Wabush
title: "Wabush" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["labrador-west", "populated-places-in-labrador", "mining-communities-in-newfoundland-and-labrador", "towns-in-newfoundland-and-labrador"] topic_path: "general/labrador-west" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wabush" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Wabush |
| native_name | |
| settlement_type | Town |
| total_type | |
| motto | "Terra Progredimur"(Latin) |
| "From the earth we prosper" | |
| image_skyline | Wabush.png |
| image_flag | Flag of Wabush.svg |
| image_caption | Town of Wabush across Jean Lake |
| image_shield | Wabush.JPG |
| pushpin_map | Canada Newfoundland and Labrador#Canada |
| pushpin_label_position | |
| pushpin_map_caption | Location of Wabush in Canada |
| subdivision_type | Country |
| subdivision_name | Canada |
| subdivision_type1 | Province |
| subdivision_name1 | Newfoundland and Labrador |
| subdivision_type2 | Census divisions |
| subdivision_name2 | 10 |
| government_footnotes | |
| government_type | Municipal incorporation |
| leader_title | Mayor |
| leader_name | Ronald Barron |
| leader_title1 | |
| established_title | Settled |
| established_date | 1955 |
| established_title1 | Founded |
| established_date1 | 1962 |
| established_title2 | Incorporated |
| established_date2 | April 11, 1967 |
| unit_pref | |
| area_total_km2 | 46.25 |
| elevation_footnotes | |
| elevation_m | 560 |
| population_as_of | 2021 |
| population_footnotes | |
| population_total | 1,964 |
| population_density_km2 | auto |
| utc_offset | −04:00 |
| coordinates | |
| postal_code_type | |
| blank_name | Highways |
| blank_info |
| | website | | ::
|name = Wabush
|native_name =
|nickname =
|settlement_type = Town
|total_type =
| motto = "Terra Progredimur"(Latin)
"From the earth we prosper"
|image_skyline = Wabush.png
|imagesize =
|image_flag = Flag of Wabush.svg
|image_caption = Town of Wabush across Jean Lake
|image_shield = Wabush.JPG
|pushpin_map = Canada Newfoundland and Labrador#Canada
|pushpin_label_position =
|pushpin_map_caption = Location of Wabush in Canada
|pushpin_mapsize =
|subdivision_type = Country
|subdivision_name = Canada
|subdivision_type1 = Province
|subdivision_name1 = Newfoundland and Labrador
|subdivision_type2 = Census divisions
|subdivision_name2 = 10
|government_footnotes =
|government_type = Municipal incorporation
|leader_title = Mayor
|leader_name = Ronald Barron
|leader_title1 =
|leader_name1 =
|established_title = Settled
|established_date = 1955
|established_title1 = Founded
|established_date1 = 1962
|established_title2 = Incorporated
|established_date2 = April 11, 1967
|area_magnitude =
|unit_pref =
|area_footnotes =
|area_total_km2 = 46.25
|elevation_footnotes =
|elevation_m = 560
|elevation_max_m =
|elevation_min_m =
|population_as_of = 2021
|population_footnotes =
|population_note =
|population_total = 1,964
|population_density_km2 = auto
|timezone =
|utc_offset = −04:00
|timezone_DST =
|utc_offset_DST =
|coordinates =
|postal_code_type =
|postal_code =
|area_code =
|blank_name = Highways
|blank_info =
|website = |footnotes = Wabush is a small town in the western tip of Labrador, bordering Quebec; it is known for transportation and iron ore operations.
Economy
Wabush is the twin community of Labrador City. At its peak population in the late 1970s, the region had a population of just over 22,000. A reduction in iron mining operations in the late 20th century caused a major decline in jobs and population, when Cliffs Natural Resources Canada had to close and cold store the Scully Mine property (Wabush mines). Since 2018, Tacora Resources Inc. took over and has successfully restarted the Scully property, slowly reinvigorating the community and investing back into the property.
