Manitoba

Manitoba, sixth largest province in Canada and easternmost of the Prairie Provinces. Manitoba is bordered by Ontario and Hudson Bay on the east, Saskatchewan on the west, Minnesota and North Dakota to the south, and the Northwest Territories to the north.

Land and climate

The province has an area of 251,000 sq mi/650,090 sq km including 39,225 sq mi/101,593 sq km of inland waterways. There are some 100,000 lakes in the province, most notably Lake Winnipeg, thirteenth largest lake in the world, as well as numerous rivers draining into Hudson Bay. Most of the province is divided by an escarpment into 2 plains regions, one of which, the Saskatchewan Plain, is Manitoba's richest farm region. About 60% of Manitoba is forested. Spruces are the most common tree, but the forests also contain balsam, fir, birches, cedars, poplars, and tamaracks. Wildlife is abundant. Manitoba has pleasant summers, but its winters are long and cold with January temperatures averaging 0ÉF/−18ÉC in the south and −20ÉF/−29ÉC in the north. About 50 in/127 cm of snow falls every year.

People

The people of Manitoba are mostly descendants of Europeans who settled in provinces, principally Scots, English, and French, but more recently also Russians, Germans, Poles, and Scandinavians. The major religious denominations are Roman Catholic and the United Church of Canada. The capital of the province is Winnipeg and more then half the population is concentrated in the city and its metropolitan area.

Economy

Manufacturing is Manitoba's largest industry, including processed foods and beverages, metal products, clothing, furniture, chemicals, and oil refining. Nickel, zinc, copper, and tantalite are mined and Manitoba's oil wells produce about 4 million barrels of oil a year. Agriculture, formerly the mainstay of the province's economy, is still one of its chief industries. Wheat is the most important crop, followed by oats, barley, flax, and rye. Wheat is also a major export. Beef cattle, dairy farming, and the fur and lumber industries also contribute to the province's economy.

History

The first European settlers to arrive in Manitoba were fur traders of the Hudson's Bay Company in 1670. French and English fur traders competed in the area until their rivalry was settled in the French and Indian War of 1763. As a result, France ceded its Canadian lands to Britain. The first farming settlement was founded by Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk, along the Red River in 1812. Resultant tensions between farmers and fur trappers were not resolved until 1821. The Dominion of Canada acquired the rights to land in Manitoba from the Hudson's Bay Company in 1869 and Manitoba became a province in 1870, but not before a rebellion of fur trappers and their descendants led by Louis Riel was settled. The export of wheat began in 1876. The first railroad reached Winnipeg in 1878 and rapid settlement followed. During the first half of the 20th century, agricultural expansion increased at a tremendous rate and the province's economic growth was further stimulated by the discovery of valuable mineral deposits leading, in turn, to the growth of industry and manufacturing.