In 1912, a representative of the federal Indian Department chose the site for a new Indian Residential School, about seven miles northwest of The Pas, bordering on the Opaskwayak Cree Nation. Twenty acres of forest were cleared and a building was constructed between the Fall of 1912 and June 1914. It opened for classes in October 1914, named in commemoration of Anglican archdeacon John Alexander Mackay of Saskatchewan. The school was administered by the Bishop and Diocese of Saskatchewan until January 1922 when it was transferred to the Missionary Society of the Church of England in Canada. It was destroyed by fire on 19 March 1933 and was not rebuilt. Another facility of the same name operated at Dauphin from 1955 to 1980.
The former school site is now used for community cultural and sporting events. Some foundations are still discernible at the site.
Postcard of MacKay Indian Residential School (no date)
Source: Gordon Goldsborough, 2011-0059Site Coordinates (lat/long): N53.86819, W101.36575
denoted by symbol on the map above
See also:
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Brandon Indian Residential School (RM of Cornwallis)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Brandon Indian Residential School Cemetery (RM of Cornwallis)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Brandon Old Indian Residential School Cemetery (Brandon)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Birtle Indian Residential School (Birtle, Municipality of Prairie View)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Elkhorn Indian Residential School (Elkhorn, RM of Wallace-Woodworth)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: MacKay Indian Residential School (Opaskwayak Cree Nation)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Portage la Prairie Indian Residential School (Crescent Road West, Portage la Prairie)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Pine Creek Indian Residential School / Camperville Indian Residential School (Pine Creek First Nation)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Norway House Indian Residential School (Norway School)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Julia Clark School (611 Academy Road, Winnipeg)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Residential School Totem Pole (Assiniboine Park, Winnipeg)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Rupert’s Land Indian Industrial School / St. Paul’s Industrial School (Middlechurch, RM of West St. Paul)
“MacKay Indian Residential School,” The Pas: Gateway to Northern Manitoba, The Pas Historical Society, 1983, pages 81-82.
We thank Robin Reader for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 2 November 2021
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