Uranium City
| Uranium City | |||
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| Location in Saskatchewan | |||
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| State : |
 Canada
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| Province : | Saskatchewan | ||
| Region: | Census Division No. 18th | ||
| Coordinates : | 59 ° 34 ′ N , 108 ° 37 ′ W | ||
| Height : | 230 m | ||
| Area : | 625 km² | ||
| Residents : | 73 (as of 2016) | ||
| Population density : | 0.1 inhabitants / km² | ||
| Time zone : | Central Time ( UTC − 6 ) | ||
| Postal code : | S0J | ||
| Area code : | +1 306 | ||
| Mayor : | Andrew Montgrand | ||
Uranium City is a municipality ( Northern Settlement ) in the northwest of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan . It is located 700 km north of Prince Albert , 700 km north-northeast of Edmonton ( Alberta ), and 50 km south of the border between Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories on the north shore of Athabascasees .
history
In the 19th century, an old fur trade route passed Lake Athabasca, which Alexander MacKenzie followed on his journey to the Arctic . Other than trapping and prospecting for gold, there was little economic activity in this region until gold was found at Goldfields . In the second half of the 1930s, uranium was found and the Canadian government established the Eldorado Mining and Refining Corporation to control exploration and mining activities. Private exploration work was forbidden during World War II .
In 1946, Eldorado Mining and Refining began with test drillings to explore the deposit and after the exploration ban was lifted, many uranium mines were built in a short time.
Uranium City was planned by the provincial government of Saskatchewan as a residential and supply location for the mines in the Beaverlodge uranium mining area and was opened in 1952 with the support of Eldorado Nuclear Ltd. built up.
Uranium City suffered from the same problems as other monostructural communities. The town's development depended on the demand for uranium and experienced several ups and downs until the last mine closed in 1982. In other areas of Saskatchewan ( McArthur River , Cigar Lake ), higher proportions of uranium were found in the rock and mining in Uranium City therefore stopped.
The village has a primary school, an infirmary and a post office.
population
Initially, the few residents of Uranium City lived in tents. The uranium boom made Uranium City a thriving city with up to 5000 inhabitants. In 1982 the majority of the population left the city abruptly, and there are now around 100 people living in the remaining ghost town .
sons and daughters of the town
- Gina Kingsbury (* 1981), ice hockey player, coach and official
Single receipts
- ^ Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan. Retrieved July 8, 2011 .
- ^ Uranium City ( English, French ) In: The Canadian Encyclopedia . Retrieved August 22, 2016.