Punnichy Explained

Official Name:Punnichy
Settlement Type:Village
Pushpin Map:Saskatchewan#Canada
Pushpin Map Caption:Location of Punnichy in Saskatchewan
Coordinates:51.372°N -104.293°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:Canada
Subdivision Type1:Province
Subdivision Name1:Saskatchewan
Subdivision Type2:Region
Subdivision Name2:Saskatchewan
Subdivision Type3:Census division
Subdivision Name3:6
Subdivision Type4:Rural Municipality
Subdivision Name4:Mount Hope
Leader Title:Mayor
Leader Name:Victor Senft
Leader Title1:Administrator
Leader Name1:Dixie-Lee Cowan
Leader Title2:Governing body
Leader Name2:Punnichy Village Council
Established Title:Post office
Established Date:1909-04-01
Established Title2:Incorporated (Village)
Established Date2:1909
Established Title3:Incorporated (Town)
Area Total Km2:0.68
Population As Of:2011
Population Footnotes:[1]
Population Total:245
Population Density Km2:363.3
Population Blank1 Title:National Population Rank (Out of 5,008)
Timezone:CST
Utc Offset:−6
Elevation M:610
Postal Code Type:Postal code
Postal Code:S0A 3C0
Area Code:306
Blank Name:Highways
Blank Info:Highway 15
Blank1 Name:Waterways
Blank2 Name:Railways
Blank2 Info:Canadian National Railway
Footnotes:[2] [3]

Punnichy (2016 population:) is a village in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan within the Rural Municipality of Mount Hope No. 279 and Census Division No. 10. It is 126km (78miles) northeast of the City of Regina. This village is part of the original "Alphabet Line" of the main Canadian National Railway line with Lestock to the east and Quinton to the west (the M, N, O towns have long since been deserted). Punnichy derived its name from panacay, "fledgling bird with few feathers", a Saulteaux joke referring to the appearance of a pioneer merchant.

Punnichy is along Highway 15 in the heart of the Touchwood Hills between Quinton and Lestock. It is surrounded by four First Nation reserves: Muskowekwan, Kawacatoose, Daystar and Gordon. Punnichy was the location of one of the last operating residential schools in Canada, Gordon Indian Residential School, which closed in 1996.

Punnichy is part of the provincial constituency Last Mountain-Touchwood and federal constituency Regina—Qu'Appelle.

In 2009, Punnichy celebrated its centennial.

History

Punnichy incorporated as a village on October 22, 1909.[4]

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Punnichy had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of 0.68km2, it had a population density of in 2021.[5]

In the 2016 Census of Population, the Village of Punnichy recorded a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change from its 2011 population of . With a land area of 0.68km2, it had a population density of in 2016.[6]

Education

Punnichy has an elementary school, high school and a Carlton Trail Regional College centre.

Punnichy Community High School is unique within the Horizon School Division, in that it is run on the quadmester system, with 4 terms in a school year. The students take four classes in the first quadamester, two each morning and another two each afternoon. The first quadmester lasts 90 school days and the remaining 3 each last about 35 days. In the last 3 quadmesters, students take one class all morning and another all afternoon.[7]

A satellite facility of Punnichy high school is the George Gordon Computer Education Centre in the community centre on Gordon First Nation. The facility assists First Nations students to return to school or pick up extra classes to move into post-secondary or job training. The program is "at your own pace" and is similar to "store front" programs in urban centres.

Gordon's Indian Residential School, located in Punnichy and which closed its doors in 1996, was one of the last federally-funded residential school in Canada.[8] [9] [10]

Notable people

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2011 Community Profiles . Statistics Canada . Government of Canada . 2014-08-21.
  2. Web site: National Archives . Archivia Net . Post Offices and Postmasters . 2014-08-21.
  3. Web site: Government of Saskatchewan . MRD Home . Municipal Directory System . 2014-08-21.
  4. Web site: Urban Municipality Incorporations . Saskatchewan Ministry of Government Relations . June 1, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141015042810/http://municipal.gov.sk.ca/Municipal-History/Urban-Incorporated-Dates . October 15, 2014.
  5. Web site: Population and dwelling counts: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (municipalities), Saskatchewan . . February 9, 2022 . April 1, 2022.
  6. Web site: Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), 2016 and 2011 censuses – 100% data (Saskatchewan) . . February 8, 2017 . May 30, 2020.
  7. Web site: Horizon School Division # 205 . Punnichy Community High School . 2014-08-21.
  8. Miller, J.R. 2012 October 10. "Residential Schools in Canada." The Canadian Encyclopedia (last edited 2020 September 2).
  9. "Gordon’s." National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation.
  10. Web site: Shattering The Silence The Hidden History of Indian Residential Schools in Saskatchewan eBook . University of Regina . May 29, 2021.
  11. Web site: Ray Sentes Brave Fighter for Asbestos Victims.