Christina River (Alberta) Explained

Christina River
Subdivision Type1:Country
Subdivision Name1:Canada
Subdivision Type2:Province
Subdivision Name2:Alberta
Source1:Christina Lake
Source1 Location:55.6225°N -110.8783°W, Wood Buffalo, Alberta, Canada
Source2 Location:west
Source Confluence:Jackfish River
Mouth:Clearwater River

The Christina River is located in the Wood Buffalo region of north-eastern Alberta, Canada. The Christina is a tributary of the Clearwater River and was named to honour Christine Gordon, who was the first white women to live permanently in the Fort McMurray area.[1] [2] [3]

Course and drainage basin

The Christina River arises close to Christina Lake near the town of Conklin and is part of Christina Lake's 1250km2 drainage basin.[4] Christina Lake's waters reach the Christina River via the short (11km (07miles) long) Jackfish River. The Christina then wanders northward for about 110km (70miles) to join the Clearwater River about 16km (10miles) east of Fort McMurray.[5] The waters eventually reach the Arctic Ocean via the Athabasca and Mackenzie Rivers.

History

The Christina River and Christina Lake were named to honour Christine Gordon, originally from Scotland, who was the first white woman to live permanently in the Fort McMurray area, where she remained until her death in the 1940s. She was highly respected by the community, including the First Nations and Métis.[6] Gordon, partly based on knowledge gleaned from a Scottish home nursing book, made her own treatments for illnesses and injuries. She could "splint a broken arm, lower a fever, and mix herbal remedies." By 1914 she owned and operated a post in Fort McMurray, in competition with the Hudson's Bay Company.

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: 2,000 Place-names of Alberta. Eric J. Holmgren. Patricia M. Holmgren. 3. Western Producer Prairie Books. Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.
  2. Web site: The Catholic Mission: The South of the North Pioneers. Heritage Park. Fort McMurray, Alberta. Fort McMurray Before the Hospital. 14 June 2013.
  3. Book: The Place We Call Home: A History of Fort McMurray As Its People Remember. Irwin Huberman. Historical Book Society of Fort McMurray. Fort McMurray. 2004. 14 June 2013. 284. 0968933904.
  4. Web site: Christina Lake. Atlas of Alberta Lakes. 2004–2005. Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta. 14 June 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20120314014927/http://sunsite.ualberta.ca/Projects/Alberta-Lakes/view/?region=Peace%20and%20Athabasca%20Region&basin=Athabasca%20River%20Basin&lake=Christina%20Lake&number=31. 14 March 2012. dead.
  5. Canada Department of Energy, Mines and Resources, 1991 and 1993. National Topographic System maps 73M (Winefred Lake) and 74D (Fort McMurray), scale 1:250,000.
  6. Integrated Resource Plan - Christina Lake Management Plan. 1991. SRD Government of Alberta. Land Use Planning. 2013-06-14. https://web.archive.org/web/20130604012412/http://srd.alberta.ca/LandsForests/LandusePlanning/documents/IntegratedResourcePlan-ChristinaLakeManagementPlan-1991.pdf. 2013-06-04. dead.