More History - Other names your town went by

[Laceoflight]

Just because it's fun, the Commission de toponymie du Québec, the public body responsible for managing Québec place names, has published a series of books documenting the various First nations place names (Abénaquis, Algonquiens, Attikameks, Cris, Hurons-Wendats and Naskapis).

It's possible to discover how the First Nations used to name and currently name different cities, towns, villages, regions, rivers, mountains and so on.

Here are a few examples of cities names :
Current name _ NATIVE NAME {meaning in French / English} _ Language

• Amos _ HARRICANAW {biscuit / cookie} _ Algonguin
• Amos _ KOAKIKASHI {le portage des grands pins / tall pines portage} _ Algonquin
• Deux-Montagnes _ MOZIOSAGAN {le garrot d'orignal / moose withers} _ Abénaquis
• Hull _ KTSI AGWADAY {le grand amont / the great upstream} _ Abénaquis
• L'Ancienne-Lorette _ ANDATRAKA {unknown} _ Huron-Wendat
• La Sarre _ WABAKIN {montagne blanche / white mountain} _ Algonquin
• Nicolet _ PITHIGAN {l'entrée / the entrance} _ Abénaquis
• Pierreville _ AGWADAIWI {en amont / upstream} _ Abénaquis
• Québec _ KEPHEK {où c'est bouché / where it's blocked} _ Abénaquis
• Québec _ TEATONTARI {les étroits / the narrows} _ Huron-Wendat
• Saint-Hyacinthe _ KOASIZEK {au petit pin blanc / at the little white pine} _ Abénaquis
• Shawinigan _ AZAWANIGAN {le portage en pente / sloped portage} _ Abénaquis
• Sherbrooke _ NIKITOTEGWAK {à la rivière qui fourche / at the river that forks} _ Abénaquis
• Sorel _ MASOLIAN {beaucoup d'argent / lots of silver} _ Abénaquis
• Tadoussac _ TADAOSAKW {bois pourri luminescent, de l'amadou / luminescent rotten wood, or tinder} _ Abénaquis
• Trois-Rivières _ MADÔBALODENIK {à la fin, chez Loden / at the end, at Loden's} _ Abénaquis
• Trois-Rivières _ METABEROUTIN {exposé aux vents / exposed to the winds} _ Algonquin
• Trois-Rivières _ EK8ENTONDÏE {les 3 rivières / the 3 rivers} _ Huron-Wendat
• Val-d'Or _ ASIKIWACH {la cache du canard / the duck cache} _ Algonquin

[Nathan]

Originally Posted by Jeff

great thread!

my favourite will always be Regina's former name: Pile o' Bones

The name is still held in the main city park's name (Legislative Grounds), Wascana, which is a corruption of the Cree word, Oskana. The translation is - as you mentioned - Pile o' Bones.

[Xelebes]

Edmonton has been known under these names:

Edmonton House
Fort Edmonton
Amisk waciwaskihikan (Cree)
Omukoyus (Siksika)
Nasagachoo (Tsuu T'ina)
Sawyah-thay-koi (Chipewyan)

Towns or settlements that are now a part of Edmonton:

Fort Augusta
Strathcona
North Edmonton
Beverley
Calder
Jasper Place
Bruderfeld
Duggan
Papaschase First Nation

[SignalHillHiker]

Originally Posted by Xelebes

Towns or settlements that are now a part of Edmonton:

Fort Augusta
Strathcona
North Edmonton
Beverley
Calder
Jasper Place
Bruderfeld
Duggan
Papaschase First Nation

Settlements now part of the City of St. John's (year of amalgamation):

Quidi Vidi (1894)
Mundy Pond (1963)
Shea Heights (1984)
The Goulds (1991)
Wedgewood Park (1991)

That list excludes all suburban communities that were built and immediately incorporated into the city's borders, such as Georgestown, Rabbittown, Churchill Park, etc. And, of course, it excludes all of the separate communities within the St. John's CMA (Conception Bay South, Mount Pearl, Paradise, Torbay, Portugal Cove-St. Philip's, Logy Bay-Middle Cove-Outer Cove, Pouch Cove, Flatrock, Bay Bulls, Witless Bay, Petty Harbour-Maddox Cove, and Bauline).

