Maskwacis

Maskwacis
  • ᒪᐢᑿᒌᐢ
  • maskwacîs[a][1]
Hobbema (1891–2013)
Unincorporated community/Hamlet
Area surrounding Maskwacis
Maskwacis is located in Alberta
Maskwacis
Maskwacis
Location in Alberta
Coordinates: 52°49.6′N 113°27.1′W / 52.8267°N 113.4517°W / 52.8267; -113.4517
CountryCanada
ProvinceAlberta
ReservesSamson 137
Ermineskin 138
Municipal districtPonoka County
Established1891
Name changeJanuary 1, 2014[2]
Area
 (2021)[3]
 • Land0.25 km2 (0.10 sq mi)
Population
 (2021)[3]
 • Total64
 • Density252.7/km2 (654/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC−7 (MST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−6 (MDT)
Postal code
T0C 1N0
Hobbema's Alberta Grain Co. grain elevator, now at the Alberta Central Railway Museum

Maskwacis (/ˈmʌskwətʃiːs/; Cree: ᒪᐢᑿᒌᐢ, maskwacîs), renamed in 2014 from Hobbema (/hoʊˈbiːmə/), is an unincorporated community in central Alberta, Canada at intersection of Highway 2A and Highway 611, approximately 70 kilometres (43 mi) south of the City of Edmonton. The community consists of two Cree First Nations communities – one on the Ermineskin 138 reserve to the north and the other on the Samson 137 reserve to the south. It also consists of an adjacent hamlet within Ponoka County.[4] The community also serves three more nearby First Nations reserves including Samson 137A to the south, Louis Bull 138B to the northwest, and Montana 139 to the south.

The area was originally known as Maskwacis, and Father Constantine Scollen always referred to it as "Bear Hills" when he attempted to re-establish a Catholic mission there, in late 1884 and 1885, around the time that he and Chief Bobtail succeeded in persuading the young men not to join the North-West Rebellion. The first railway station was named Hobbema after the Dutch painter Meindert Hobbema during the construction of the Calgary and Edmonton Railway in 1891. As a result, all of Hobbema's neighbouring communities came to bear names of First Nations origin (Ponoka ("elk"), Menaik ("spruce"), Wetaskiwin ("hills where peace was made")), with the exception of Hobbema itself.[5] The community, including the hamlet portion within Ponoka County, was renamed Maskwacis (meaning "bear hills" in Cree) on January 1, 2014.[2][6]

The community has an employment centre, health board and college.[7]


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  1. ^ "Maskwacîs Education Schools Commission".
  2. ^ a b "County Council Meeting (minutes)" (PDF). Ponoka County. September 3, 2013. p. 2. Archived from the original on May 12, 2015. Retrieved December 27, 2013.
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference 2021census was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "Specialized and Rural Municipalities and Their Communities" (PDF). Alberta Municipal Affairs. June 3, 2024. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
  5. ^ "Official name change to Maskwacis (Bear Hills) in place of "Hobbema"". Samson Cree Nation. October 23, 2013.
  6. ^ "Samson Cree First Nation plans for name change". CTV News. December 26, 2013. Retrieved December 27, 2013.
  7. ^ Cryderman, Kelly (December 27, 2013). "Hobbema to mark community's name change with New Year's Eve festivities". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved October 3, 2014.