At our last Open Archives, several members met to review the newest artifacts the Society had acquired. Coincidentally, a society member brought in two very large maps that were hanging in Trafalgar Township school S.S. #7. The first map was dated c.1910 and the other was dated 1945.
It was interesting that on the c.1910 map, the northern part of Ontario, north of the Albany River, was shown as part of the Northwest Territories. In the 1945 map, the same area was shown as “Patricia”. We had to explore this mystery relating to Ontario’s heritage.
We turned to online sources and found that Ontario gained access to the territory north of the Albany River through the Ontario Boundaries Extension Act of 1912, which transferred the area to the province and was known as the Patricia Portion. Later, in 1929-1930, Ontario formally adhered to Treaty No. 9, extending its jurisdiction over the unceded lands in the north. This allowed for the development of timber, mineral, and hydroelectric resources while Indigenous communities continued to preserve their traditions.
The Patricia Portion was annexed to the Kenora District in 1937. This explanation solved the mystery.