Conception Bay South, our second-largest community now after passing Mount Pearl, is an amalgamation. It was created in 1973 encompassing the then-separate communities of:

Chamberlains
Foxtrap
Kelligrews
Lawrence Pond
Long Pond
Manuels
Seal Cove
Topsail
Upper Gullies

I wish they'd just chosen the name Conception, instead of adding "Bay South".

We'll never see St. John's amalgamate with any more of the surrounding communities They are far too opposed. However, in time, I think we'll see Conception Bay South, Mount Pearl, and Paradise amalgamate. "Twin Cities" used to be a very, very common term/name here, for news reports, business names, etc. It'll probably come back once the suburbs amalgamate.

North of the city (Bauline, Pouch Cove, Flatrock, Torbay) is also a likely candidate for some sort of amalgamation, probably adopting the regional name Cape St. Francis or sticking with Torbay.

[RWin]

Quidi Vidi has got to be my favourite place name ever.

[SignalHillHiker]

Kiddie Viddie if you're from anywhere else, Kwhy-da Vye-da if you're from there. Colloquially, it's divided into "the village" (mostly the newer homes) and "the gut" (older area right on the water). If you say you're from "the gut", that's interpreted as being an old Quidi Vidi family - Conways, Squires, McInnes, etc.

Anyhow, it's supposedly Italian in origin, means "What a beautiful sight".

[Franco401]

Saint John was originally created in the merger of Parrtown (current south end) and Carleton (West Side, east of City Line). Later on it merged with Portland (North End), Simonds to the east and Lancaster to the west. Simonds and Lancaster are the only names among these that survive in anything other than history books and street names.

Interestingly, while the city has always gone by Saint JOHN instead of Saint JOHN'S, it originally St. John, abbreviated as the River is. While the River continues to be officially abbreviated St, the city changed its name sometime (I can't quite remember the year, it was around 1915) to Saint after a campaign began in the Telegraph-Journal to differentiate it from St John's NL.

Fredericton was initially called St. Anne's Point, before being renamed Frederickstown after Prince Frederick of Germany, later simplified to Fredericton.

[Jeff]

Kenora, ON is another favourite of mine. Pretty much an acronym of the first three communities located along the same part of the lake: KEewatin, NOrman and RAt Portage

[EpicPonyTime]

One of the proposed names for Martensville, Saskatchewan was Transylvania.

Aside from the satanic daycare scandal, it's my favourite tidbit of local history.

[Andy6]

Originally Posted by Jeff

Kenora, ON is another favourite of mine. Pretty much an acronym of the first three communities located along the same part of the lake: KEewatin, NOrman and RAt Portage

Unlike Canora, Sask., which is a similar contraction of CAnadian NOrthern RAilway. Or Arvida, Quebec, which is after Alcoa chairman ARthur VIning DAvis.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by Andy6

Unlike Canora, Sask., which is a similar contraction of CAnadian NOrthern RAilway. Or Arvida, Quebec, which is after Alcoa chairman ARthur VIning DAvis.

Those are nice sounding. When the west Quebec towns of Aylmer, Deschênes and Lucerne were set to merge in 1975, one of the names on the table was Aydelu. In the end they chose Aylmer, but the name Aydelu lives on in a few places: a park, an arena, a recreational association, etc.

[wg_flamip]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Those are nice sounding. When the west Quebec towns of Aylmer, Deschênes and Lucerne were set to merge in 1975, one of the names on the table was Aydelu. In the end they chose Aylmer, but the name Aydelu lives on in a few places: a park, an arena, a recreational association, etc.

Where was this contraction fad when the municipality of the United Townships of Dysart, Dudley, Harcourt, Guilford, Harburn, Bruton, Havelock, Eyre and Clyde (AKA Dysart et al, Ontario) was named?

[SignalHillHiker]

Our worst offender for that (sorry Architype) is New-Wes-Valley.

It's an amalgamation of Newtown, Wesleyville, and Valleyview. Beautiful area (one good storm away from being washed off the earth), but hideous name.

