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Cape Dorset ᑭᙵᐃᑦ Kinngait
Hamlet
Part of the village with characteristic Kinngait hill, May 1997
Nickname(s):  Capital of Inuit Art
Cape Dorset Show map of Nunavut Cape Dorset Show map of Canada
Coordinates: 64°13′54″N 076°32′25″W / 64.23167°N 76.54028°W / 64.23167; -76.54028Coordinates: 64°13′54″N 076°32′25″W / 64.23167°N 76.54028°W / 64.23167; -76.54028
Country	Canada
Territory	Nunavut
Region	Qikiqtaaluk
Territorial Electoral district	South Baffin
Federal Electoral district	Nunavut
Hudson's Bay Company	1913
Government [1][2]
• Type	Hamlet
• Mayor	Padlaya Qiatsuk
• MLA	David Joanasie
• MP	Hunter Tootoo
• Senator	Dennis Patterson
Area [3]
• Total	9.74 km2 (3.76 sq mi)
Elevation [4]	50 m (160 ft)
Highest elevation	243 m (797 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population (2016)[3]
• Total	1,441
• Density	150/km2 (380/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC−5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Postal code	X0A 0C0
Area code(s)	867
Website	www.capedorset.ca

Cape Dorset (Inuktitut: Kinngait (meaning "high mountain");^[5]Syllabics: ᑭᙵᐃᑦ) is an Inuit hamlet located on Dorset Island^[6] near Foxe Peninsula at the southern tip of Baffin Island in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada.

History

Cape Dorset is where the remains of the Thule (Tuniit, Dorset Culture) were discovered, who lived between 1000 BC and 1100 AD. Cape Dorset was named by Captain Luke Fox after Edward Sackville, 4th Earl of Dorset, on September 24, 1631. The Inuit originally called the inlet Sikusiilaq, after the area of sea ocean nearby that remains ice-free all winter. Hudson's Bay Company set up a trading post here in 1913, where they traded furs and skins for supplies such as tobacco, ammunition, flour, gas, tea and sugar.

Since the 1950s, Cape Dorset, which calls itself the "Capital of Inuit Art", has been a centre for drawing, printmaking, and carving. In the 21st century, printmaking and carving continue to be the community's main economic activities. Each year, Kinngait Studios issues an annual print collection. Cape Dorset has been hailed as the most artistic community in Canada, with some 22% of the labour force employed in the arts.^[7]

In 1957, James Archibald Houston created a graphic arts workshop in Cape Dorset, in a program sponsored by the Department of Northern Affairs and National Resources. It was considered a way for the community to generate income by adapting traditional art forms to contemporary techniques.^[8]:49 Houston collected drawings from community artists and encouraged local Inuit stone carvers to apply their skills to stone-block printing, in order to create art that might be more widely sold and distributed. The print program was modeled after Japanese ukiyo-e workshops. Other cooperative print shops were established in nearby communities, but the Cape Dorset workshop has remained the most successful. The artists have experimented with etching, engraving, lithography, and silkscreen. They produce annual catalogs advertising the limited edition prints.^[8]:49

Between the years of 1959 and 1974, Cape Dorset artists produced more than 48,000 prints. Well-known artists of Cape Dorset include Pitseolak Ashoona, Nuna Parr, Pudlo Pudlat, Angotigolu Teevee, Alashua Aningmiuq, Kiugak Ashoona, Anirnik Oshuitoq and Kenojuak Ashevak. Parr's carvings are internationally recognized and his work is exhibited in the National Gallery of Canada. Ashevak's drawings of owls have been chosen to appear on Canadian stamps as well as a Canadian quarter.

Inuit carver, artist, photographer and author Peter Pitseolak spent several years life living in Cape Dorset. The local junior-senior high school was named for him.

Demographics

As of the 2016 census, the population was 1,411, an increase of 5.7% from the 2006 census.^[3]

Transportation

A handful of unnamed dirt/gravel roads (unpaved because of winter conditions) cross the village but do not connect beyond Cape Dorset. Cars and trucks are the main means of transportation and supplemented by snowmobiles and ATVs (all-terrain vehicles) during the winter. The people use boats and ships for seasonal travel to and from Cape Dorset when the Hudson Strait is ice-free. A taxi company, Tuniit Taxis, offer a range of vehicles.

The area is serviced by the Cape Dorset Airport with connections only within Nunavut. Travel outside Nunavut can be made via connections through Iqaluit Airport.

Education

The only secondary school in town, Peter Pitseolak School (PPS), was destroyed by fire set by three youths in September 2015.^[9]

Sam Pudlat School is the community's only elementary school; it has enrollment of 227 students. Attendance is good at the elementary school but quite poor at the high school.^{[citation needed]}

Post-secondary education is available in a limited number of areas in Cape Dorset at the Community Learning Centre. Nunavut Arctic College, based in Iqaluit, periodically offers community-based programs in Cape Dorset at the Community Learning Centre.

Community services

Royal Canadian Mounted Police has a detachment staffed by 4 officers and sometimes number as many as 6 officers with one Corporal.

The Fire Department is staffed by 25 volunteers and a pumper at a single fire hall. There is a lack of fire hydrants in the town, so each run has to be filled up at the water station.

Medical facilities are basic at the Community Health Centre with four beds.^{[citation needed]} Advanced medical care requires an airlift to the Qikiqtani General Hospital in Iqaluit. There is no ambulance in the town. Qualified doctors visit only occasionally.There is a taxi service but it is not consistently reliable.

Broadband communications

The community has been served by the Qiniq network since 2005. Qiniq is a fixed wireless service to homes and businesses, connecting to the outside world via a satellite backbone. The Qiniq network is designed and operated by SSI Micro. In 2017, the network was upgraded to 4G LTE technology, and 2G-GSM for mobile voice.

Housing

No new family dwellings have been built in more than 10 years, so houses are overcrowded with as many as 17 people living in small quarters.^{[citation needed][date missing]} TB or tuberculosis is active in the town.^{[citation needed]} This is made more acutely dangerous as the overcrowding continues.

Food insecurity

The cost of basic food staples like milk, cheese, flour, butter is 65-75% higher than in Ottawa or Montreal.^{[citation needed]}

Tourism

Spanning both Dorset Island and Mallik Island, Mallikjuaq Territorial Park is notable for archaeological sites revealing Thule culture, Dorset culture, and Inuit history. The park is reachable by foot from Cape Dorset at low tide, or by boat.^[10]
A cairn was raised in memory of the ship, RMS Nascopie, that hit rock and sank in 1947. It was a supply ship to the Arctic. Although the cargo was lost, the passengers and crew were saved.

Outfitters tours such as dogsledding, camping and hiking to parks.

Image gallery

Climate

See also

References

Further reading

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cape Dorset.

• Cape Dorset Artists


• Cape Dorset homepage


• 
  The Cape Dorset Prints from the Library and Archives of Canada