11 



■examining portions of the west shore of Lake Winnipeg", as 

 far as time would allow, and finding that the soil was of good 

 quality, they selected there a site for an Icelandic colony, com- 

 mencing at the southern boundary of township 18 and run- 

 ning north along the shore a distance of 36 miles — together 

 with Big Island— and christened the tract selected " New Ice- 

 land," the same being now included in the Municipality of 

 Oimli. 



After returning to Winnipeg, the delegates drew up a 

 report of their observations and advised their countrymen in 

 Ontario to come to the Northwest. Three of the delegates 

 then went east — two remaining in Manitoba — and presented 

 the report to the Icelanders at Kinmount, who, after due de- 

 liberations, decided to move to " New Iceland " in a body 

 that same fall, although it was a risky thing on account of 

 the lateness of the season. 



Consequently a party of about 250 Icelanders from the 

 vicinity of Kinmount left for the Canadian Northwest on the 

 2 1 st day of September, this number being considerably in- 

 creased on the way by additions from other parts of Ontario 

 and from Wisconsin. The party went by rail to Sarnia and 

 there took a steamer to Duluth. Thence the party went by 

 rail to the Red River and came down that highway of those 

 times on a steamer and barges. Quite a few of the party, 

 mostly single people, remained in Winnipeg, but the bulk 

 made as speedy preparations as possible to go to " New Ice- 

 land." 



The party secured a number of so-called flatboats, on 

 which they loaded themselves and their supplies, and started 

 from Winnipeg, for Lake Winnipeg, on October 17th. The 

 current carried the fleet down to the mouth of the Red River, 

 which was a very slow sail, occupying four days. According 

 to an arangement made with the Hudson's Bay Company 

 their steamer, the " Colville " — the only lake steamer at that 

 time — took the fleet of flatboats in tow at the mouth of the 

 Red River on the morning of the 21st of October, and pulled 

 these frail craft without any serious accident to Willow Har- 

 bor — 15 miles from the mouth of the river — and the fleet 

 landed there, at the sand bar which protects the north side of 



