DUCK LAKE

town, central Saskatchewan, Canada. It lies between the North and South Saskatchewan rivers, 33 miles (53 km) southwest of Prince Albert. Originally settled about 1870 on nearby Duck Lake, the town was the site of the first clash (March 26, 1885) of the Riel (North West) Rebellion between Mtis (people of mixed American Indian and French or Scottish ancestry) led by Gabriel Dumont and a detachment of the North West (later Royal Canadian) Mounted Police, who were forced to retreat. Duck Lake is now a local market town for a grain-growing and mixed-farming area and a service centre for nearby Beardy and Okemasis Indian reservations. The Mtis association is commemorated by Duck Lake Historic Park, which includes a museum displaying relics of the period. Batoche (q.v.), site of the decisive battle of the Riel Rebellion, is a few miles southeast. Inc. village, 1903; town, 1952. Pop. (1991) 661.