Kenabeek, Ontario
Kenabeek (pronounced Ken-a-beck) is an unincorporated community in the Canadian province of Ontario, located within the Unorganized West Part division of Timiskaming District, geographic township of Henwood.
The community is located on Ontario Highway 65, approximately halfway between Elk Lake and New Liskeard.
Kenabeek was founded in the early 1920s (nobody in the area appears to have an accurate date) basically as a post office, since the only other post office at the time was in Thornloe, about 15 miles (24 km) away (a long distance by horse and wagon). Other than farms (160 acre plots, a few with multiple homes, usually multi-generation family) there are really no houses which are a part of Kenabeek proper, so that the town is considered to be the General Store, Post Office and volunteer Fire Station.
Geography
Kenabeek and its surrounding area is mostly sand with a bit of rock, and a shallow amount of topsoil, and thus is not the best farm-land. A short distance away and a bit lower, is the Temiskaming Valley which does contain excellent farmland. There are a few small lakes within two or three miles (5 km) of Kenabeek, most are privately owned and are not great for swimming, many are muskeg lakes and others are surrounded by swamp. Perhaps the most notable thing about the lakes is that each seems to have a loon as a resident. The Kenabeek area is mostly good at growing hay and potatoes, and in a few cases for grazing a small number of cattle for local use.
History
Begun in the 1920s, Kenabeek and the surrounding area was hit by the Great Fire of 1922 (the Haileybury fire of 1922) which wiped out hundreds of acres of land and many homes in and around Kenabeek.
Most of the residents of the Kenabeek area (see notes in "Boundaries and Residents" below) can trace their families back two and three generations.
Boundaries and residents
The Kenabeek town signs are placed about 3 miles (4.8 km) from the General Store / Post Office, but the surrounding homes are mostly on the original 160-acre (0.65 km2) farm plots, except for a few homes carved out of those plots for extended family or friends, and are not town-homes.
In addition to the General Store and Post Office, there is a volunteer fire department and building and a community centre. The community centre is the original one-room schoolhouse which housed grades 1 to 8 until sometime in the 1960s. Current Care taker of said Community Center is Jean Byerlay.
Other attractions
Except for the residents, their families and friends and a few who trace their families back to the Kenabeek area, there are no real attractions, no public lakes or cottage areas. The main attraction for visitors, many of whom come faithfully each year for a few weeks, is the remoteness and wildness of the land and forests. It is a great contrast to the larger metropolitan areas to the south.
Coordinates: 47°38′N 80°00′W / 47.633°N 80.000°W