Hamlets in the Canadian province of Alberta are unincorporated communities administered by, and within the boundaries of, specialized municipalities or rural municipalities (municipal districts, improvement districts and special areas). They consist of five or more dwellings (a majority of which are on parcels of land that are smaller than 1,850 m2), have a generally accepted boundary and name, and contain parcels of land used for non-residential purposes. [1] [2]
Section 59 of the Municipal Government Act (MGA) enables specialized municipalities and municipal districts to designate a hamlet, while Section 590 of the MGA enables the Minister of Alberta Municipal Affairs to designate a hamlet within an improvement district. [1] The Minister may also designate a hamlet within a special area pursuant to Section 10 of the Special Areas Act. [3]
A hamlet can be incorporated as a village when its population reaches 300. However, Alberta has not had a hamlet incorporate as a village since January 1, 1980, when both Barnwell and Wabamun incorporated as villages. [4] [5] Since then, it has been more common for urban municipalities to dissolve from their current municipal status to that of a hamlet under the jurisdiction of its surrounding specialized or rural municipality. As such, the number of hamlets in Alberta has steadily grown over the years.
As of 2024, Alberta has 433 hamlets recognized by Alberta Municipal Affairs, [6] which is up from 403 in 2023. [7] A 434th hamlet, Harmony in Rocky View County, was designated in June 2024 [8] though is not yet recognized by Alberta Municipal Affairs. [6]
Alberta's two largest hamlets – Sherwood Park within Strathcona County and Fort McMurray (formerly a city) within the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo – have been further designated as urban service areas by Municipal Affairs. If they were to incorporate as cities, Sherwood Park and Fort McMurray would rank sixth and seventh respectively among Alberta's largest cities by population. Lac La Biche (formerly a town) within Lac La Biche County is a third hamlet also designated as an urban service area. [6]
Notes:
Numerous communities in Alberta have been previously recognized as hamlets by the Province of Alberta. The majority were absorbed by urban municipalities through annexation or amalgamation. The following are those hamlets that have had their hamlet designation removed.
Name | Former municipality | Subsequent municipality | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|
Bankview | MD of Badlands No. 7 | Drumheller | Annexed in 1964 [59] |
Cambria | MD of Badlands No. 7 | Drumheller | Absorbed as a result of amalgamation January 1, 1998 [59] [60] |
College Heights | Lacombe County | Lacombe | Annexed January 1, 2000 [61] [62] |
East Coulee | MD of Badlands No. 7 | Drumheller | Absorbed as a result of amalgamation January 1, 1998 [59] [60] |
Glenwood | Yellowhead County | Edson | Annexed January 1, 1984 [63] [64] |
Grande Prairie Trail | Yellowhead County | Edson | Annexed January 1, 1984 [63] [64] |
Grantville | Kneehill County | Three Hills | Annexed January 1, 1983 [65] [66] |
Hardieville | Lethbridge County | Lethbridge | Annexed January 1, 1978 [67] |
Hillcrest [68] [69] | Improvement District No. 5 | Municipality of Crowsnest Pass | Absorbed via amalgamation January 1, 1979 [70] |
Lehigh | MD of Badlands No. 7 | Drumheller | Absorbed as a result of amalgamation January 1, 1998 [59] [60] |
MacKay | Yellowhead County | Yellowhead County | Hamlet status was repealed by Yellowhead County in 2019 after being designated one in 1979 |
Midlandvale | MD of Badlands No. 7 | Drumheller | Annexed in 1972 [59] |
Midnapore | MD of Foothills No. 31 | Calgary | Annexed in 1961 [71] |
Nacmine | MD of Badlands No. 7 | Drumheller | Absorbed as a result of amalgamation January 1, 1998 [59] [60] |
Newcastle | MD of Badlands No. 7 | Drumheller | Annexed in 1967 [59] |
North Drumheller | MD of Badlands No. 7 | Drumheller | Annexed in 1967 [59] |
Pinedale | Yellowhead County | Yellowhead County | Hamlet status was repealed by Yellowhead County in 2019 after being designated one in 1987 |
Ribstone | MD of Wainwright No. 61 | MD of Wainwright No. 61 | Hamlet status was repealed on January 21, 2024 |
Rosedale | MD of Badlands No. 7 | Drumheller | Absorbed as a result of amalgamation January 1, 1998 [59] [60] |
Ruarkville | Kneehill County | Three Hills | Annexed December 31, 1984 [72] [73] |
Shepard | Rocky View County | Calgary | Annexed July 31, 2007 [74] [75] |
Wayne | MD of Badlands No. 7 | Drumheller | Absorbed as a result of amalgamation January 1, 1998 [59] [60] |
Western Monarch (Atlas) [76] | Wheatland County | MD of Badlands No. 7 [76] [77] | Now within the Town of Drumheller following the amalgamation of the City of Drumheller and the MD of Badlands No. 7 on January 1, 1998 [78] |
Ferintosh is a hamlet in central Alberta, Canada within Camrose County. It is located approximately 38 kilometres (24 mi) south of Camrose, and 102 kilometres (63 mi) southeast of Edmonton. The hamlet is situated on Little Beaver Lake. The community takes its name from Ferintosh, in Scotland.
