Maple Creek, Saskatchewan

Maple Creek
Town
Town of Maple Creek
The Jasper Hotel on Jasper Street
Motto:  "Where Past Is Present"
Maple Creek Show map of Saskatchewan Maple Creek Show map of Maple Creek No. 111
Coordinates: 49°54′08″N109°29′10″W / 49.90222°N 109.48611°W / 49.90222; -109.48611 [1]
Country	Canada
Province	Saskatchewan
Rural municipality	Maple Creek
Established	1883
Incorporated (village)	1896
Incorporated (town)	April 30, 1903
Government
• Mayor	Michelle McKenzie
•  Town manager	Barry Elliott, CAO
• Governing body	Maple Creek Town Council
•  MP	Jeremy Patzer
•  MLA	Doug Steele
Area  (2021) [3]
• Land	4.35 km2 (1.68 sq mi)
•  Population Centre	1.57 km2 (0.61 sq mi)
Population  (2021) [3]
• Total	2,176
• Density	500.0/km2 (1,295/sq mi)
• Population centre	2,151
• Population centre density	1,372.4/km2 (3,554/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC−06:00 (CST)
Postal code	S0N 1N0
Area code	306
Highways	Highway 21 Highway 271 Highway 724
Railways	Canadian Pacific
Climate	BSk
Website	maplecreek.ca
[4] [5]

Maple Creek is a town in the Cypress Hills of southwest Saskatchewan, Canada. It is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Maple Creek No. 111. The population was 2,176 at the 2021 Census.

The town is 103 km (64 mi) southeast of Medicine Hat, Alberta, and 40 km (25 mi) north of the Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park on Highway 21 and 8 km (5.0 mi) south of the Trans-Canada Highway. Maple Creek runs along the west side of town.

The administrative headquarters of the Nekaneet Cree Nation is 37 km (23 mi) southeast of Maple Creek. ^[6]

History

Reddicks Farm, Maple Creek (1920s)

After the North-West Mounted Police had been established at Fort Walsh, settlers began to explore the Cypress Hills area, living along the creeks and doing small-scale ranching. The Department of the Interior was operating a First Nations farm on the Maple Creek, a few miles south from the present town site. In 1882-1883 the First Nations (mainly Cree, Saulteaux, and Assiniboine) were moved to Qu'Appelle, and the farm was then operated by Major Shurtleff, a former Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and George Wood, his brother-in-law.

In the winter of 1882, a Canadian Pacific Railway construction crew of 12 decided to winter where the town of Maple Creek now stands. This marked the establishment of Maple Creek. ^[7]

In June 2010, a flood submerged some of the town when Maple Creek overflowed its banks. The same flood hit much of southwestern Saskatchewan and southern Alberta and even destroyed a portion of the Trans-Canada Highway. ^[8]

Heritage sites

There are two designated municipal heritage Properties in Maple Creek:

• The W. R. Orr Heritage Building was constructed in 1910 and over its history it has housed the Union Bank of Canada; W.R. Orr Law Office; Royal Bank of Canada; Bank of Montreal; Burnett & Orr Law Office. ^[9]
• The St. Mary's Anglican Church was constructed in 1909 in the Romanesque style. The church also contains a vestry, narthex, and octagonal belfry with steeple that was added in 1928. ^[10]

Demographics

Federal census
population history

Year	Pop.	±%
1901	382	—
1906	687	+79.8%
1911	936	+36.2%
1916	1,140	+21.8%
1921	1,002	−12.1%
1926	930	−7.2%
1931	1,154	+24.1%
1936	1,032	−10.6%
1941	1,085	+5.1%
1946	1,280	+18.0%
1951	1,638	+28.0%
1956	1,974	+20.5%
1961	2,291	+16.1%
1966	2,359	+3.0%
1971	2,268	−3.9%
1976	2,330	+2.7%
1981	2,470	+6.0%
1986	2,452	−0.7%
1991	2,334	−4.8%
1996	2,307	−1.2%
2001	2,270	−1.6%
2006	2,198	−3.2%
2011	2,176	−1.0%
2016	2,084	−4.2%
2021	2,176	+4.4%
Source: Statistics Canada [3] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19]

In the 2021 Canadian census conducted by Statistics Canada, Maple Creek had a population of 2,176 living in 988 of its 1,083 total private dwellings, a change of 4.4% from its 2016 population of 2,084. With a land area of 4.35 km² (1.68 sq mi), it had a population density of 500.2/km² (1,295.6/sq mi) in 2021. ^[3]