As of 2021, Wabush's population was 1,964. Most residents work in the nearby mines of the Iron Ore Company of Canada, now a unit of Rio Tinto Mines and the Scully Mine of Tacora Resources Inc.
Companies in and around Wabush include:
- Tacora Resources (owner of former Wabush Mines site)
While remote, the town contains modern amenities. A shopping centre includes a post office, bank, a restaurant, a bar, and a snowmobile store. There is also a recreational centre which includes a bowling alley, gymnasium, swimming pool, a teen centre, a weight lifting room, an ice arena, a library, a legion building that serves alcoholic beverages, a furniture store, several playgrounds, a school, a church, two corner stores, and a hotel (which also includes a restaurant, a barber shop, and a bar).
Transportation
Air transportation needs for the twin communities are served by Wabush Airport and seasonally by Wabush Water Aerodrome. It used to receive more frequent service by Air Gaspé, which was acquired by Quebecair in 1973. The latter ended as an independent business in 1986, acquired in turn by CP Air in 1986 and Canadian Airlines in 1987. Currently the area is serviced by Exploits Valley Air Services), Provincial Airlines, Pascan Air and Air Inuit, this airport is no longer covered by ARFF (airport rescue and firefighting) services and the community of Labrador City has withdrawn firefighting services over safety concerns with transport Canada.
Climate
Like most of Labrador, Wabush has a subarctic climate (Köppen Dfc) with more precipitation than is typical for this type of climate due to the persistent Icelandic Low, which give the region some of the rainiest and snowiest weather in all of Canada. Especially in summer, cloudiness is common due to the lakes nearby and the unstable northerly airstreams that prevail, but because the town is relatively far from the open sea, there is more sunshine in Wabush than in St. John's due to the absence of fog from the Labrador Current. Snow usually melts away in May.
|location = Wabush Airport (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1960–present) |single line = Yes |metric first = Yes
|Jan maximum humidex = 7.7 |Feb maximum humidex = 5.9 |Mar maximum humidex = 14.6 |Apr maximum humidex = 16.9 |May maximum humidex = 35.0 |Jun maximum humidex = 37.1 |Jul maximum humidex = 39.0 |Aug maximum humidex = 35.3 |Sep maximum humidex = 32.2 |Oct maximum humidex = 22.6 |Nov maximum humidex = 13.8 |Dec maximum humidex = 7.1 |year maximum humidex =
|Jan record high C = 8.0 |Feb record high C = 6.2 |Mar record high C = 14.7 |Apr record high C = 17.4 |May record high C = 28.8 |Jun record high C = 33.3 |Jul record high C = 32.6 |Aug record high C = 30.6 |Sep record high C = 29.5 |Oct record high C = 21.1 |Nov record high C = 12.2 |Dec record high C = 7.2
|Jan high C = -16.2 |Feb high C = -14.3 |Mar high C = -6.8 |Apr high C = 1.3 |May high C = 9.8 |Jun high C = 16.7 |Jul high C = 19.6 |Aug high C = 18.2 |Sep high C = 12.4 |Oct high C = 4.5 |Nov high C = -3.7 |Dec high C = -11.1 |year high C = 2.5
|Jan mean C = -21.7 |Feb mean C = -20.6 |Mar mean C = -13.7 |Apr mean C = -4.5 |May mean C = 4.1 |Jun mean C = 10.7 |Jul mean C = 14.1 |Aug mean C = 13.1 |Sep mean C = 7.8 |Oct mean C = 1.0 |Nov mean C = -7.5 |Dec mean C = -15.9 |year mean C = -2.8
