Are you looking for a Wawa near you? If so, you may be surprised to learn that Wawa is actually a municipality in the Canadian province of Ontario. Located within the district of Algoma, Wawa is associated with Lake Wawa and its name is derived from an Ojibway word meaning “wild goose”. This is due to the thousands of geese that rest on Lake Wawa during spring and autumn migration. In the early 1900s, Al and other local businessmen came up with the idea of the Gansa Monument to stop tourists from traveling to TransCanada. This was because they were concerned that the final plans had the road bypassing Wawa.
The city has served as a French fur trading post since 1725 and as a mining town since the gold rush in 1896. Wawa is located 15 miles west of Hawk Junction Station on the Canadian National Railway, on the Sault Ste. Marie-Hearst railway line. It is in the northeast corner of Lake Superior, east of where the lake begins its fall south to Sault Ste. Marie.
Unfortunately, Wawa has faced difficulties in attracting new industries to the community and the region. Wawa is a great place for friends and family to gather and enjoy a remote fishing vacation, pick blueberries, or take time to reconnect with nature and each other along the shores of Great Lake Superior. Wawa Goose books have been shipped all over Canada, the United States and many countries around the world. Throughout the 1990s, Wawa and Algoma's Ore Division continued to face the challenge of international market problems affecting the gold and iron mining industries. The municipality includes the main population center of Wawa, as well as the smaller communities of Michipicoten and Michipicoten River, which are small coastal settlements on the shores of Lake Superior. In the second half of the 1950s, the city's name was temporarily changed to Jamestown in honor of Sir James Hamet Dunn, but it was later returned to Wawa at the request of community residents. The iron ore mountain of Wawa had more to offer but operations were closed in June 1998, one hundred years after iron was first discovered in this remote corner of northern Algoma. Gold mining in the Wawa area prospered and regressed several times in the 20th century, and continues today. So if you're looking for a Wawa, you may be surprised to learn that it's actually a municipality in Ontario! With its remote fishing vacations, blueberry picking opportunities, and beautiful views of Lake Superior, it's no wonder why so many people flock to this area each year.
