Red Deer Lake (Manitoba)

Red Deer Lake is a lake in western Manitoba, Canada. It is located approximately 5 miles north of Barrows and 10 miles west of Dawson Bay which is the northwest part of Lake Winnipegosis, and 8 miles east of the Saskatchewan border. Barrows served as a quickly constructed lumber town for the Red Deer Lumber Company, although the sawmill closed around 1926 or 1927.^[1][2] The community of Red Deer Lake had a population of 40 in 2001.^[2]

The area is heavily forested and has hosted a number of logging companies and pulp processors. Fishing is common and fisheries in the lake and Dawson Bay process catch from Red Deer Lake. There is also coal exploration in the area as well, targeting the Mannville Formation.^[3][4]

The Red Deer River arises in east central Saskatchewan and flows east through Red Deer Lake into Dawson Bay of Lake Winnipegosis. To the north of its basin is that of the Saskatchewan River and to the southwest that of the upper Assiniboine River and to the southeast that of the Swan River (Manitoba-Saskatchewan)

Fort Red Deer River or Fort Rivière la Biche was a North West Company trading post on the Red Deer River near the town of Hudson Bay, Saskatchewan about 20 miles upriver from Red Deer Lake. It was founded in 1794 by Hugh McGillis. Its date of closure is uncertain. Losey^[5] places it at the mouth of the Etomami River at the town ballpark where there is a provincial marker, therefore probably 52°49′08″N 102°22′44″W / 52.81889°N 102.37889°W / 52.81889; -102.37889. For some background see Assiniboine River fur trade.

The lake is situated almost entirely in the northwest corner of Manitoba's Census Division No. 19, although its northernmost reaches extend into the southwest corner of Division No. 21.

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