District of Keewatin located in the administrative territorial entity Canada
History as a territory, 1876–1905
The District of Keewatin was created by the passage of the Keewatin Act on October 7, 1876, from a portion of Canada's Northwest Territories. The district ceased being an independent territory in 1905 and was returned to the Northwest Territories. At the time of its abolition, it covered 590,900 square kilometres (228,160 sq mi) — roughly the size of Saskatchewan. At its establishment in 1876, it encompassed the bulk of what is now Manitoba and northwestern Ontario and southern Nunavut. Its territory had been reduced over the years as areas were added to the two provinces.
The federal government created the District of Keewatin on the advice of Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba Alexander Morris. Morris convinced the government that the new territorial government of the Northwest Territories would be unable to effectively administer land to the north and east of Manitoba.Morris was advised of the need for a new territory by James McKay. Morris approved of the idea and began conferring with McKay to determine a proper Indigenous name for the territory. McKay decided upon Keewatin, which comes from the Cree and Saulteaux languages and means 'the land of the north wind'. The government decided to use an Indigenous name to respect the cultural identity of Indigenous peoples, who formed the largest demographic.
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