Strathcona County is a specialized municipality in the Edmonton Metropolitan Region within

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest T ...

, Canada between

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city an ...

and

Elk Island National Park Elk Island National Park is a national park in Alberta, Canada, that played an important part in the conservation of the Plains bison. The park is administered by the Parks Canada Agency. This "island of conservation" is east of Edmonton, al ...

. It forms part of Census Division No. 11. Strathcona County is both urban and rural in nature. Approximately of its population lives in

Sherwood Park Sherwood Park is a large hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Strathcona County that is recognized as an urban service area. It is located adjacent to the City of Edmonton's eastern boundary, generally south of Highway 16 ( Yellowhead Trail) ...

, which is an

urban service area The province of Alberta, Canada, is divided into ten types of local governments – urban municipalities (including cities, towns, villages and summer villages), specialized municipalities, rural municipalities (including municipal distric ...

east of Edmonton remains an unincorporated

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

. The balance lives beyond Sherwood Park within a rural service area.

History

Treaty 6 Treaty 6 is the sixth of the numbered treaties that were signed by the Canadian Crown and various First Nations between 1871 and 1877. It is one of a total of 11 numbered treaties signed between the Canadian Crown and First Nations. Specif ...

, the First Nations ceded their title to the land that would become Strathcona County. Local governance began in 1893 when the North-West Territorial Legislature established an area east of Edmonton as ''Statute Labour District No. 2''. It then grew in size over the following decade and was renamed ''Local Improvement District (LID) No. 517'' in 1913. In 1918, ''LID No. 517'' became a

municipal district A municipal district is an administrative entity comprising a clearly-defined territory and its population. It can refer to a city, a town, a village, a small grouping of them, or a rural area. Brazil In Brazil, municipal districts are, in g ...

under the name of the ''Municipal District (MD) of Clover Bar No. 517''. At the same time, the neighbouring LID No. 518 to the south became the ''MD of Strathcona No. 518''. The ''MD of Clover Bar No. 517'' and the ''MD of Strathcona No. 518''

amalgamated Amalgamation is the process of combining or uniting multiple entities into one form. Amalgamation, amalgam, and other derivatives may refer to: Mathematics and science * Amalgam (chemistry), the combination of mercury with another metal **Pan ama ...

on March 1, 1943 into a larger municipal district under the name of the ''MD of Strathcona No. 517''. It was subsequently renumbered as the ''MD of Strathcona No. 83'' in 1945. Upon further amalgamating with the ''Clover Bar School Division No. 13'', the ''MD of Municipal District No. 83'' incorporated as a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

under the name of the ''County of Strathcona No. 20'' on January 1, 1962. Its county status reverted to municipal district status in 1995 when the ''County Act'' was repealed by the provincial legislature though its name remained ''County of Strathcona No. 20''. Its name was officially changed to ''Strathcona County'' on April 26, 1995. Shortly thereafter, Strathcona County's status was changed from municipal district to specialized municipality on January 1, 1996. The purpose of Strathcona County's change to specialized municipality status was to provide "for the unique needs of a municipality that includes both a large urban centre and a significant rural territory and population." The status change specifically designated Strathcona County's large urban centre,

, as an urban service area deemed equivalent to a city. Its remaining rural territory was specifically designated a rural service area deemed equivalent to a municipal district.

Geography

Strathcona County is in the central portion of the province of Alberta and forms the eastern portion of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region. It borders Lamont County to the northeast, Improvement District No. 13 (Elk Island National Park) to the east, Beaver County to the southeast, Leduc County to the south, the City of Edmonton to the west, the City of Fort Saskatchewan to the northeast, and Sturgeon County to the north. The North Saskatchewan River forms its municipal boundary with Sturgeon County. Some of its water bodies include Cooking Lake, Half Moon, and Hastings Lake.

Communities and localities

The following urban municipalities are surrounded by Strathcona County. ;

Cities A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

* Fort Saskatchewan ;

Towns A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an or ...

*none ;

Villages A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

*none ; Summer villages *none The following hamlets are located within Strathcona County. ; Hamlets *

Antler Lake Antler Lake is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Strathcona County. It is located on the shores of Antler Lake on Range Road 211 and 211A just north of Wye Road, approximately east of Sherwood Park and northwest of Tofield. Antler Lake cons ...

Ardrossan Ardrossan (; ) is a town on the North Ayrshire coast in southwestern Scotland. The town has a population of 10,670 and forms part of a conurbation with Saltcoats and Stevenston known as the ' Three Towns'. Ardrossan is located on the east shore ...

