Île-à-la-Crosse

Île-à-la-Crosse (Plains Cree: ᓵᑭᑕᐚᕽ, romanized: sâkitawâhk) is a northern village in Division No. 18, northwestern Saskatchewan, and was the site of historic trading posts first established in 1778. Île-à-la-Crosse is the second oldest community in Saskatchewan, Canada, following establishment of the Red River Colony in 1811. It sits at the end of a 20 km (12 mi) long peninsula on the western shore of Lac Île-à-la-Crosse, and is linked with Peter Pond Lake (historically Buffalo Lake) and Churchill Lake (historically Clear Lake) through a series of interconnected lakes, rivers, and portage routes.

The Cree and Dene peoples who used these integrated passages of water named the respective mass of water and their community Sakitawak. This Cree name means “big opening where the waters meet.” The surrounding network of lakes were traditionally referred to as the headwaters of Missinipe, renamed in the fur trade era to English River, and currently identified as Churchill River. Île-à-la-Crosse occupies a central location in the Canadian subarctic region, positioned along the southern entryway to the Methye Portage which is a continental divide where waters flow to both the Arctic Ocean and the Hudson Bay.

Île-à-la-Crosse is of exceptional historical note, given its prime access to trading posts located further within the North-Western Territory, which in turn promoted significant interest from both Catholic missionaries and fur trading companies.