded more than 270 species within a 25-mile radius of Churchill, including Snowy Owl, Tundra Swan, American Golden-Plover and Gyrfalcon. Plus, more than 100 birds, including Parasitic Jaeger, Smith's Longspur, Stilt Sandpiper, and Harris's Sparrow, nest there.[5]
The Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) are seen in late August and from December to late April in the night skies over Churchill. The area also offers wonderful sport fishing. Several tour operators offer expeditions on land, sea and air, using all terrain vehicles, boats, canoes, helicopters and even ultralight aircraft. [edit] Economy
Churchill is a popular spot for ecotourism, as well as for Arctic research. The town also has a health centre, several hotels, tour operators, some restaurants and a shipping marine port with a large grain elevator. [edit] EcotourismChurchill is situated along Manitoba’s 1400 km coastline, on Hudson Bay at the meeting of three major biomes: marine, boreal forest and tundra.[6][7][8][9] Tourists can safely view polar bears from specially modified buses known as tundra buggies. Use of the buggies helps sustain local tourism, but can also cause damage the local ecology when driven outside the established trails. [edit] TransportationThe town is the northern terminus of the Hudson Bay Railway Leased by OmniTRAX. It is a useful link in the export of Canadian grain to European markets, with rail-sea connections made at Churchill. The port of Churchill is also owned by OmniTRAX. It is Canada's principal seaport on the Arctic Ocean. The Hudson Bay (passenger train) operated by VIA Rail provides service between the Churchill railway station and Union Station in Winnipeg. Churchill is the main Arctic Ocean seaport in North America with a rail connection to the south. Lesser ports Moosonee, Ontario and Hay River, Northwest Territories also provide a rail link to the Arctic Ocean. Hay River is a riverport. Cargo shipped north from Hay River travels by barge. There are no roads from Churchill leading to the rest of Canada. Rail passenger service is available from Winnipeg 3 times a week by Via Rail, a 35 hour trip from Winnipeg. Churchill is serviced by two scheduled airlines offering flights to and from Winnipeg and to points north of Churchill in Nunavut. Calm Air offers service from Churchill Airport with daily flights to Winnipeg and the Kivalliq Region of Nunavut. Kivalliq Air provides direct flights six days per week between Churchill and Winnipeg and connections to all communities in the Kivalliq region of Nunavut. The sea freezes first near Churchill because of the large volume of fresh water delivered by the nearby Churchill and Seal Rivers and because the predominant northeast wind causes ice to pile up along the shore just north of Churchill. For this reason, the port is iced in for much of the year but it is useful for shipping grain and other bulk cargoes because shipping by rail costs several times as much, per ton, as shipping by sea. Its short 3-month shipping season and shallow waters have restricted its development as an ocean port. [edit] Health careThe town also has a modern health centre, the Churchill Regional Health Authority, which employs about 100 people. It provides 44 beds, dental care and diagnostic laboratories to service the residents of Churchill and the communities of the Keewatin Region of the Territory of Nunavut.[10] [edit] Arctic researchThe Northern Studies Centre is a non-profit research and education facility located 23 km east of the town of Churchill. They provide accommodations, meals, equipment rentals, and logistical support to scientific researchers working on a diverse range of topics of interest to northern science.[11] [edit] Culture
About half of the population is Caucasian and the other half are Aboriginal, mostly Chipewyan and Swampy Cree. A minority is composed of Inuit natives. Hunting, trapping and fishing is still an important activity to most of these men. The main language is English and several residents also speak Cree language.[12] By the late 1980s, both the local government and Parks Canada had successfully educated its population on polar bear safety, significantly reducing lethal confrontations and fuelling ecotourism in such a way that the community and the polar bears have benefited. [edit] Local media[edit] RadioCHFC 1230 AM - CBC Radio One Weekday mornings (Tuesday-Friday) from 8:15-8:30, David Caskey hosts the local morning announcement program. NCI-FM 96.9 FM - NCI [edit] Television[edit] NewspapersChurchill has one newspaper called The Hudson Bay Post. It is a monthly newspaper, published occasionally, according to the front page. [edit] Notable people associated with Churchill, Manitoba
[edit] Churchill photo gallery
[edit] Further reading
[edit] References
[edit] External links
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