Overview
Inuvik (place of man) is the only town in the Inuvik Region, and the third largest community in Canada's Northwest Territories. Located in what is sometimes called the Beaufort Delta Region, it serves as its administrative and service centre and is home to federal, territorial, and Indigenous government offices, along with the regional hospital and airport.
Inuvik is located on the northern edge of the boreal forest, just before it begins to transition to tundra, and along the east side of the enormous Mackenzie River delta. The town lies on the border between the Gwich'in Settlement Region and the Inuvialuit Settlement Region.
History
Inuvik was conceived in 1953 as a replacement administrative centre for the hamlet of Aklavik on the west of the Mackenzie Delta, as the latter was prone to flooding and had no room for expansion. Initially called "New Aklavik", it was renamed Inuvik in 1958. The school was built in 1959 and the hospital, government offices and staff residences in 1960, when people, including Inuvialuit, Gwichʼin (Dene) and Métis, began to live in the community.
Naval Radio Station (NRS) Inuvik, later CFS Inuvik, callsign CFV, was commissioned on 10 September 1963 after operations had been successfully transferred from NRS Aklavik. Station CFV was part of the SUPRAD (Supplementary Radio) network of intercept and direction finding stations.
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