Dewberry is a hamlet in central Alberta, Canada within the County of Vermilion River. It is approximately 66 km (41 mi) northwest of Lloydminster. The hamlet was named for the dewberries growing near the community. Its first school opened in 1930. Dewberry held village status prior to 2021.
Gadsby is a hamlet in central Alberta, Canada that is under the jurisdiction of the County of Stettler No. 6. It is located east of Red Deer on Highway 852 just north of Highway 12. Incorporated in 1909, it dissolved from village status in early 2020.
Minburn is a hamlet in central, Alberta, Canada within the County of Minburn No. 27. It is located on the Yellowhead Highway and the Canadian National Railway, approximately 37 km (23 mi) west of the Town of Vermilion and 143 km (89 mi) east of the City of Edmonton.
Sangudo is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Lac Ste. Anne County. It is located on Highway 43 and the Pembina River, approximately 99 kilometres (62 mi) northwest of Edmonton.
Thorhild is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Thorhild County. It is located at the intersection of Highway 18 and Highway 827, approximately 86 kilometres (53 mi) northeast of the City of Edmonton.
Tilley is a hamlet in southern Alberta, Canada within the County of Newell. It is located approximately 22 km southeast of the City of Brooks and 78 km northwest of the City of Medicine Hat.
Willingdon is a hamlet in central Alberta, Canada within the County of Two Hills No. 21. It is located approximately 117 km (73 mi) northeast of Edmonton, Alberta's capital city.
Lac La Biche County is a specialized municipality within Division No. 12 in northern Alberta, Canada. It was established through the amalgamation of the Town of Lac La Biche and Lakeland County in 2007.
Lakeland County was a municipal district in northern Alberta, Canada. It existed for just over nine years from 1998 to 2007.
Blackie is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within the Foothills County. It is located approximately 70 kilometres (43 mi) southeast of Calgary on Highway 799.
Alberta has provincial legislation allowing its municipalities to conduct municipal censuses between April 1 and June 30 inclusive. Municipalities choose to conduct their own censuses for multiple reasons such as to better inform municipal service planning and provision, to capitalize on per capita based grant funding from higher levels of government, or to simply update their populations since the last federal census.
Alberta has provincial legislation allowing its municipalities to conduct municipal censuses between April 1 and June 30 inclusive. Municipalities choose to conduct their own censuses for multiple reasons such as to better inform municipal service planning and provision, to capitalize on per capita based grant funding from higher levels of government, or to simply update their populations since the last federal census.
Alberta has provincial legislation allowing its municipalities to conduct municipal censuses between April 1 and June 30 inclusive. Due to the concurrency of Statistics Canada conducting the Canada 2016 Census in May 2016, the Government of Alberta offered municipalities the option to alter their 2016 municipal census timeframes to either March 1 through May 31 or May 1 through July 31. Municipalities choose to conduct their own censuses for multiple reasons such as to better inform municipal service planning and provision, to capitalize on per capita based grant funding from higher levels of government, or to simply update their populations since the last federal census.