Stettler is a town in east-central

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 that is surrounded by the County of Stettler No. 6. The town is nicknamed "The Heart of Alberta".

History

Stettler was founded in 1905 and was named after Swiss immigrant Carl Stettler, who also founded a settlement east of the town at Blumenau, as well as being influential in the nearby community of Castor. He also served on the first Town Council of Stettler.

Geography

Climate

Stettler experiences a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freez ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...

''Dfb'').

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 ...

, the Town of Stettler had a population of 5,695 living in 2,384 of its 2,574 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 5,952. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. In the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Town of Stettler recorded a population of 5,952 living in 2,415 of its 2,607 total private dwellings, a change from its 2011 population of 5,748. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2016. The population of the Town of Stettler according to its 2008 municipal census is 5,843. The median household income in 2005 for Stettler was $56,201, which is below the Alberta provincial average of $63,988.

Attractions

Alberta Prairie Railway Excursions is located in Stettler, offering rail tours on a line from Stettler to Big Valley, a , one-hour trip. In addition, Stettler has a historic

Parrish & Heimbecker Parrish & Heimbecker Limited is a Canadian grain company with about 1,500 employees across Canada and the northern United States. The company has several divisions including flour milling, feed milling, grain marketing, transportation and logis ...

grain elevator overlooking the railway tracks. One of the last elevators in Alberta and the only survivor of the three elevators that previously operated in Stettler. It operates as a museum and also houses a 1887 Heeber and Son's Little Giant

threshing machine A threshing machine or a thresher is a piece of farm equipment that threshes grain, that is, it removes the seeds from the stalks and husks. It does so by beating the plant to make the seeds fall out. Before such machines were developed, thr ...

, a 1912

International Harvester The International Harvester Company (often abbreviated by IHC, IH, or simply International ( colloq.)) was an American manufacturer of agricultural and construction equipment, automobiles, commercial trucks, lawn and garden products, household e ...

hit-and-miss engine A hit-and-miss engine or Hit 'N' Miss is a type of stationary internal combustion engine that is controlled by a governor to only fire at a set speed. They are usually 4-stroke but 2-stroke versions were made. It was conceived in the late 19th c ...

called the Beast and a 1940s Ford tractor called Mickey Mouse. All run (including the elevator's "leg") and in 2016 the Little Giant travelled to Winnipeg and joined more than 150 other threshing machines that claimed a

Guinness World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

record for the most threshing machines operating simultaneously. The Little Giant had the distinction of being the oldest one there and possibly may be one of the oldest still working threshing machines. There is also a county museum featuring the original town train station which was moved and other historic buildings. The Jewel Theatre was built in 1952. The movie theatre was renovated in 2021 to become a 200-seat theatre.

Government

As of 2022, the mayor is Sean Nolls, and the councillors are Cheryl Barros, Kurt Baker, Travis Randell, Gord Lawlor, Scott Pfeiffer, and Wayne Smith.

Education

The town has two schools in the Clearview Public Schools school district: Stettler Elementary School, and William E. Hay Stettler Secondary Campus. Christ King Catholic School is part of the East Central Catholic School Division.

Notable people

* Kenn Borek, founder of Kenn Borek Air * Robert Raymond Cook, "last man to be hanged in Alberta" after the 1959 murder of his family *

Bob Falkenberg Robert Arthur "Steady" Falkenberg (born January 1, 1946) is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey defenceman who played 54 games in the National Hockey League with the Detroit Red Wings between 1966 and 1971 and 378 games in the World Hockey ...

, retired professional hockey player * Marie Jean Laing, Canadian politician, NDP MLA (1986-1993) *

Brian Ogilvie Brian Hugh Ogilvie (born January 30, 1952) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He played 90 games in the National Hockey League for the Chicago Black Hawks and St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hock ...

, retired professional hockey player *

Chester Reynolds Chester Ambrose Reynolds (September 24, 1902 – May 1, 1983) was a provincial politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1940 to 1944, sitting as a Social Credit member from the const ...

, Social Credit party politician in the Alberta provincial government and grandfather to

Ryan Reynolds Ryan Rodney Reynolds (born October 23, 1976) is a Canadian-American actor. He is one of the highest-grossing film actors of all time, with a worldwide box-office gross of over billion. He began his career starring in the Canadian teen ...

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1906 establishments in Alberta Populated places established in 1905 Towns in Alberta