Wawa | |
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Municipality (single-tier) | |
Municipality of Wawa Township of Michipicoten (pre-2007) |
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Wawa as seen across Wawa Lake
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Coordinates: 47°59′35″N 84°46′25″W / 47.99306°N 84.77361°WCoordinates: 47°59′35″N 84°46′25″W / 47.99306°N 84.77361°W | |
Country | Canada |
Province | Ontario |
District | Algoma |
Established | 1899 |
Government | |
• Mayor | Ron Rody |
• Federal riding | Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing |
• Prov. riding | Algoma—Manitoulin |
Area | |
• Land | 417.78 km2 (161.31 sq mi) |
Elevation | 287 m (942 ft) |
Population (2011) | |
• Total | 2,975 |
• Density | 7.1/km2 (18/sq mi) |
Time zone | Eastern Standard Time (EST) (UTC-5) |
• Summer (DST) | Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) (UTC-4) |
Postal Code | P0S 1K0 |
Area code(s) | 705 |
Website | www.wawa.cc |
Wawa is a township in the Canadian province of Ontario, located within the Algoma District and associated with Wawa Lake. Formerly known as the township of Michipicoten, after a nearby river of that name, the township was officially renamed in 2007 for its largest and best-known community of Wawa.
This area was first developed for fur trading. In the late 19th century, both gold and iron ore were found and mined, leading to the region's rise as the steel industry developed in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. From 1900-1918 the Helen Mine had the highest production of iron ore of any mine in Canada.
The township includes the smaller communities of Michipicoten and Michipicoten River, which are small port settlements on the shore of Lake Superior. These names are derived from the Ojibwe term for the river.
Fort Michipicoten was constructed at the mouth of the Michipicoten River. It was at the junction of the main fur trade route from Montreal westward and the route to James Bay via the Missinaibi River. The town developed five miles upriver from here.
French explorers reached the area by at least 1681, and militia built the post in either 1725 or 1727. By 1729, it was an outpost of Fort Kaministiquia in Vérendrye's Postes du Nord. The site was on the south bank of the river, opposite the mouth of the Magpie River. When the British conquered Canada in 1763, this post was abandoned.
Four years later, it was re-opened on the same site by fur traders Alexander Henry the elder and Jean Baptiste Cadotte. The route from James Bay was explored by Edward Jarvis (1775) and Philip Turnor (1781). In 1783, it was taken over by the North West Company, based in Montreal. In 1797, the Hudson's Bay Company built a rival post on the north bank.