MACKEN'ZIE. A district of the Northwest Territories, Canada. created in 1893. It extends from Athabasca and British Columbia on the south to the Arctic waters on the north, and from Keewatin on the east to Yukon on the west, the western boundary line following the line of the Rocky Mountain Divide (Map : North west Territories. G 2). The southern boundary is in latitude 60o and the eastern in longitude 100c. It contains an area of 481,200 square miles, being the largest district of Canada, and almost as large as the Territory of Alaska. While the Ter ritory has not been wholly explored, it is known to resemble the other Laurentian regions of Northern Canada, being hummocky and broken throughout, with numerous swamps and lakes. Great Bear Lake in the north and Great Slave Lake in the south are two of the largest lakes in the Dominion. The western half of the dis trict is drained by the Mackenzie River (q.v.). Among other streams are the Coppermine and the Great Fish. or Back, rivers. The winters
are long and severe, the summers short and warm.
The valley of the Mackenzie is covered almost to its mouth with forests of pine, spruce, tama rack, birch, and aspen poplar. The mountain slopes to the west are partially forested, the Douglas fir being common on the higher eleva tions. The northeastern half is almost wholly barren. Coal, salt, and other minerals are known to exist in the Great Slave Lake region and in the mountains to the west. Except in the most favored spots the climate is such that the culti vation of the soil will never he practicable. Fur hearing animals abound in parts of the district, but aside from the revenue derived from this source the district has been of little commercial interest. Mackenzie is under the control of the Government of the Northwest Territories (q.v.). The few inhabitants are found mainly in the small settlements along the Mackenzie River.