Nipigon

Nipigon (/ˈnɪpɪɡən/) is a township in Thunder Bay District, Northwestern Ontario, Canada, located along the west side of the Nipigon River and south of the small Lake Helen running between Lake Nipigon and Lake Superior. Lake Nipigon is located approximately 25 kilometres (16 mi) north of Nipigon. Located at latitude 49.0125° N, Nipigon is the northernmost community on the Great Lakes.

This article is about the township. For other uses, see Nipigon (disambiguation).

Nipigon
Township (single-tier)
Township of Nipigon
Nickname: 
"The Lakehead"
Nipigon is located in Ontario
Nipigon
Nipigon
Nipigon is located in Canada
Nipigon
Nipigon
Coordinates: 49°00′55″N 088°16′06″W
CountryCanada
ProvinceOntario
DistrictThunder Bay
Government
 • MayorSuzanne Kukko
 • Federal ridingThunder Bay—Superior North
 • Prov. ridingThunder Bay—Superior North
Area
[1]
 • Land109.11 km2 (42.13 sq mi)
Population
 (2021)
 • Total1,473
 • Density15.0/km2 (39/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC−5 (EST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
Postal Code
P0T 2J0
Area code807
Websitenipigon.net

Geography
The Nipigon River Bridge, originally opened in 1937, forms the narrowest transportation bottleneck between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans in Canada.

For about 15 km, Highway 11 runs within Nipigon River and a lake. Nipigon is located northeast of Thunder Bay, southwest of Geraldton and Beardmore, west of Marathon and northwest of Sault Ste. Marie. The crater on Mars named Nipigon Crater or Crater Nipigon is named after this town.

Nipigon is surrounded with pine and other varieties of forests. The power line connecting from Lake Nipigon supplies electricity to Thunder Bay and area. The other power line runs between Thunder Bay and the rest of Ontario. Timbering has been common sporadically to the north, the northwest and further north within Lake Nipigon along with parts of the southwest which formed old forest roads to the northeast and north. The municipality of Greenstone lies to the north. A manufacturing plant lies to the south. Several other unincorporated municipalities were around Nipigon. A communications tower near Nipigon broadcasts a local radio station and television channels from Thunder Bay including CKPR (TBT), CFNO and CBQT.

There are two bridges at the east end of town spanning the Nipigon River: one is a single-track railway bridge belonging to the Canadian Pacific Railway, and the other is a two-lane highway bridge constructed by the Province of Ontario. With the exception of the Canadian National Railway transcontinental rail line, the two bridges are the narrowest east-west land link in Canada's transportation system. Both Highways 11 and 17 and the Canadian Pacific Railway route all their traffic across those bridges.

The Nipigon River Bridge is a pair of two-lane cable-stayed bridges, the first of their kind in Ontario, replacing the 1937 bridge.[2] On January 10, 2016, the first bridge heaved apart but did not collapse, resulting in traffic having to reroute through the United States. However, one lane was re-opened to traffic 17 hours later.[3]

Demographics
Nipigon, Ontario Historical populations
YearPop.±%
19912,338—    
19962,210−5.5%
20011,964−11.1%
20061,752−10.8%
20111,631−6.9%
20161,642+0.7%
20161,473−10.3%
[4][5][1]

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Nipigon had a population of 1,473 living in 663 of its 747 total private dwellings, a change of -10.3% from its 2016 population of 1,642. With a land area of 107.94 km2 (41.68 sq mi), it had a population density of 13.6/km2 (35.3/sq mi) in 2021.[6]

Canada census – Nipigon community profile
202120162011
Population1,473 (-10.3% from 2016)1,642 (+0.7% from 2011)1,631 (-6.9% from 2006)
Land area107.94 km2 (41.68 sq mi)109.11 km2 (42.13 sq mi)109.14 km2 (42.14 sq mi)
Population density13.6/km2 (35/sq mi)15.0/km2 (39/sq mi)14.9/km2 (39/sq mi)
Median age51.6 (M: 50.8, F: 52)48.6 (M: 47.9, F: 49.2)
Private dwellings665 (total)  804 (total)  823 (total) 
Median household income$57,062
References: 2021[7] 2016[8] 2011[9] earlier[10][11]

Economy
Nipigon Public Library

The chief industries in Nipigon are forest products, fishing, and tourism.

Nipigon is a setting off point for fishing excursions onto Lake Superior and the Nipigon River system leading up to Lake Nipigon. Fish varieties common to this area include Atlantic salmon, lake trout, speckled trout (the world's largest speckled trout was caught in the Nipigon River in 1915, weighing in at 14.5 pounds (6.6 kg)[12]), rainbow trout, walleye, northern pike, bass, and perch.

Mill fire
Nipigon Historical Museum

On February 6, 2007, a devastating fire ripped through Multiply Forest Products, burning the mill to the ground.[13] The mill was the main employer in the town. Less than a month earlier workers at the mill had purchased it from Columbia Forest Products of Portland, Oregon. At the time of the sale, a $4-million modernization plan for the mill was also announced. More than 100 people were employed at the plant, which produced hardwood underlayment for vinyl, plywood and laminate flooring.[14]

Transportation

Nipigon is served by several transportation corridors:

Nipigon has Ontario Northland motor coach service on its Sault Ste. Marie–Thunder Bay route.[15]

Notable people from Nipigon

Nipigon was the birthplace of two time world curling champion Allan A. "Al" (the Iceman) Hackner. Hackner won The Brier in 1982 and 1985.

Recreation

Nipigon and the surrounding area boast a wide array of outdoor recreational activities for all times of the year. A select number of cliffs in the Nipigon area are being developed into rock climbing destinations. More information can be found in the Thunder Bay Climbing guidebook.[16]

See also

References
  1. "Census Profile, 2016 Census: Nipigon, Township". Statistics Canada. 8 February 2017. Retrieved July 12, 2019.
  2. "Nipigon River Bridge Construction Updates & Progress". Nipigon River Bridge Project. Archived from the original on May 28, 2016. Retrieved January 10, 2016.
  3. Husser, Amy (January 10, 2016). "Ontario's Nipigon River bridge fails, severing Trans-Canada Highway". CBC News. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved January 10, 2016.
  4. Statistics Canada: 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011 census
  5. "Nipigon census profile". 2011 Census of Population. Statistics Canada. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2012-03-29.
  6. "Population and dwelling counts: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (municipalities), Ontario". Statistics Canada. February 9, 2022. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  7. "2021 Community Profiles". 2021 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. February 4, 2022. Retrieved 2022-04-27.
  8. "2016 Community Profiles". 2016 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. August 12, 2021. Retrieved 2019-07-12.
  9. "2011 Community Profiles". 2011 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. March 21, 2019. Retrieved 2012-03-29.
  10. "2006 Community Profiles". 2006 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. August 20, 2019.
  11. "2001 Community Profiles". 2001 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. July 18, 2021.
  12. Dr. JW Cook's World Record Brook Trout Was Caught in 1915
  13. Toronto Star, February 07, 2007, "Nipigon mill fire a `devastating' loss"
  14. Toronto Star, February 18, 2007, Leslie Scrivener, "A town called hope"
  15. "Schedule 601-602 : Thunder Bay - Sault Ste. Marie" (PDF). Ontario Northland. March 19, 2023. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
  16. Fishman, Aric (2017). Thunder Bay Climbing, A Guide to Northwestern Ontario's Best Kept Secret. Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada: Prism Publishing. pp. 325–400. ISBN 9781895856033.
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