Atikokan (, Ojibwe for 'caribou bones') is a town in the Rainy River District in Northwestern Ontario, Canada. The population was 2,642 as of the 2021 census. The town is one of the main entry points into Quetico Provincial Park and promotes itself as the "Canoeing Capital of Canada". Atikokan was originally established as a Divisional Point for the Canadian Northern Railway. The town of Atikokan is an enclave within the Unorganized Rainy River District. It is geographically located within the Central Time Zone, but uses UTC−05:00 year round and does not observe daylight saving time. Therefore, in practice it observes Central Daylight Time for two thirds of the year (in the warmer months), and Eastern Standard Time for the rest (over winter). History Early history The original settlers to the Atikokan area were the "Oschekamega Wenenewak" (The people of the cross ridges) Ojibwa / Chippewa. They lived by themselves until the arrival of Jacques de Noyon in 1688. His journey was critical for the expansion and exploration of the Atikokan area. 19th century to mid-20th century The road to Atikokan Palliser Gladman-Hind suggested the first real road in the area, he intended for it to go as far as possible starting from Arrow Lake, and after the road's end travellers would take a waterway to Fort Frances. Simon Dawson, on the other hand, thought the road could go from Dog Lake, to Thunder Bay, then using a series of dams, would allow even the larger boats to travel along the route of Dog River, Savanne River, Lac des Mille Lacs, via Pickerel Lake and Sturgeon Lake. The government, ignoring both plans, decided to build a road west of Lac des Mille Lacs, down the Seine River and finally into Rainy Lake. In 1859, Simon James Dawson was hired to begin the route, but the plan was held up due to poor economic conditions in the east. In 1867, after Confederation, there became an increased need for communication to the west. Construction of the Dawson Trail began in Prince Arthur's Landing in 1868. Construction was sped up in 1869 as the Riel Rebellion resulted in the need to transport troops. The first residents Tom Rawn and his wife, Mary, were the first residents of Atikokan of European descent, arriving by canoe in 1899. Rawn was lured to Atikokan by both the allure of gold in the area and because of