Wakaw,

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

, is a town northeast of

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

and south of

Prince Albert Prince Albert most commonly refers to: *Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1819–1861), consort of Queen Victoria *Albert II, Prince of Monaco (born 1958), present head of state of Monaco Prince Albert may also refer to: Royalty * Alb ...

. It is about halfway between the two cities and is served by Highway 2, Highway 41, and Highway 312. Wakaw is in hilly partially forested country east of the

South Saskatchewan River The South Saskatchewan River is a major river in the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. The river begins at the confluence of the Bow River, Bow and Oldman Rivers in southern Alberta and ends at the Saskatchewan River Forks in ce ...

. The area is part of the

aspen parkland Aspen parkland refers to a very large area of ecotone, transitional biome between prairie and boreal forest in two sections, namely the Peace River Country of northwestern Alberta crossing the border into British Columbia, and a much larger area ...

biome. Wakaw is a

Cree The Cree, or nehinaw (, ), are a Indigenous peoples of the Americas, North American Indigenous people, numbering more than 350,000 in Canada, where they form one of the country's largest First Nations in Canada, First Nations. They live prim ...

word meaning "crooked". The name was taken from nearby Wakaw Lake and applied to the town.

History

The area was peopled primarily by settlers of

Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural and socio-economic connotations. Its eastern boundary is marked by the Ural Mountain ...

an origin. The town was home to Prime Minister

John Diefenbaker John George Diefenbaker (September 18, 1895 – August 16, 1979) was the 13th prime minister of Canada, serving from 1957 to 1963. He was the only Progressive Conservative Party of Canada, Progressive Conservative party leader between 1930 an ...

and his first wife

Edna Brower Edna May Diefenbaker ( Brower; November 30, 1899 – February 7, 1951) was the first wife of the 13th Prime Minister of Canada, John Diefenbaker.Geoffrey Stevens, "The Chief's unknown and vivacious first love". ''The Globe and Mail'', September 2 ...

. Diefenbaker opened his first law office in Wakaw from 1919 to 1925. Wakaw was founded on December 26, 1911 after 21 residents petitioned the Department of Municipal Affairs, asking for the incorporation of the Village of Wakaw. It was located on Section 30, Township 42, Range 26, west of the 2nd Meridian, land donated to the town by Anthony Goller who immigrated to Canada in 1902. When the railroad was built the town was moved to its present location. On August 1, 1953 Wakaw was incorporated as a town. The community recognized its 100th anniversary by holding Centennial Celebrations on July 21 to 31, 2011.''Wakaw Recorder'' There are about 800 cabins at nearby Wakaw Lake, some of which are occupied year round.

Demographics

In the

2021 Census of Population The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sli ...

conducted by

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; ), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and culture. It is headquartered in ...

, Wakaw had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.

Amenities

Businesses in Wakaw include grocery stores, a pharmacy, restaurants, insurance agencies, and six places of worship. Outside of town limits, at the conjunction of Highway 2 and Highway 41, there are two gas stations and restaurants. The town's school, Wakaw School, teaches students from pre-kindergarten through grade twelve.

Notable people

Dave Balon David Alexander Balon (August 2, 1938 – May 29, 2007) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player and coach. Balon played 14 seasons in the National Hockey League between 1959 and 1973 before multiple sclerosis led to his retirement. Playing ...

- professional ice hockey player and coach * Harvey Cenaiko - former Solicitor General of Alberta and policeman *

Tom Courchene Thomas Joseph Courchene (born 16 September 1940), known as Tom Courchene, is a Canadian economist and professor. Born in Wakaw, Saskatchewan, in 1940, he received an Honours Bachelor of Arts from the University of Saskatchewan in 1962. He recei ...

- economist and professor; Officer of the Order of Canada *

- 13th Prime Minister of Canada * James Latos - professional ice hockey player for the New York Rangers and coach * Nancy Martin - Canadian curler * Dave Michayluk - professional ice hockey player for the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins *

Linden Vey Linden Vey (born July 17, 1991) is a Canadian professional ice hockey right winger currently playing for Adler Mannheim of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). Vey previously played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Calgary Flames, Vanco ...

- professional ice hockey player for the

ZSC Lions The Zürcher Schlittschuh Club Lions are a professional ice hockey team located in Zürich, Switzerland, playing in the National League (NL). Their home arena is the 12,000-seat Swiss Life Arena. The team was founded in 1930 and played at the ...

organization in the National League (NL); Olympic bronze medalist

PyeongChang 2018 The 2018 Winter Olympics (), officially the XXIII Olympic Winter Games (; ) and also known as PyeongChang 2018 (), were an international winter multi-sport event held between 9 and 25 February 2018 in Pyeongchang County, South Ko ...

References

External links