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The Pas is a town in Manitoba, Canada, located at the confluence of the Pasquia River and the Saskatchewan River and surrounded by the unorganized Northern Region of the province. It is approximately northwest of the provincial capital, Winnipeg, and from the border of Saskatchewan. It is sometimes still called Paskoyac by locals after the first trading post, called Fort Paskoya and constructed during French colonial rule. The Pasquia River begins in the Pasquia Hills in east central Saskatchewan. The French in 1795 knew the river as Basquiau. Known as "The Gateway to the North", The Pas is a multi-industry northern Manitoba town serving the surrounding region. The main components of the region's economy are agriculture, forestry, commercial fishing, tourism, transportation, and services (especially health and education). The main employer is a paper mill operated by Canadian Kraft Paper Industries Ltd. The Pas contains one of the two main campuses of the University College of the North. The Pas is bordered by the Rural Municipality of Kelsey, as well as part of the Opaskwayak Cree Nation. [edit] History
The area's original inhabitants were the Swampy Cree. Their ancestors are thought to have migrated from the southeastern prairies over 9000 years ago. The first European recorded to encounter the Cree was Henry Kelsey, an employee of the Hudson's Bay Company. He travelled through the area between 1690 and 1692 on his way to the Canadian prairies. During the years of New France, La Vérendrye, the first western military commander, directed the construction of Fort Paskoya near here. It was named after the people of the Pasquia River. For years the settlement was called Pascoyac, sometimes shortened to Le Pas. In 1904, The Pas Indian Band set up a sawmill on Mission Island in the Saskatchewan River. Soon after, the band surrendered their reserve lands south of the river, including the areas around the site of the Hudson's Bay Company trading post and the Anglican Church Mission to make way for the Hudson Bay Railway and development of the Town of The Pas. By 1908, the band reopened their sawmill north of the river, and in 1912, the Town of The Pas was incorporated and The Pas Indian Band changed its name to Opaskwayak Cree Nation. Between 1906 and 1910, Herman Finger setup the Finger Lumber Company in the area, and created a village called Fingerville for the company's workers. When the Town of The Pas was created in 1912, Fingerville was absorbed into The Pas, and Herman Finger became The Pas's first mayor. Also in 1912, the community was transferred from Keewatin (a district of the Northwest Territories) to Manitoba as part of the Manitoba Boundaries Extension Act. The area today is composed of three distinct communities: the Town of The Pas, the Opaskwayak Cree Nation, and the Rural Municipality of Kelsey. The history of the town and the region may be seen at the Sam Waller Museum, located in the old courthouse in downtown The Pas. [edit] Research Tips
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