Descharme Lake, Saskatchewan facts for kids
Descharme Lake is a small community in the northern part of Saskatchewan, Canada. It is located near Descharme Lake, deep within the boreal forest. This area is known for its thick forests and many lakes.
To reach Descharme Lake, you take a 10-kilometer (about 6 miles) road west from Saskatchewan Highway 955. This turn-off is about 87 kilometers (54 miles) north of La Loche, a larger town nearby. Descharme Lake is an unincorporated community, meaning it doesn't have its own local government like a city or town. It is part of the Northern Saskatchewan Administration District.
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A Look Back at Descharme Lake's Past
The original town site of Descharme was across the lake from the current community. This old site was where the Descharme River flows into the Clearwater River. In the 1950s, this older settlement had a fish processing plant and a store.
In 1974, Descharme Lake had about 48 residents. At that time, there were no facilities or even a road connecting it to other places. Since then, an unpaved road has been built. This road links the community to Secondary Highway 955.
Over time, many residents were encouraged to move to the larger town of La Loche. By 2013, about 42 people still lived in the Descharme Lake community.
Descharme Lake might be one of the last remaining "winter camps" used by the Dene people from La Loche. These camps were places where people would stay during the colder months for hunting and trapping.
Why Was It Called Swan Lake?
Descharme Lake was once known by a different name: Swan Lake. The community of Swan Lake was mentioned as one of the mission villages connected to La Loche in 1895.
Back then, Swan Lake was a very important winter hunting camp for the people of La Loche. It had a small group of about 25 people living there all the time. But in winter, the population could grow to about 50 people. A priest from the La Loche Mission, Father Penard, wrote in 1895 about visiting Swan Lake. He said that if they were expected, they would find about 50 people. If not, they would have to find them in the surrounding woods, sometimes as far as 60 miles away.
The name "Des charmes" comes from French and means "beautiful" or "charming place." The name of the lake officially changed from Swan Lake to Descharme Lake in 1944. Before this, a newspaper article from 1943 still used the name Swan Lake.
In the 1906 Census, Swan Lake had 18 people living in three families.
How Many People Live Here?
In the 2021 Census, Statistics Canada counted the population of Descharme Lake. There were 26 people living in 13 homes. This was a big change from 2016, when only 5 people lived there.
The community covers a small land area of 0.24 square kilometers (about 0.09 square miles). In 2021, this meant there were about 108 people living per square kilometer.
See also
- List of communities in Northern Saskatchewan
- List of communities in Saskatchewan
