Norway House

docked at Norway House (circa 1880) After the arrival of Europeans in North America, the Hayes River became an important link in the development of Canada. The Hayes was the favoured route between York Factory and the interior of western Canada for explorers, fur traders and European settlers from 1670 to 1870, because transit was easier and food was more readily available. After Anthony Henday's explorations, Joseph Smith was sent in 1756, from York Factory, to explore the area. He ascended the Nelson River seeking Lake Winnipeg. He reached Little Playgreen Lake on September 21 that year. In 1816, Lord Selkirk sent out a band of Norwegians, apparently ex-convicts, They built Norway House at Mossy Point on the west side of the Nelson's outflow from Lake Winnipeg in 1817, replacing the former Jack River post at that location. The remnants of the former Hudson’s Bay Company fort established in 1825; the company's principal inland depot for the fur trade and the site where Treaty 5 was signed in 1875 was designated a National Historic Sites of Canada in 1932. Surviving buildings include the Archway Warehouse (1839-1841), the Gaol (1855-1856) and the Powder Magazine (1837-1838). == Demographics ==

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Norway House had a population of 363 living in 134 of its 190 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 478. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. Norway House 17 had a population of 5,390 in 2021 an increase of 12.1% since 2016. The community included 2,239 private dwellings on a land area of 72.99 square km. These two adjoining communities form a population centre of 5,753. ==Transportation ==

Provincial Road (PR) 373, an all-weather road, leads from Norway House past PR 374 which leads to Cross Lake, through Jenpeg and then joins Provincial Trunk Highway 6. There is a ferry that shuttles vehicles across the Nelson Channel just north of Norway House. This ferry runs most of the year, except into the winter months when an ice bridge is opened. The ferry is known to get stuck occasionally in the freeze-up season and cause delays. The most important means of transportation in this remote territory is the airplane. Manitoba Northern Airports maintains Norway House Airport with a crushed-rock airstrip. There are daily flights to Winnipeg with Perimeter Aviation. ==Services==

Norway House has several restaurants, two hotels, a Royal Bank branch, two Northern stores, two Tim Horton locations and a KFC fast food restaurant, a full service post office, two video stores and paved roads within the community. Norway House is served by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the NHCN Safety Officers. == Education ==

The Helen Betty Osborne Ininiw Education Resource Centre is a kindergarten to Grade 12 school with a preschool program as well. It was preceded by the Rossville residential school. It is one of the most technologically advanced schools in the province and one of the biggest schools of the Frontier School Division. Norway House is home to a regional centre of the University College of the North and has satellite degree programming from Brandon University's Faculty of Education and the University of Manitoba. ==Climate==

Norway House has a subarctic climate (Dfc) bordering a warm summer continental climate (Dfb). As is typical in Manitoba, precipitation patterns are dominant in summers, with winters being cold and dry. Norway House recorded Manitoba's coldest temperature on January 9, 1899, when the temperature reached -52.8°C (-63°F). == Treaty and York Boat Days ==

The Treaty and York Boat Days are annually each summer from the beginning of August for a week; the York Boat events serve as the main attraction. These are team boat races with participants aged 8–18. This event is to honor the traditions of the ancestors who once used York Boats as a means of transportation. Treaty and York Boat Days has a variety of hosts each year who set up food booths for the community to come together, often these booths prepare meals that are homemade. == See also ==