Kinosao Sipi

Kinosao Sipi, the Cree name associated with Norway House, means Fish River. The country north of Lake Winnipeg lies among the channels and lakes of the Nelson River system, where fisheries supported communities and travellers. Its waterways also formed a junction between the great lake and routes east to Hudson Bay.

The Hudson's Bay Company established Norway House at the lake's outlet in 1817. After a fire, the post was moved in 1826 to the eastern channel, closer to the fishery that supplied its people. It became a major inland depot, and from the 1830s the company's northern council met there to plan the fur trade. Canoe brigades passing between York Factory and the interior made the post an important stop on the long journey west.