Manitoba, eh?!
Tell us about other information relating to our province
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Manitoba('s) :
is called the Keystone Province due to its shape and because the longitudinal centre of Canada runs through the province. [challenged -- see Viewers' Comments] --------was called the Postage Stamp Province because of its initial small size when it became a province of Canada in 1870.
--------slanted north-eastern boundary meets Hudson's Bay at the 89 degrees west longitude. This point is on the same meridian as the confluence of the Mississippi & Ohio rivers. Apparently, this was planned rather than being a coincidence.
--------The Dominion Land Survey that divided Western Canada into ranges, townships & sections, began in Manitoba. In 1871, surveying began on Canada-U.S.A. boundary at a distance of approx. 10 miles west the Red River (of the North).
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Lower Fort Garry was named by Canada's History magazine to its list of Canada's top 10 national historic sites. [2011] --------The Hudson’s Bay Company archive records , spanning the first 250 years of its history from 1670 to 1920, have been included in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s(UNESCO) Memory of the World Registry.
--------leads all Canadian provinces in promoting and supporting energy efficiency according to the 2006 national report card authored by the Canadian Energy Efficiency Alliance (CEEA).
--------was the first province to give women the right to vote. --------is Canada's most ethnically diverse province with more than 43 different cultural groups. --------firefighters established North America's first Fire Fighters Burn Fund in 1976. The group was headed by Martin Johnson and Gary Macdonald.
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Manitobans own more summer cottages/cabins than any other group in the world (approx. one in eight families). --------The Manitoba World Invitational Lion Dance Championship , held in 2005, was the first Lion Dance competition held in mainland North America [2006]. --------is claimed to have the largest percentage of children under 15 years of age in Canada [July, 2007]. --------is claimed to have the fourth-lowest rate of people over 65 in Canada [July, 2007].
--------------------------------------------------------------------Manitoba claims to be the centre for the study of the fur trade because :(1) it has possession of the archives of the Hudson's Bay Company .
--------(2) York Factory , on Hudson's Bay at the mouth of the Hayes River, was established as the Hudson Bay Company's (HBC) first major permanent fur trade post in the West. From this port, the HBC shipped its furs to England (starting 1684).
--------(3) Lower Fort Garry (The Stone Fort) is the oldest intact fur-trade stone fort in North America -- built 183?.
--------(4) Upper Fort Garry -- conducted the Hudson’s Bay Company’s trading and administrative functions from 18?? to 18??.
--------(5) it is home to Canada’s National History Society that has assumed the publication of ‘The Beaver’, a magazine originally published by the HBC. -- It is Canada's second-oldest continually published consumer magazine.
--------------------------------------------------------------------Manitoba's 'Magic' story:(1) Winnipeg is the birthplace of Dean Gunnarson.
(2) Winnipeg is the birthplace of Doug Henning.
--------(3) Winnipeg is the home town (birthplace [?]) of James Cielan.
(4) Winnipeg is the birthplace of Don Virgoe.
--Click here for more information on these performers. --
(5) Manitoba is home to a large concentration of young magicians, boys and girls enjoying the art of magic, as members of 'The Society of Young Magicians'. This resulted through the organizational skills of Wm. H. M. Brace.
--------(6) Transcona was the birthplace of the International Brotherhood of Magicians (I.B.M.) in 1922.
--------(7) "The Linking Ring", magic's most widely-read publication, was first published in Winnipeg by Len Vintus from 1922-26. -- See Visitors' Comments below.
--------(8) Giroux is the home of 'Philip's Magical Paradise', western Canada's only museum of magic and illusion.
--------------------------------------------------------------------Manitoba(’s)
Lake Winnipeg is the 11th largest lake in world in surface area. -- Its watershed,
(1) is the second-largest in North America.
(2) in the west, extends to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains
(3) in the east, to within approx. 80 km (50 miles) of Lake Superior,
(4) in the south, to the north-eastern tip of South Dakota, &
(5) in the north, drains into Hudson's Bay via the Nelson & Churchill Rivers.
