NORTHWEST TERRITORIES, Northwest Territories (1921 census)
NORTHWEST TERRITORIES was a census subdivision in Northwest Territories, recorded in the 1921 Census of Canada with a population of 7,234. The administrative centroid was at approximately 68.774°N, 102.509°W.
Population
In 1921, NORTHWEST TERRITORIES had a population of 7,234: 4,129 male and 3,859 female residents.
Population trajectory across census years
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1911 | — |
| 1921 | 7,234 |
Cross-year identity established by spatial polygon overlap (SAME_AS chains across the Canadian Census Subdivision boundary files).
Boundary continuity (non-identical overlaps)
Spatial polygon overlaps with adjacent census years where the boundary shifted enough that the SAME_AS chain didn't merge them. These show where the territory came from and went to even when it isn't tracked as the same persistent place.
Earlier boundary forms
- In an earlier year, this CSD was contained in NO DATA, 1911 (66.1% share).
- In an earlier year, this CSD contained NORTHWEST TERRITORIES, 1911 (0.1% share).
Neighbouring Census Subdivisions in 1921
In the 1921 census, NORTHWEST TERRITORIES shared boundaries with:
- Fort George
- Northern unorganized parts
- Remainder of province comprising northern parts
- Rural Parts
- Unorganized northern parts
Full census record, 1921
The 1921 census recorded 34 measurements for this Census Subdivision across 3 categories.
Population & families (1921). This community's record includes 7,234 total population, 4,129 males in the population, 3,951 males born in Canada, 3,859 females in the population, 3,830 females born in Canada, 98 males born outside the British Empire, 80 males born in the British Empire (excluding Canada), 16 females born outside the British Empire, 13 females born in the British Empire (excluding Canada). (Source: 1921 Census of Canada, V1T16.)
Ethnic origin (1921). This community's record includes 988 persons of British origin (English), 258 persons of French origin, 130 persons of British origin (Scotch / Scottish), 106 persons of British origin (Irish), 34 persons of Scandinavian origin, 31 persons of other European origin, 12 persons of German origin, 7 persons of Russian origin, 3 persons of British origin (other), 2 persons of Belgian origin, 1 persons of Dutch origin, 1 persons of Italian origin. 3,873 persons recorded under the official census category "Indian"; corresponds to what is now described as Indigenous (First Nations; in northern enumerations also Inuit) origin. "Indian" was simultaneously a census category and the legal/administrative term under the Indian Act (1876). 1 persons recorded under the 1921 official census category "Hebrew" (origin/ethnicity); now described as Jewish origin. (Source: 1921 Census of Canada, V1T27.)
Religion (1921). This community's record includes 3,849 Roman Catholics, 3,295 persons whose religion or origin is unspecified, 1,042 adherents of other sects (residual category in 1921), 648 Anglicans (Church of England), 45 Presbyterians, 18 Methodists, 11 Lutherans, 10 Baptists, 6 Congregationalists, 1 Jews, 1 Mennonites. (Source: 1921 Census of Canada, V1T27; V1T38.)
People with Dictionary of Canadian Biography entries
The Dictionary of Canadian Biography includes biographies of 5 people connected to this place who were alive in 1921, listed below by birth year. Each name links to that person's DCB entry.
| Name | Lifespan | Connection |
|---|---|---|
| John Hornby | 1880–1927 | died here |
| Uloqsaq | 1887–1929 | died here |
| Qanajuq | 1903–1931 | died here |
| Alikomiak | d. 1924 | died here |
| Niaqutiaq | d. 1922 | died here |
Identifiers
- TCP UID:
NT220001— year-scoped identifier from the Canadian Census Subdivision boundary file - Persistent place ID:
PLACE_NT220001— computed from spatial-overlap chains across census years - Wikidata: not yet grounded. This page covers a place whose persistent identity has not yet been linked to a Wikidata entity. Identification is via TCP UID and spatial polygon only.
Sources
Census tabulations from the 1921 Census of Canada, transcribed and georeferenced by the Canadian Peoples / TCP project, hosted at the HGIS Lab, University of Saskatchewan. Persistent place identity computed from spatial-overlap chains across all available census years (1851–1921). Identity grounding to Wikidata performed via the HGIS Canada Knowledge Graph project's MCP-assisted disambiguation pipeline. See the About / Methodology page for the full data pipeline.
Cite this page
Clifford, J. (2026). "NORTHWEST TERRITORIES, Northwest Territories (1921 census)" in HGIS Canada Knowledge Graph. Retrieved from https://jimclifford.ca/hgiscanada/places/nt/northwest-territories-nt220001-1921/.