* Collingwood Cove * Half Moon Lake * Hastings Lake *

Josephburg Josephburg is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Strathcona County. It is located on Highway 830, east of Fort Saskatchewan. It is near Alberta's Industrial Heartland, home to petrochemical industries. The Warren Thomas (Josephburg) Aerodro ...

North Cooking Lake North Cooking Lake is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Strathcona County. It is located on Highway 630 and on the northeast shore of Cooking Lake, approximately southeast of Sherwood Park. It is south of the Waskehegan Staging Area entr ...

(urban service area) *

South Cooking Lake South Cooking Lake is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Strathcona County. It is located on Highway 14, approximately southeast of Sherwood Park. The Cree, Blackfoot and the Sarcee were the first to inhabit the area, and that is where the ...

The following localities are located within Strathcona County. ;Localities *Adam Lily Acres *Akenside *Akenside Estates *Arddmoor-Rosswood *Ardmoor *Artesian Estates *Aspen Heights *Aspen View *Aurora Place *Avery Park *Ball Meadows *Baronwood *Beaver Brook Estates *Beaver Valley Estates *Beck Estates *Belvedere Heights *Belvedere Heights East *Belvedere Heights West *Berry Hill *Best Estates *Beverly Hills *Birch Park *Birchwood Village *Brecken Woods * Bremner *Bretona *Bretville Junction *Bristol Estates *Brookville Estates *Busenius Estates *Calebo Estates *Camelot Square *Campbelltown *Campbelltown Heights *Carriage Lane *Caswellem *Century Estates *Century Meadows *Chrenek Acres *Chrenek Estates *Claireridge Estates *Clarkdale Meadows *Clover Bar *Cloverlea *Colonel Younger Estates *Colonial Estates *Cooking Lake *Country Club Estates *Craigavon *Cranston Place *Croftland *Dasmarinas Estates *Deer Horn Estates *Deville *Dixon Crescent *Dixon Place *Donaldson Park *Dowling Estates *Dunbar *East Edmonton *East Whitecroft *Easton Acres *Eastwood Estates *Elk Island *Elkland Estates *Executive Estates *Farrell Estates *Farrell Properties *Forest Hills Country Estates *Fulham Park *Galloway Park Subdivision *Garden Estates *Garden Heights *Glenwood Park Estates *Good Hope *Graham Heights *Gray Drive Estates *Greenbrae *Greenhaven *Greenhaven Estates *Greenwood Estates *Griesbach *Gunnmanor *Half Moon Estates *Hanson Estates *Hercules *Heritage Hills *High Ridge Place *Highroad Estates *Hillsdale *Hillside Park *Holland Subdivision *Horton Place *Hulbert Crescent *Hunter Heights *Hunter Hill Estates *Hyland Hills *Ireland Subdivision *Ithacan Drive *Jidaro Valley Subdivision *Keding Estates *Lakeland Village *Lakeland Village Trailer Park *Lakeview *Lakeview Estates *Lakewood Acres *Lark Hill Farms *Las Villas *Laurina Estates *Levder's Ridge Subdivision *Lina Country Estates *Lincoln Green *Lindale *Lindale Park *Lindberg *Lueder Ridge *Lynley Ridge *Mark Iv Estates *Marler Subdivision *Marvin Gardens *McConnell Estates *Meadow Court *Meadow Land Estates *Meadowbrook Heights *Meyers Lakeshore Estates *Midway Estates *Military Point *Miniskic Estates *Newton Estates *North Queensdale Place *Ordze Park and Wye Road Garden *Parker Ridge *Parklane Estates *Parkside Estates *Parkview Ridge *Parkwood Place *Partridge Hill *Paso Valley Subdivision *Patricia Estates *Pebble Court *Penridge Estates *Pine Grove Acres *Pleasant View *Pleasantview Acreages *Pointe Aux Pins Estates *Poplar Lake Estates *Portas Gardens *Queensdale Place *Quesnel Country Estates *Regency Park Estates *Reno-Ville *Richlyn Estates *Rolling Forest Estates *Roman Estates *Rose Burn Estate *Rossbrooke Estates *Royal Estates *Royal Gardens *Ryedale Estates *Sconadale *Sconaglen Estates *Scot Haven *Scotford *Shady Lanes *Sherwood Place *Sierra Grand Estates *Silver Birch Hills *Simmons *Simpson Grange *Smithson Acres *South Bailey *South Queensdale Place *Springhill Estate *Spruce Bend Estate *Summerwood *Sun Hill Estates *Tanglewood Estates *Tidan Heights *Trans Oak Estates *Trevithick *Trevithick Subdivision * Twin Island Air Park *Uncas *Valley Point *Verden Place *Voyageur Estates *Wellington Estates *West Whitecroft *Westpark Estates *Whitecroft *Wildwood Village *Williams Park *Willow Lake Estates *Willowdale Estates *Winfield Heights *Woodland Downs *Woodland Park *Woodville Estates *Wye Haven *Wye Knott Village *Wyeclif *Wyeknot Village

