Tadoule Lake facts for kids
Tadoule Lake is a small community far up north in Manitoba, Canada. It's a special place that you can reach by plane, snowmobile, or even dog team sleds! In winter, a special winter road opens up.
In 1973, the Sayisi Dene people moved to Tadoule Lake. They wanted to return to their traditional way of life, hunting Barren-ground Caribou.
The name "Tadoule Lake" has a cool meaning. It comes from the Chipewyan language, Tes-He-Olie Twe. It might mean "floating charcoal" or "Ashes floating on the lake." This name probably came from burnt wood floating in the lake after an old forest fire. People have been using the modern spelling since 1914.
The community sits on the northwest shore of Tadoule Lake, near the Seal River. It's right in the middle of where the Qamiuriak Caribou Herd lives in winter. This is a huge group of barren-ground caribou. Tadoule Lake has its own airport, Tadoule Lake Airport, for travel. Kids in the community go to Peter Yassie Memorial School, which teaches students from kindergarten to grade 12.
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Fun Activities and Community Life
The Sayisi Dene First Nation has a special fund called the Relocation Settlement Trust. Since 2016, this fund has helped pay for yearly summer camps for children. These camps help kids learn to read and write, and many children from the community enjoy going.
Recently, people in Tadoule Lake have been thinking about exciting wilderness trips for young people. These trips would explore the Seal River Watershed, which is the area where the Seal River flows. The Sayisi Dene, along with their neighbours, the Inuit and Cree communities, are working to make this watershed an Indigenous Protected Conservation Area. This means it would be a special place protected by Indigenous people.
In July 2021, during a very hot time in Western North America, Tadoule Lake had a record high temperature of 38.1 degrees Celsius (about 100.6 degrees Fahrenheit).
A Look Back: History of Tadoule Lake
The Sayisi Dene people have a strong history tied to this land. In 1956, the Dene community from Little Duck Lake was forced to move. This was a very difficult time for them.
Returning Home
By 1969, some of the Sayisi Dene, sometimes called the Duck Lake Dene, started talking about moving back to their traditional way of life. They wanted to be self-reliant again. A few families left Churchill and Dene Village to move to North Knife Lake in 1969. More families moved from Churchill to South Knife Lake in 1971.
Finally, in 1973, the Duck Lake Dene, along with those from North Knife Lake and South Knife Lake, all moved north to Tadoule Lake. This was a big step for them to return to their ancestral lands.
A Journalist's Visit
In 1977, a journalist named Fred Bruemmer visited Tadoule Lake. He wrote for The Globe and Mail newspaper. He saw that Tadoule Lake had 58 log cabins spread out over more than 1.5 kilometres. He also noted how welcoming the community was, and they hosted him for weeks!
A New Name for the Nation
By the 1990s, the Duck Lake Dene saw that they were succeeding in their new home. They decided to change their official name. They went from "Churchill, Band of Caribou-eater Chipewyan" to "Sayisi Dene First Nation (Tadoule Lake, Manitoba)." This new name showed their strong connection to their land and heritage.
An Important Apology
In 2016, a Canadian government minister, Carolyn Bennett, came to Tadoule Lake. She attended a special ceremony where the government formally apologized to the Sayisi Dene for the forced relocation. The government also gave more than $33 million in compensation to the Sayisi Dene. Most of this money was put into a trust fund to help with community development and projects.
People of Tadoule Lake
The Sayisi Dene First Nation is the main group of people living in Tadoule Lake. As of February 2023, there were 314 registered members living in Tadoule Lake. Another 586 members live in other places.
The Sayisi Dene's land is called Churchill 1, IRI, and it covers about 212 hectares. The community is led by a Chief and three councillors. The Sayisi Dene are also part of the Keewatin Tribal Council. This council represents eleven different First Nations in Northern Manitoba.
In 2011, the population of Tadoule Lake was 321 people.