Barbour Premises, Newtown, Newfoundland by Jim Cornish, on Flickr

St. Luke's: Newtown, Newfoundland by Robert Hiscock, on Flickr

[Tony]

Great thread! I like the info about Cummings Island the most.

[shreddog]

Since Vid hasn’t weighed in yet, I’ll chime in on the Thunder Bay “debacle” regarding naming.

Since the early 1900’s the cities of Fort William and Port Arthur looked at merging – some of the more interesting names where:

Port Edwards
Fort Dawson
Port Williamia, and my favourite
Port Fort!

In 1969 the Ontario gov’t forced through an amalgamation as of Jan 1 1970. In the local vote, the results where:

21% - The Lakehead
39% - Lakehead
40% - Thunder Bay

Since we were stuck with a horrible FPTP vote, Thunder Bay it was. Not sure why the differentiation between the two "Lakehead" options, but I do personally like TB better.

[Loco101]

Timmins, ON:

Golden City
Porcupine
Mattagami

The area is still known as "The Porcupine" named after the Porcupine River where early explorers and prospectors thought an island in the river looked like a porcupine.

[Andy6]

Originally Posted by shreddog

Since Vid hasn’t weighed in yet, I’ll chime in on the Thunder Bay “debacle” regarding naming.

Since the early 1900’s the cities of Fort William and Port Arthur looked at merging – some of the more interesting names where:

Port Edwards
Fort Dawson
Port Williamia, and my favourite
Port Fort!

In 1969 the Ontario gov’t forced through an amalgamation as of Jan 1 1970. In the local vote, the results where:

21% - The Lakehead
39% - Lakehead
40% - Thunder Bay

Since we were stuck with a horrible FPTP vote, Thunder Bay it was. Not sure why the differentiation between the two "Lakehead" options, but I do personally like TB better.

Yes, although "the Lakehead" was what everyone called it, so it had the advantage of authenticity and familiarity. "Thunder Bay" was a made-up proposal.

[shreddog]

Originally Posted by Andy6

"Thunder Bay" was a made-up proposal.

Not sure what this means? "Thunder Bay"is the name of the body of water that the city is located on and does have a historical linkage to local Objiway names.

IMHO, Lakehead would have been a bland name for the city, but not the university or local businesses.

[lrt's friend]

Originally Posted by Tony

Great thread! I like the info about Cummings Island the most.

Here is a picture of the last bridge that crossed through Cummings Island. The R.C. Cummings building would be just out of the picture to the right. The current bridge opened in 1922 and the island was abandoned at that time. The community in view is Vanier that I referred to (known as Janeville at the time of the picture). The road that crosses the bridge goes directly to Parliament Hill to the left.

[sunsetmountainland]

I was raised in Nanaimo. The Snuneymuxw of the Central Coast SALISH were the region's first inhabitants. Nanaimo is the corruption of the name they gave the area, meaning "gathering place."

The HUDSON'S BAY COMPANY (HBC) established a fortified post in 1849, and the discovery of COAL in 1852 led to permanent settlement. In 1854, 24 families arrived from England to settle in Colvile Town, the name first given the settlement, after Andrew Colvile, governor of the HBC. The name was gradually discontinued and was little used after 1860.

Nanaimo was dedicated as the "Harbour City" by Prince Charles and Princess Diana in 1986.

Central Nanaimo's street pattern is based on a century-old radial pattern of streets converging on the waterfront and central business district. Until the 1950s Nanaimo was a city of contrasts - coal mine officials and entrepreneurs built large homes in certain areas while the miners lived in "stark frame company houses" on the waterfront or on company lands outside the city. The city's waterfront and central core have been extensively rebuilt and have emerged as a lively tourist area.

This giving it the nickname the hub city as the road pattern is similar to a wheel hub pattern.

It is also known as the hub of Vancouver island in the regional sense. With routes too Vancouver and the lower mainland go through Nanaimo. It is also the retail and commercial hub of central Vancouver island.

It has also been called the bathtub city in reference too the yearly bathtub race started by Frank Ney ( pirate name Black Frank) established in 1968.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Ney