Petitot River
Feature Type:River - Watercourse of variable size, which has tributaries and flows into a body of water or a larger watercourse.
Status: Official
Name Authority: BC Geographical Names Office
Relative Location: Flows NW from Alberta through NE corner of BC, thence W into Liard River in NWT, Peace River Land District
Latitude-Longitude: 59°59'59"N, 122°59'02"W at the approximate mouth of this feature.
Datum: WGS84
NTS Map: 94O/15
Related Maps:
Origin Notes and History:

Petitot River adopted in the 18th Report of the Geographic Board of Canada, 31 March 1924, not "Black River" nor "Noire River" as labelled on earlier maps.

Source: BC place name cards, files, correspondence and/or research by BC Chief Geographer/Geographical Names Office.

Labelled "Black River" on early maps - likely a reference to Samuel Black, HBC explorer, 1824. Identified as "Riviere Noire" on 1891 map by Fr. Emile Petitot, OMI (suggesting that Petitot was unaware of the provenance of "Black" when he made the translation). Labelled "Black River on BC Lands' map 1H, 1917.

Source: BC place name cards, files, correspondence and/or research by BC Chief Geographer/Geographical Names Office.

After Émile Fortune Stanislas Petitot, OMI - missionary, explorer & linguist, who worked in the Mackenzie District 1862-1878, and in 1891 published a sketch map of the district.

Source: BC place name cards, files, correspondence and/or research by BC Chief Geographer/Geographical Names Office.

Bes-chan-tan was reported as the First Nations name by George Milligan, BCLS (c1914 file in Surveyor-General vault, 6L1.)

Source: BC place name cards, files, correspondence and/or research by BC Chief Geographer/Geographical Names Office.

Headwaters in Alberta at 59 54 - 118 04 on 84 M/16. Flows NW from Alta. into BC at 59 35 - 120 00 on 84 M/12. Flows NW from BC into NWT with the mouth at Liard River at 60 14 - 123 29 on 95 B/3.

Source: Canadian Geographical Names Database, Ottawa