Chibougamau Lake
Head lake of the Chibougamau River, Northern Quebec, Canada
Chibougamau Lake is a freshwater body of the municipality of Chibougamau, in the administrative region of Nord-du-Québec, in province of Quebec, in Canada.
The surface of Chibougamau Lake is usually frozen from early November to mid-May, however, safe ice circulation is generally from mid-November to mid-April.
Geography
Covering an area of 206 square kilometres (80 sq mi), Lake Chibougamau is located about ten kilometers southeast of the town of the same name, 5.9 kilometres (3.7 mi) east of the summit of the Tower Mountain (644 metres (2,113 ft)) and 185 kilometres (115 mi) northwest of Lac Saint-Jean. With a length of 35 kilometres (22 mi) (in the north-south direction) and 15.2 kilometres (9.4 mi) in maximum width, this lake is the source of the Chibougamau River.
Neighboring slopes
The surrounding hydrographic slopes of Lake Chibougamau are:
North side: Waconichi Lake;
East side: Boisvert River;
South side: Obatogamau Lakes and Eau Jaune Lake;
West side: Bourbeau Lake, Chibougamau River, Opémisca Lake and the Obatogamau River.
Islands
Of an irregular shape, Lake Chibougamau is dotted with dozens of islands, the main ones are: Marguerite, Tommy, Boulder, Commissaires and Merrill. The secondary islands are: Okay, Refuge, Gordon, Dewar, Scott, Angover, Breakwater, Mermaid, Annie, Lorenzo, Rudolf, Arthur, Line Phony, Bark Letter, Graphite, Granite, Shatter, Labor Day, Lookout, Sioui, Stanislas, Needle, Martine, Francoise, Gabbro, Eugene, Henry, Last, Alphonse, Yvonne, Boulder and Take it Easy.
Main bays
Around the lake, the main bays are (in order clockwise, from the north): Magnetite, Bag, Islands, Finger, Nepton, Club, Girard, Sunday, Poitevin, Dufresne, Corner, Line, Third Bay, Second Bay, First Bay, Inlet, Dulieux, Queylus, Turnip Cove, Bug-in-a-Rug, Beginnings, Hematite, Machin, Valiquette, Bear, Cedar, Portage.
In his writings, explorer Henry O'Sullivan reports the gentle slope of the shores of the lake, interrupted to the north by the mountains of "The Wizard", Paint and Cummings. In 1895, this explorer indicated that "Shabokoma Lake" would have "a total length of 42 miles, a stretch of water somewhat surprising to have remained unknown until this day.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Chibougamau Lake” as head lake of the Chibougamau River, Northern Quebec, Canada. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as head lake of the Chibougamau River, Northern Quebec, Canada. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 25, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1799594. VIAF identifies the subject as 315129476. The Library of Congress control number is sh88001626. Authority coordinates are 49.836, -74.230. 1 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1895.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Chibougamau Lake”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Chibougamau Lake primary sources, Chibougamau Lake archive and Chibougamau research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Chibougamau Lake”?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Chibougamau Lake” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.