Immaculate Conception

Oblique Google Earth view of Aklavik mimicking the orientation offered in view B (photo by Robyn Stobbs dated 2017 (http://doi.org/10.7939/R3VM4398G). The latter was taken from an aircraft in final landing approach at Aklavik, with the cemetery visible in the centre of the frame. While details not visible in either Google Earth or Bing imagery, this cemetery appears to be immediately south of the original location of the All Saints Cathedral that burned down in the 1970s and was replaced with the current church (1), with the approximate location of former hospital (2) and Residential School (3) lined up along the river bank overlooking what is now the airstrip.

Google Earth view of Immaculate Conception RC cemetery, Aklavick. Image C dates prior to ca. 2017, while D is a 2020 view showing significant brush clearing and expansion.

Image E is Bing image of possible All Saints cemetery area, with yellow arrow indicating oblique views A and B. The white arrow indicates the possible entrance (F) with a large sign advertising the burial place of Albert Johnson, who was killed in a famous manhunt in the 1930s. Image G derives from Anglican church records and is attributed to All Saints Cemetery, while Image H is unattributed but is included in a Twitter feed addressing children who died while attended All Saints IRS.

Note: While scaled, it is not clear how accurate this sketch map is. The location of both cemeteries in modern Aklavik suggests that the community was more dispersed than implied here.

Also note that while both the Anglican and the Roman Catholic complexes are plotted, neither cemetery is. Both buildings are photographed from the river side, thereby obscuring the cemeteries.

Photographs derive from Google Streetview postings, with red arrows indicating the reported photo orientation.

View NE of cemetery nearest Roman Catholic IRS

View E of cemetery nearest Anglican IRS

View SE across the Aklavik settlement from the air. Building 1 is the All Saints Cathedral that burned down in the 1970s and is replaced with a metal clad building in the same location. Building 2 is the hospital, while Building 3 is the Residential School.

Number 4 marks the approximate location of All Saints Cemetery. Likely both students and parishioners are buried here. Other images reveal a cemetery overgrown with grass and shrubs, with a number of white painted wood crosses and white picket grave fencing. This seems consistent with some of the unattributed images included in the previous page. It also appears to be the cemetery where the body of Albert Johnson (the Mad Trapper of Rat River) was buried.

Panoramic view from ground level from river flats along the front facade of the All Saints Mission complex. The foreground appears to have been filled in order to provide suitable space for the community airstrip. If my interpretations are correct the All Saints cemetery was located off the left side of this frame.