Thunder Bay | |
|---|---|
| City of Thunder Bay | |
     From top, left to right: view from Mount McKay, Lakehead University, Magnus Theatre, City Hall, Tourist Pagoda | |
 Logo | |
| Nicknames: "Canada's Gateway to the West", "T-Bay", "Lakehead" or "The Lakehead"[1] | |
| Motto: Superior by Nature / The Gateway to the West | |
  Thunder Bay Location of Thunder Bay | |
| Coordinates: 48°24′05″N 89°16′04″W / 48.40139°N 89.26778°W[2] | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | Ontario |
| District | Thunder Bay |
| CMA | Thunder Bay |
| Settled | 1683 as Fort Caministigoyan |
| Amalgamation | 1 January 1970 |
| Electoral Districts Federal | Thunder Bay—Superior North/Thunder Bay—Rainy River |
| Provincial | Thunder Bay—Superior North/Thunder Bay—Atikokan |
| Government | |
| • Type | Municipal Government |
| • Mayor | Ken Boshcoff |
| • City manager | Norm Gale[3] |
| • Governing Body | Thunder Bay City Council |
| • MPs | Patty Hajdu (Liberal) Marcus Powlowski (Liberal) |
| • MPPs | Lise Vaugeois (ONDP) Kevin Holland (Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario) |
| Area | |
| • City (single-tier) | 447.5 km2 (172.8 sq mi) |
| • Land | 328.24 km2 (126.73 sq mi) |
| • Water | 119.0 km2 (45.9 sq mi) 26.6% |
| • Urban | 179.38 km2 (69.26 sq mi) |
| • Metro | 2,556.37 km2 (987.02 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 199 m (653 ft) |
| Population | |
| • City (single-tier) | 108,843 (51st) |
| • Density | 332.1/km2 (860/sq mi) |
| • Urban | 95,266 (36th) |
| • Urban density | 1,253/km2 (3,250/sq mi) |
| • Metro | 123,258 (34th) |
| • Metro density | 48.3/km2 (125/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Thunder Bayer |
| Gross Metropolitan Product | |
| • Thunder Bay CMA | CA$6.2 billion (2020)[11] |
| Time zone | UTC−05:00 (EST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−04:00 (EDT) |
| Forward sortation area | |
| Area code | 807 |
| NTS Map | 52A6 Thunder Bay |
| GNBC Code | FCWFX[12] |
| Website | www |
Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario and the second most populous (after Greater Sudbury) municipality in Northern Ontario. Its population is 108,843 according to the 2021 Canadian census. Located on Lake Superior, the census metropolitan area of Thunder Bay has a population of 123,258 and consists of the city of Thunder Bay, the municipalities of Oliver Paipoonge and Neebing, the townships of Shuniah, Conmee, O'Connor, and Gillies, and the Fort William First Nation.
European settlement in the region began in the late 17th century with a French fur trading outpost on the banks of the Kaministiquia River.[13] It grew into an important transportation hub with its port forming an important link in the shipping of grain and other products from western Canada, through the Great Lakes and the Saint Lawrence Seaway, to the east coast. Forestry and manufacturing played important roles in the city's economy. They have declined in recent years, but have been replaced by a "knowledge economy" based on medical research and education. Thunder Bay is the site of the Thunder Bay Regional Health Research Institute.
On 1 January 1970, the City of Thunder Bay was formed through the merger of the cities of Fort William, Port Arthur, and the geographic townships of Neebing and McIntyre. The city takes this name from the immense Thunder Bay at the head of Lake Superior, known on 18th-century French maps as Baie du Tonnerre (Bay of Thunder).[13] The city is often referred to as the "Lakehead", or "Canadian Lakehead", because of its location at the end of Great Lakes navigation on the Canadian side of the border.[14]
- ^ "Canada's Gateway to the West". Port of Thunder Bay. Archived from the original on 26 December 2018. Retrieved 3 December 2018.
- ^ "Thunder Bay". Geographical Names Data Base. Natural Resources Canada.
- ^ Smith, Jamie. "Norm Gale appointed city manager at city council meeting Monday", TB News Watch (11 January 2016). Retrieved 10 January 2016.
- ^ City Hall, Thunder Bay City Council. Retrieved 2 June 2007.
- ^ Municipal Code, by-law 218-2003. Retrieved 2 June 2007.
- ^ "Census Profile, 2016 Census: Thunder Bay, City". Statistics Canada. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
- ^ "Census Profile, 2016 Census: Thunder Bay [Census metropolitan area]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
- ^ "Census Profile, 2016 Census: Thunder Bay [Population centre]". Statistics Canada. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
- ^ "Canadian Climate Normals 1971–2000". Thunder Bay A, Ontario: Environment Canada. 19 January 2011. Retrieved 12 April 2012.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Census Search "Thunder Bay" Statistics Canada. Retrieved 12 February 2022.
- ^ "Statistics Canada. Table 36-10-0468-01 Gross domestic product (GDP) at basic prices, by census metropolitan area (CMA) (x 1,000,000)". Statistics Canada.
- ^ "Thunder Bay". Geographical Names Data Base. Natural Resources Canada.
- ^ a b Brief History of Thunder Bay, City of Thunder Bay. Retrieved 5 June 2007.
- ^ Tronrud, Thorold J; Epp, Ernest A.; and others. (1995). "Introduction" Archived 7 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Thunder Bay: From Rivalry to Unity, p. vii, Thunder Bay Historical Museum Society ISBN 0-920119-22-0