TIMELINE

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Northwest Territory Timeline Map, Canadian Province

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1700's - 1800's

(1700's) Northwest Territories (NWT) dominated by Hudson's Bay Company, North West Company
(1870) British government transferred control of North-Western Territory to Canada; Hudson's Bay Company sold Rupert's Land to Canada; Province of Manitoba created from territory
(1880) Arctic Islands increased size of NWT
(1882) NWT divided into four administrative districts: Alberta, Assiniboia, Athabaska, Saskatchewan
(1890) Gold discovered in Yellowknife Bay area
(1898) Yukon became separate territory

1900's

(1905) Alberta, Saskatchewan created
(1918) NWT divided into present districts: Keewatin, Mackenzie, Franklin
(1920) NWT districts brought into the Dominion of Canada
(1924) Royal Canadian Corps of Signals established first Northwest Territory radiotelegraph station
(1928) Influenza epidemic killed 10 to 15% of Aboriginal population
(1933) Canada'a first radium/uranium mine opened at Port Radium
(1940) First municipal government in the NWT inaugurated in Yellow Knife
(1954) Last public hanging in NWT
(1957) Distant Early Warning Line (DEW Line) completed from Alaska to Greenland
(1967) Yellowknife named capital of NWT
(1969) Dene formed Indian Brotherhood of the NWT
(1970) First Arctic Winter Games held in Yellowknife
(1973) Indian reserve created at Hay River
(1976) Government of Canada, Dene Nation, Metis Association agreed to enter into negotiations over unresolved treaty problems
(1978) Soviet satellite, Cosmos 954, broke apart, scattered pieces over East Arm of Great Slave Lake; Indian Brotherhood of NWT became Dene Nation
(1984) Land claim agreement reached with Inuvialuit
(1984) NWT recognized aboriginal languages as official languages
(1987) Pope John Paul II visited NWT
(1991) Diamonds discovered at Lac de Gras
(1992) Bomb placed in mine drift during labor dispute at Royal Oak Mine killed nine; Land claim agreement reached with Gwich'in
(1994) Land claim agreement reached with Sahtu Dene/Metis
(1999) NWT divided into two parts - 60% of land transferred to new territory of Nunavut; Chevron announced major natural gas find in NWT

2000's

(2002) Land claim agreement reached with Taicho
(2003) Gold mining ended in NWT
(2009) Canadian fighter jets intercepted two Russian bombers north of Tuktoyuktuk in NWT