|Jan low C = -27.1 |Feb low C = -26.9 |Mar low C = -20.5 |Apr low C = -10.2 |May low C = -1.6 |Jun low C = 4.7 |Jul low C = 8.2 |Aug low C = 7.9 |Sep low C = 3.2 |Oct low C = -2.4 |Nov low C = -11.3 |Dec low C = -20.7 |year low C = -8.0
|Jan record low C = -44.1 |Feb record low C = -46.8 |Mar record low C = -41.6 |Apr record low C = -36.4 |May record low C = -13.4 |Jun record low C = -6.9 |Jul record low C = 0.1 |Aug record low C = -1.2 |Sep record low C = -8.1 |Oct record low C = -22.4 |Nov record low C = -33.6 |Dec record low C = -42.5
|Jan chill = -62.8 |Feb chill = -58.2 |Mar chill = -52.6 |Apr chill = -43.4 |May chill = -32.6 |Jun chill = -11.8 |Jul chill = |Aug chill = -6.2 |Sep chill = -13.9 |Oct chill = -28.1 |Nov chill = -43.9 |Dec chill = -59.5 |year chill =
|precipitation colour = green |Jan precipitation mm = 48.7 |Feb precipitation mm = 38.1 |Mar precipitation mm = 52.3 |Apr precipitation mm = 47.9 |May precipitation mm = 55.0 |Jun precipitation mm = 88.7 |Jul precipitation mm = 113.5 |Aug precipitation mm = 119.9 |Sep precipitation mm = 90.8 |Oct precipitation mm = 80.6 |Nov precipitation mm = 72.2 |Dec precipitation mm = 52.5 |year precipitation mm = 860.1
|unit precipitation days = 0.2 mm |Jan precipitation days = 18.1 |Feb precipitation days = 14.0 |Mar precipitation days = 14.7 |Apr precipitation days = 14.0 |May precipitation days = 15.3 |Jun precipitation days = 17.4 |Jul precipitation days = 19.3 |Aug precipitation days = 20.7 |Sep precipitation days = 20.3 |Oct precipitation days = 21.1 |Nov precipitation days = 20.8 |Dec precipitation days = 18.5 |year precipitation days = 214.1
|rain colour = green |Jan rain mm = 0.8 |Feb rain mm = 1.8 |Mar rain mm = 3.1 |Apr rain mm = 11.8 |May rain mm = 42.0 |Jun rain mm = 85.7 |Jul rain mm = 112.1 |Aug rain mm = 119.6 |Sep rain mm = 86.7 |Oct rain mm = 45.1 |Nov rain mm = 14.7 |Dec rain mm = 3.6 |year rain mm = 526.8
|Jan rain days = 0.9 |Feb rain days = 0.9 |Mar rain days = 1.4 |Apr rain days = 3.8 |May rain days = 12.5 |Jun rain days = 16.7 |Jul rain days = 19.3 |Aug rain days = 20.7 |Sep rain days = 19.7 |Oct rain days = 11.9 |Nov rain days = 4.8 |Dec rain days = 1.7 |year rain days = 114.3
|snow colour = green |Jan snow cm = 70.7 |Feb snow cm = 56.7 |Mar snow cm = 71.4 |Apr snow cm = 47.7 |May snow cm = 13.9 |Jun snow cm = 1.2 |Jul snow cm = 0.0 |Aug snow cm = 0.3 |Sep snow cm = 3.4 |Oct snow cm = 38.9 |Nov snow cm = 80.2 |Dec snow cm = 74.8 |year snow cm = 458.9
|unit snow days = 0.2 cm |Jan snow days = 19.6 |Feb snow days = 15.4 |Mar snow days = 16.2 |Apr snow days = 12.7 |May snow days = 9.3 |Jun snow days = 0.91 |Jul snow days = 0.05 |Aug snow days = 0.05 |Sep snow days = 2.0 |Oct snow days = 13.5 |Nov snow days = 20.8 |Dec snow days = 20.7 |year snow days = 128.0
|time day = 15:00 LST |Jan humidity = 67.8 |Feb humidity = 61.0 |Mar humidity = 58.4 |Apr humidity = 58.0 |May humidity = 54.4 |Jun humidity = 54.4 |Jul humidity = 58.3 |Aug humidity = 61.2 |Sep humidity = 64.9 |Oct humidity = 71.6 |Nov humidity = 77.8 |Dec humidity = 75.3 |year humidity = 63.6
|Jan sun = 98.0 |Feb sun = 132.2 |Mar sun = 151.3 |Apr sun = 180.1 |May sun = 210.6 |Jun sun = 212.5 |Jul sun = 218.0 |Aug sun = 202.7 |Sep sun = 116.6 |Oct sun = 75.4 |Nov sun = 56.9 |Dec sun = 67.3 |year sun = 1721.4