Canada census – Maple Creek community profile

	2021	2016	2011
Population	2,176 (+4.4% from 2016)	2,084 (-4.2% from 2011)	2,176 (-1.0% from 2006)
Land area	4.35 km2 (1.68 sq mi)	4.42 km2 (1.71 sq mi)	4.42 km2 (1.71 sq mi)
Population density	500/km2 (1,300/sq mi)	471.3/km2 (1,221/sq mi)	492.1/km2 (1,275/sq mi)
Median age	46.8 (M: 45.2, F: 48.0)		46.5 (M: 46.4, F: 46.6)
Private dwellings	1,083 (total)  988 (occupied)	1,070 (total)	1,028 (total)
Median household income	$65,500

References: 2021 ^[20] 2016 ^[21] 2011 ^[22]

Population by ethnic origin, 2021 [a]
Ethnic group [3]	Population	Percent
First Nations (North American Indian)	90	4.02%
Métis	70	3.13%
Multiple Indigenous responses	15	0.7%
South Asian	35	1.6%
Chinese	35	1.6%
Filipino	70	3.1%
European	1,960	87.5%
Totals	2,240	100%

Climate

Maple Creek experiences a semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification BSk ). With the exception of southwestern Alberta, winters in Maple Creek are typically warmer than those in the adjacent plain region of southern Alberta and Saskatchewan, being a convergence point for Chinook winds originating along the Rocky Mountain Front.

The highest temperature ever recorded in Maple Creek was 43.3 °C (109.9 °F) on August 5, 1961. ^[23] The coldest temperature ever recorded was −46.7 °C (−52.1 °F) on February 15 and 16, 1936. ^[24]

Climate data for Maple Creek WMO ID: 71453; coordinates 49°54′09″N109°27′58″W / 49.90250°N 109.46611°W / 49.90250; -109.46611 (Maple Creek) ; elevation: 766.7 m (2,515 ft); 1991–2020 normals, [b] extremes 1921–present [c]
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high humidex	18.3	18.4	22.7	29.5	33.8	41.0	40.6	39.9	35.1	29.3	23.5	15.9	41.0
Record high °C (°F)	18.4 (65.1)	18.9 (66.0)	22.8 (73.0)	29.5 (85.1)	32.2 (90.0)	35.9 (96.6)	38.8 (101.8)	43.3 (109.9)	35.2 (95.4)	28.7 (83.7)	23.9 (75.0)	16.0 (60.8)	43.3 (109.9)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	−1.8 (28.8)	−0.8 (30.6)	5.2 (41.4)	12.5 (54.5)	18.1 (64.6)	22.1 (71.8)	27.1 (80.8)	26.5 (79.7)	20.6 (69.1)	12.6 (54.7)	4.7 (40.5)	−1.0 (30.2)	12.2 (54.0)
Daily mean °C (°F)	−8.3 (17.1)	−7.3 (18.9)	−1.2 (29.8)	5.3 (41.5)	10.8 (51.4)	15.2 (59.4)	19.2 (66.6)	18.3 (64.9)	13.0 (55.4)	5.7 (42.3)	−1.7 (28.9)	−7.3 (18.9)	5.1 (41.2)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	−14.8 (5.4)	−13.8 (7.2)	−7.6 (18.3)	−1.9 (28.6)	3.3 (37.9)	8.2 (46.8)	11.2 (52.2)	10.1 (50.2)	5.2 (41.4)	−1.3 (29.7)	−8.0 (17.6)	−13.5 (7.7)	−1.9 (28.6)
Record low °C (°F)	−40.4 (−40.7)	−46.7 (−52.1)	−36.1 (−33.0)	−19.0 (−2.2)	−11.1 (12.0)	−3.5 (25.7)	2.2 (36.0)	−1.9 (28.6)	−7.0 (19.4)	−20.2 (−4.4)	−33.9 (−29.0)	−40.8 (−41.4)	−46.7 (−52.1)
Record low wind chill	−46.5	−51.8	−42.9	−25.3	−14.1	−3.5	0.0	−4.8	−10.4	−26.3	−38.8	−48.0	−51.8
Average precipitation mm (inches)	18.1 (0.71)	13.1 (0.52)	22.2 (0.87)	25.0 (0.98)	47.1 (1.85)	76.5 (3.01)	45.9 (1.81)	43.4 (1.71)	36.3 (1.43)	23.9 (0.94)	19.0 (0.75)	17.6 (0.69)	388.1 (15.28)
Average rainfall mm (inches)	1.4 (0.06)	0.7 (0.03)	5.7 (0.22)	18.4 (0.72)	41.8 (1.65)	76.5 (3.01)	45.9 (1.81)	43.0 (1.69)	34.9 (1.37)	16.0 (0.63)	2.6 (0.10)	0.9 (0.04)	287.6 (11.32)
Average snowfall cm (inches)	16.7 (6.6)	12.3 (4.8)	16.6 (6.5)	6.6 (2.6)	5.4 (2.1)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.4 (0.2)	1.5 (0.6)	7.9 (3.1)	16.4 (6.5)	16.7 (6.6)	100.5 (39.6)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.2 mm)	7.2	6.2	7.9	7.1	11.3	13.0	9.3	9.0	9.0	6.8	6.8	8.4	102.0
Average rainy days (≥ 0.2 mm)	0.7	0.46	2.4	5.5	11	13	9.3	9.0	8.9	5.3	1.7	0.77	67.9
Average snowy days (≥ 0.2 cm)	6.8	5.8	6.0	2.3	1.2	0.0	0.0	0.07	0.59	2.0	5.5	7.8	38.0
Average relative humidity (%) (at 1500 LST)	67.8	65.1	56.0	44.2	44.3	49.1	39.1	37.4	42.0	49.0	60.4	67.5	51.8
Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada [25] (precpitation) [26] (February minimum) [24] (August maximum) [23]