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; french: Statistique Canada), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and cultu ...

, Strathcona County had a population of 99,225 living in 37,128 of its 38,203 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 98,024. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. The population of Strathcona County according to its 2018 municipal census is 98,381, a change of from its 2015 municipal census population of 95,597. Its 2018 population includes 71,332 or living in the Sherwood Park urban service area and 27,049 or in the rural service area. In the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Strathcona County had a population of 98,044 living in 35,567 of its 36,354 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2011 population of 92,490. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2016.

Economy

;Industrial Strathcona County has over $12.0 billion worth of industrial projects completed, announced, or under construction. This is aided in part by the concentration of oil refineries on the west side of Sherwood Park. This district, known as Refinery Row, includes some of the largest industrial facilities in Western Canada, such as

Imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texas ...

's Strathcona Refinery. Originally built in the 1940s, a new refinery was constructed in 1976 and is one of the largest refining facilities in Canada. As well, the Suncor's Edmonton Refinery produces of gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, and aviation gasoline. This refinery sits on 247 hectares of land and has been operating for over 65 years. A founding member of

Alberta's Industrial Heartland Alberta's Industrial Heartland (also known as Upgrader Alley or the Heartland) is the largest industrial area in Western Canada and a joint land-use planning and development initiative between five municipalities in the Edmonton Capital Region to ...

, Strathcona County is home to Canada's largest hydrocarbon refining cluster. The leading industries in Strathcona County are extraction, manufacturing, scientific, construction, trucking and engineering. ;Commercial Strathcona County is home to more than 11,000 businesses, with 3,500 of those businesses comprising employees. A market area population of 1.4 million has resulted in household spending power of $5.6 billion. Strathcona County has over 15,800 highly-skilled graduates available with 94% of residents holding a diploma, certificate, or degree. Within the active business community, there are several resources available to local entrepreneurs to help support their businesses: * Small Business Week and Conference * Business Visitation Program * Business Startup Seminars and Support * Business Planning and Site Selection Resources

Arts and culture

Strathcona County Library is a publicly funded library with its main branch in

. Its

bookmobile A bookmobile or mobile library is a vehicle designed for use as a library. They have been known by many names throughout history, including traveling library, library wagon, book wagon, book truck, library-on-wheels, and book auto service. Bookm ...

provides service to rural residents through 14 regular weekly stops.

Attractions

Elk Island National Park is adjacent to Strathcona County to the east.

Government

Unlike most Albertan municipal districts, where council appoints a reeve, Strathcona County elects a mayor. Rod Frank was elected in 2017, replacing Roxanne Carr who was elected in

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

Infrastructure

;Airports Strathcona County is home to two public airports. Cooking Lake Airport, which operates as a condo board, accommodates 87 per cent of Strathcona County's public aeronautical transportation needs. It is also the oldest operating public airport in Canada and approved for international flights under the Canada Border Services Agency CANPASS program. The Warren Thomas Aerodrome, better known as the Josephburg Airport, serves the remaining 13 per cent of Strathcona County's public aeronautical transportation needs. ;Roads The following provincial highways service Strathcona County. * (Poundmaker Highway) * * (

Yellowhead Highway The Yellowhead Highway (french: Route Yellowhead) is a major interprovincial highway in Western Canada that runs from Winnipeg to Graham Island off the coast of British Columbia via Saskatoon and Edmonton. It stretches across the four western ...

route of

Trans-Canada Highway The Trans-Canada Highway (Canadian French, French: ; abbreviated as the TCH or T-Can) is a transcontinental federal–provincial highway system that travels through all ten provinces of Canada, from the Pacific Ocean on the west coast to the A ...

) * * * (Sherwood Park Freeway) * (Anthony Henday Drive) * * * (Wye Road) * * ;Transit

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1943 establishments in Alberta Edmonton Metropolitan Region Specialized municipalities in Alberta