|Jan percentsun = 38.6 |Feb percentsun = 47.6 |Mar percentsun = 41.2 |Apr percentsun = 43.1 |May percentsun = 43.0 |Jun percentsun = 42.1 |Jul percentsun = 43.0 |Aug percentsun = 44.4 |Sep percentsun = 30.6 |Oct percentsun = 22.9 |Nov percentsun = 21.7 |Dec percentsun = 28.3 |year percentsun = 37.2
|source 1 = Environment Canada |url = https://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_normals/results_1991_2020_e.html?searchType=stnName_1991&txtStationName_1991=wabush&searchMethod=contains&txtCentralLatMin=0&txtCentralLatSec=0&txtCentralLongMin=0&txtCentralLongSec=0&stnID=447000000&dispBack=1#legend+ |publisher = Environment and Climate Change Canada |title = Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 |access-date = March 21, 2025 |url = https://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_normals/results_1981_2010_e.html?searchType=stnName&txtStationName=wabush&searchMethod=contains&txtCentralLatMin=0&txtCentralLatSec=0&txtCentralLongMin=0&txtCentralLongSec=0&stnID=6802&dispBack=1 |publisher = Environment and Climate Change Canada |title = Canadian Climate Normals 1981–2010 |access-date = March 21, 2025
Demographics
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Wabush had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of 42.42 km2, it had a population density of in 2021.
|title = Historical populations |type = Canada |align = right |width = |state = |shading = |percentages = |footnote = |1971|3387 |1976|3769 |1981|3157 |1991|2331 |1996|2018 |2001|1894 |2006|1739 |2011|1861 |2016|1906 |2021|1964 ::data[format=table]
| Canada 2006 Census | Population | % of Total Population |
|---|---|---|
| Visible minority groupSource: | South Asian | 20 |
| Chinese | 0 | |
| Black | 10 | |
| Filipino | 90 | |
| Latin American | 0 | |
| Arab | 0 | |
| Southeast Asian | 0 | |
| West Asian | 0 | |
| Korean | 0 | |
| Japanese | 5 | |
| Other visible minority | 0 | |
| Mixed visible minority | 0 | |
| Total visible minority population | 30 | |
| Aboriginal groupSource: | First Nations | 50 |
| Métis | 70 | |
| Inuit | 0 | |
| Total Aboriginal population | 145 | |
| White | 1,595 | |
| Total population | 1,861 | 100% |
| :: |
Notable residents
- Mike Adam, Canadian curler
- Shawn Doyle, actor
- Michael Crummey, poet and writer
Literary references
Wabush appears in the John Wyndham post-catastrophe novel The Chrysalids under the name of Waknuk.
References
References
- Town of Wabush. "Mayor and Council".
- "Miner passes on Wabush for new mine in Quebec".
- (February 9, 2022). "Population and dwelling counts: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (municipalities), Newfoundland and Labrador". [[Statistics Canada]].
- [http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/prof/92-591/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CSD&Code1=1010034&Geo2=PR&Code2=10&Data=Count&SearchText=Wabush&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=All&Custom=], Community Profiles from the 2006 Census, Statistics Canada – Census Subdivision
- [http://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/hlt/97-558/pages/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo=CSD&Code=10&Table=1&Data=Count&Sex=1&Age=1&StartRec=326&Sort=2&Display=Page&CSDFilter=5000], Aboriginal Peoples – Data table
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