Attractions

• Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park, an interprovincial park straddling the southern Alberta-Saskatchewan border, north-west of Robsart.
• Cypress Hills Vineyard & Winery ^[27]
• Fort Walsh, a reconstructed North-West Mounted Police fort and part of the Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park. As a National Historic Site of Canada the area possesses national historical significance. It was established as a NWMP fort after and near the Cypress Hills Massacre.
• Grasslands National Park, represents the Prairie Grasslands natural region, protecting one of the nation's few remaining areas of undisturbed dry mixed-grass / shortgrass prairie grassland. The park is in the World Wide Fund for Nature-defined ecoregion known as the Northern Shortgrass Prairie, which spans across much of Southern Saskatchewan, Southern Alberta, and the northern Great Plains states in the US. The unique landscape and harsh, semi-arid climate provide niches for several specially adapted plants and animals. The park and surrounding area house the country's only black-tailed prairie dog colonies. Other rare and endangered fauna in the park include the pronghorn, sage grouse, burrowing owl, ferruginous hawk, prairie rattlesnake, black-footed ferret and eastern greater short-horned lizard. Flora includes blue grama grass, needlegrass, Plains cottonwood and silver sagebrush.
• Robsart Art Works features Saskatchewan artists featuring photographers of old buildings and towns throughout Saskatchewan. ^[28]
• T.rex Discovery Centre, a facility to house the fossil record of the Eastend area started many years before the discovery of "Scotty" the T.Rex in 1994. ^[29]

Education

The Sidney Street School ^[30] and the Maple Creek Composite School ^[31] serve the local community.

Great Plains College operates a satellite campus in Maple Creek.

Notable people

• Stuart John Cameron, member of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan for Regina South
• Barry Dean, former National Hockey League (NHL) player
• Quick Dick McDick (Dickson Delorme), YouTuber, farmer, comedian
• Gordon Poirier, former NHL player
• Zack Smith, former NHL player

See also

• Maple Creek Airport
• List of communities in Saskatchewan
• List of towns in Saskatchewan

Notes

1. The sum of the ancestries in this table is greater than the total population estimate because a person may report more than one ancestry (ethnic origin)
2. Precipitation (including rain and snow) and days with precipitation are from the 1981–2010 normals
3. Extreme high and low temperatures in the table below were recorded at Maple Creek from July 1921 to June 1967, at Maple Creek North from July 1967 to November 2007 and at Maple Creek from December 2007 to present.

