lake in central Alberta, Canada, 130 miles (209 km) northwest of Edmonton and 400 miles (640 km) south of Great Slave Lake (in the Northwest Territories). It is 60 miles (97 km) long by 12 miles (19 km) wide and has an area of 451 square miles (1,168 square km). Fed by many small streams, it drains eastward into the Athabasca River via the Lesser Slave River. The name, first used by the Cree Indians, refers to the Slave (Dogrib) Indians, who once inhabited its shores. The lake was an important transportation link to the Peace River district from 1910 until 1916, when its significance declined with the building of the Northern Alberta Railway along the southern shore. Today it supports commercial and recreational fishing, while the surrounding area is important for agriculture and forestry, for oil and natural gas production, and for the manufacture of pulp and lumber products. The Lesser Slave Lake Provincial Park (28 square miles 【73 square km】) adjoins its northeastern shore, 4 miles (6 km) north of the town of Slave Lake.