--Click here to view a map of the watershed. --
--------Lake Manitoba & Lake Winnipegosis are two of the largest 12 lakes in Canada. There are approx. 100 000 other lakes in the province. --------Grand Beach , on the shores of Lake Winnipeg, is considered one of the top beaches in North America. Many large & small beaches exist in the province.
--------Little Limestone Lake :
(1) is a marl lake (changes colours as its water temperature changes). It is claimed to be the largest & also the finest marl lake in the world.
(2) For more information, click here.
--------------------------------------------------------------------Manitoba(’s)
Oak Hammock Marsh(’s) - (between Stonewall & Selkirk): (1) is the national headquarters for Ducks Unlimited Canada .
(2) was awarded the British Airways Tourism for Tomorrow Award in the category 'Best Environmental Experience' (in 2002).
(3) recognized as the nation’s Best Outdoor Site at an ‘Attractions Canada’ award ceremony (in 2000).
(4) won the 2006 Tourist Industry Association of Canada's 'National AwArd for Tourist Excellence'.
(5) is on the 'Ramsar List' (see Delta Marsh).
--------------------------------------------------------------------Manitoba(’s)
Delta Marsh(’s) -- (north of Portage la Prairie on Lake Manitoba) (1) is one of the largest freshwater marshes in the world.
(2) peak staging populations have exceeded two million ducks and geese.
(3) is on the Ramsar List . [The Ramsar Convention (1971) was the first intergovernmental treaty between nations for the conservation of natural resources]
(4) for information about the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, click here .
--------------------------------------------------------------------Manitoba('s) :
has 12 natural regions within its boundaries. They are :
(1) Northern Transition Forest (2) Arctic Tundra
(3) Hudson Bay Lowlands (4) Precambrian Boreal Forest
(5) Manitoba Lowland (6) Aspen/Oak Parkland
(7) Western Upland (8) Souris Till Plain
(9) Tall Grass Prairie (10) Turtle Mountain
(11) Pembina/Tiger Hills (12) Assiniboine Delta
To read "A bow to all living things", a Winnipeg Free Press article describing the variety of
lifeforms in Manitoba, click here .
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is the second largest producer of potatoes in Canada. --------accounts for 80-95% of Canada's sunflower production. --------has the only tracts of 'tall-grass prairie' in Canada.
--------has the highest aboriginal population per capita in Canada. --------own more cottages per capita than anywhere else in North America. --------was the location of the History Channel's productions Pioneer Quest & Quest for the Bay. --------Northern Manitoba was on the "Washington Post's" list of top 10 international destinations for 2004.
--------saw the creation of the North West Mounted Police , the forerunner of the RCMP. --------is home to 80 call centres. [2004]
--------Manitoba farmers are building consumer demand worldwide by providing high-quality products for grocery baskets and dinner tables in more than 130 countries around the world [2007].
--------Manitoba has been called the "grey wolf capital of North America" [2010].
--------------------------------------------------------------------University of Manitoba(’s)
ranks second in Canada with a total of 8 Synergy Awards [2005]. -- For information on the Synergy Awards, click here.
--------A University of Manitoba team composed of students from both computer science and engineering took first place overall in the competition, and first place in the flight category at 'The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International and the Program Executive Office for Strike Weapons and Unmanned Aviation' 2006 annual student competition for unmanned aerial vehicles at the Webster Field Annex in St. Inigoes, Maryland.
--------and the Cangene Corporation have been recognized with the Synergy Award for Innovation. The Synergy Awards for Innovation honour the most outstanding achievements of university-industry collaboration. --------Freshwater Institute is the headquarters in Canada's central & arctic region for the activities of the Fisheries and Marine Service of the federal Department of the Environment.
--------The Innovative Magnetic Resonance Imaging Systems Inc. is building its headquarters at Smartpark at the University of Manitoba.
--------Cold Water Survival Group , under the direction of Dr. Gordon Giesbrecht, focuses on cold water survival and encompasses research in a broad spectrum from human physiology, to clothing and equipment research and development, to public safety education and policy. --------Microsoft's Bill Gates Foundation has given the University of Manitoba almost $22 million to expand research of HIV prevention in the developing world. -- A further donation of $6.8 million was made in Feb. of 2006.
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