References

1. "Maple Creek". Geographical Names Data Base . Natural Resources Canada.
2. "Maple Creek". Geographical Names Data Base . Natural Resources Canada.
3. "Maple Creek, Town (T) Saskatchewan [Census subdivision] and Maple Creek Saskatchewan [Population centre]". Statistics Canada. August 2, 2024. Retrieved January 2, 2025.
4. National Archives, Archivia Net. "Post Offices and Postmasters" . Retrieved June 1, 2014.
5. Government of Saskatchewan, MRD Home. "Municipal Directory System". Archived from the original on January 15, 2016. Retrieved June 1, 2014.
6. "Nekaneet - FHQ Tribal Council". fhqtc.com. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
7. "Jasper Cultural and Historical Centre – Where Your Past is Preserved" . Retrieved August 15, 2022.
8. Pentland, R. S.; Abrahamson, B. T.; Wiens, L. H. "Maple Creek (Bigstick lake) Watershed June, 2010 Flood" (PDF). Water Resources Consultants Ltd. Government of Saskatchewan. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
9. "Orr Law Office / W. R. Orr Heritage Building" (PDF). Saskatchewan Register of Heritage Property. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 6, 2011.
10. "St. Mary's Anglican Church" (PDF). Saskatchewan Register of Heritage Property. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 6, 2011.
11. "Table 5: Population of urban centres, 1916-1946, with guide to locations". Census of the Prairie Provinces, 1946. Vol. I: Population. Ottawa: Dominion Bureau of Statistics. 1949. pp. 397–400.
12. "Table 6: Population by sex, for census subdivisions, 1956 and 1951". Census of Canada, 1956. Vol. I: Population. Ottawa: Dominion Bureau of Statistics. 1958.
13. "Table 9: Population by census subdivisions, 1966 by sex, and 1961". 1966 Census of Canada. Western Provinces. Vol. Population: Divisions and Subdivisions. Ottawa: Dominion Bureau of Statistics. 1967.
14. "Table 3: Population for census divisions and subdivisions, 1971 and 1976". 1976 Census of Canada. Census Divisions and Subdivisions, Western Provinces and the Territories. Vol. Population: Geographic Distributions. Ottawa: Statistics Canada. 1977.
15. "Table 2: Census Subdivisions in Alphabetical Order, Showing Population Rank, Canada, 1981". 1981 Census of Canada. Vol. Census subdivisions in decreasing population order. Ottawa: Statistics Canada. 1982. ISBN   0-660-51563-6.
16. "Table 2: Population and Dwelling Counts, for Census Divisions and Census Subdivisions, 1986 and 1991 – 100% Data". 91 Census. Vol. Population and Dwelling Counts – Census Divisions and Census Subdivisions. Ottawa: Statistics Canada. 1992. pp. 100–108. ISBN   0-660-57115-3.
17. "Population and Dwelling Counts, for Canada, Provinces and Territories, and Census Divisions, 2001 and 1996 Censuses – 100% Data (Saskatchewan)". Statistics Canada . Retrieved May 25, 2019.
18. "Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), 2006 and 2001 censuses – 100% data (Saskatchewan)". Statistics Canada. January 6, 2010. Retrieved May 25, 2019.
19. "2016 Census Profile". Statistics Canada. Government of Canada. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
20. "2021 Community Profiles". 2021 Canadian census . Statistics Canada. February 4, 2022. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
21. "2016 Community Profiles". 2016 Canadian census . Statistics Canada. August 12, 2021. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
22. "2011 Community Profiles". 2011 Canadian census . Statistics Canada. March 21, 2019. Retrieved August 3, 2012.
23. "Daily Data Report for August 1961". Canadian Climate Data. Environment and Climate Change Canada. October 1, 2024. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
24. "Daily Data Report for February 1936". Canadian Climate Data. Environment and Climate Change Canada. October 1, 2024. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
25. "Canadian Climate Normals 1991-2020 Data - Maple Creek". Environment and Climate Change Canada. October 1, 2024. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
26. "Canadian Climate Normals 1981-2010 Station Data - Maple Creek North". Environment and Climate Change Canada. October 1, 2024. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
27. "Cypress Hills Vineyard and Winery – Taste the Prairie Sunshine!". www.cypresshillswinery.com. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
28. Robsart Art Works ^{[ usurped ]}
29. "T.rex Discovery Centre History -". T.rex Discovery Centre History. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
30. "Chinook SD Schools - Sidney School". Archived from the original on November 18, 2007. Retrieved January 4, 2010.
31. "Chinook SD Schools - MCCHS School Website". Archived from the original on February 1, 2010. Retrieved January 4, 2010.

External links

Media related to Maple Creek, Saskatchewan at Wikimedia Commons