North Battleford

City in western Saskatchewan; population (1991) 14,400. It is set in rolling countryside around the confluence of the Battle and North Saskatchewan rivers, and stands on the Yellowhead Highway 132 km/84 mi northwest of Saskatoon.

North Battleford was created in 1905, when the Canadian Northern Railway opted to lay its track on the northern bank of the North Saskatchewan River rather than on its southern bank, where the town of Battleford had been established. Today, North Battleford and Battleford together form a market centre for northwestern Saskatchewan, whose economic livelihood depends on various forms of agriculture, forestry, and fishing.