Sault Ste. Marie

Community Organizations: Luso-Canadian Association of Sault Ste. Marie

SAULT STE. MARIE’S POPULATION: 72,051

STATISTICS FOR THE PORTUGUESE IN SAULT STE. MARIE:

AS MOTHER
TONGUE		AS MOST
SPOKEN		KNOWLEDGE OF
THE LANGUAGE		BORN IN
PORTUGAL		ETHNIC
ORIGIN
170
0.2% of population		55
0.08% of population		245
0.3% of population		180
0.2% of population		375
0.5% of population
Source: Statistics Canada

Audio Version:

Sault Ste. Marie is French for Saint Mary’s Falls, referring to the falls of the region’s St. Mary’s river. In 1623, Étienne Brûlé called the locality ‘Sault de Gaston’ in honour of the Duque of Orleans and brother of Louis XIII of France. However, Jesuit missionaries established a colony here and gave it the current name. In 1887, Sault Ste. Marie was elevated to town and then to city, in 1912.

For many decades now, the city’s main industry has been the production of steel, forestry products and renewable energy. Algoma Steel employs over 3,000 people alone. During WWII, the company was responsible for manufacturing the majority of Canada’s military equipment. Algoma Steel struggled financially for some time, but it was rescued by the Government of Canada in 2004. Sault Ste. Marie also has a solid services industry, including some important government offices. One such is the headquarters of the Ontario Lottery Corporation (OLG), the institution responsible for gaming in the Province of Ontario.

Sault Ste. Marie’s waterfront from Whitefish Island (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sault_Ste_Marie_waterfront_from_Whitefish_Island.jpg)

Although a fairly important Northern Ontario city, Sault Ste. Marie hasn’t really attracted a large number of Portuguese. However, the few that call the city home have been diligently representing and promoting our culture in a stellar manner. The building that house the local Luso-Canadian Association is a testament to this effort. Born out of a very successful soccer team, the organization has created a folk-dance group and promoted social and cultural events since 1994. The Covid-19 pandemic had a nearly-fatal effect in the association, however. While it has kept the property, it is currently being rented to a local religious group.

At one point, there were plans to build a senior’s centre in the large property that houses the association. These plans seemed to have halted. Instead, the membership will be focusing on finding ways to maintain the organization afloat.

With files from Luso-Ontario Magazine, 2008
If you notice errors or misrepresentations in the article, please e-mail contact@lusocanada.com
Help us write History. Contribute your story, memory or experience related to this organization by sending an email to contact@lusocanada.com.