New Sarepta is a

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

central Alberta Central Alberta is a region located in the Canadian province of Alberta. Central Alberta is the most densely populated rural area in the province. Agriculture and energy are important to the area's economy. Geography Central Alberta is bordered ...

, Canada, within

Leduc County Leduc County is a municipal district in Alberta, Canada, that is immediately south of the City of Edmonton. It spans east to west and north to south, and has a population of 14,416. The municipal district is home to prairie parkland and severa ...

. It is located approximately east of the City of Leduc along Highway 21. New Sarepta dissolved from

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

status to become a hamlet on September 1, 2010. It originally incorporated as a village on January 1, 1960.

History

Name

The ancient

Phoenicia Phoenicians were an Ancient Semitic-speaking peoples, ancient Semitic group of people who lived in the Phoenician city-states along a coastal strip in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily modern Lebanon and the Syria, Syrian ...

n city of Sarepta was located on the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

coast of today's

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

, approximately at the site of the modern village of Sarafand, between

Sidon Sidon ( ) or better known as Saida ( ; ) is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located on the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast in the South Governorate, Lebanon, South Governorate, of which it is the capital. Tyre, Lebanon, Tyre, t ...

and Tyre. Sarepta was also mentioned, as Zarephath, in the

Old Testament The Old Testament (OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible, or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew and occasionally Aramaic writings by the Isr ...

(I Kings 17:9), as the home of

Elijah Elijah ( ) or Elias was a prophet and miracle worker who lived in the northern kingdom of Israel during the reign of King Ahab (9th century BC), according to the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible. In 1 Kings 18, Elijah defended the worsh ...

during a drought and famine. In the 18th century (1765-1773),

Moravian Brethren The Moravian Church, or the Moravian Brethren ( or ), formally the (Latin: "Unity of the Brethren"), is one of the oldest Protestant denominations in Christianity, dating back to the Bohemian Reformation of the 15th century and the original U ...

from

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

established the village of Sarepta, Volgograd, Russia. About a century after its founding, the larger German Lutheran Church in Russia began efforts to take Sarepta under its wing. Many of the Moravian Brethren objected, moving elsewhere in Russia, then choosing to emigrate to the

Western Hemisphere The Western Hemisphere is the half of the planet Earth that lies west of the Prime Meridian (which crosses Greenwich, London, United Kingdom) and east of the 180th meridian.- The other half is called the Eastern Hemisphere. Geopolitically, ...

, including Canada. Some of these settlers, part of the

Germans from Russia The German minority population in Russia, Ukraine, and the Soviet Union stemmed from several sources and arrived in several waves. Since the second half of the 19th century, as a consequence of the Russification policies and compulsory militar ...

diaspora, established a new village in Canada's

North-West Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of the three territories in Northern Canada. Its estimated pop ...

. From various suggestions, approximately 60 people in the new community signed a document favouring the name Sarepta, honouring their previous village. The government of the North-West Territories designated the name Sarepta to this settlement on October 2, 1904. When the new province of Alberta was split from the North-West Territories in 1905, the government added "New" to distinguish it from the existing place name in Ontario. The Moravian Brethren also felt that it honored and distinguished their newer community from the earlier biblical and Russian villages.

Timeline

*1906 New Sarepta School District #1548 was established. *1912 Long Prairie Store located in New Sarepta area. *1915 Railroad service extended through New Sarepta. *1916 First post office opened. *1920

Moravian Church The Moravian Church, or the Moravian Brethren ( or ), formally the (Latin: "Unity of the Brethren"), is one of the oldest Protestant denominations in Christianity, dating back to the Bohemian Reformation of the 15th century and the original ...

was established in area led by Rev. William Scheel. *1921 Grain elevator built. *1927 New Sarepta village school was organized. *1928 First hotel opened. *1944 Curling rink was built. *1949 Oil boom in Alberta. *1960 New Sarepta incorporated as a village. *1962 New Sarepta Rural Fire was incorporated. *1972 Agriculture building was built. *1984 Tire & Girdle Store was built. *2010 Government of Alberta dissolved the village into a hamlet within Leduc County on September 1, 2010.

Demographics

In the

2021 Census of Population The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sli ...

conducted by

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; ), 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 culture. It is headquartered in ...

, New Sarepta had a population of 495 living in 194 of its 203 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 522. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. As a designated place in the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, New Sarepta had a population of 522 living in 195 of its 219 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2011 population of 491. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2016.

Religious assemblies

*St. John's Lutheran Church *The House of Prayer (formerly New Sarepta Country Church) *Zion Evangelical Missionary Church

Education

New Sarepta has one elementary school and one high school, both operated by Black Gold Regional Schools.

Recreation

Winter *New Sarepta Minor Hockey Association *New Sarepta Skating Club o Club 2006–present*Girl Guides *senior floor curling Summer *baseball *slowpitch *softball *running track *basketball courts *playgrounds *Bent Stik Golf Course *New Sarepta Minor Soccer Association

References

{{Authority control 2010 disestablishments in Alberta Designated places in Alberta Former villages in Alberta Hamlets in Alberta Populated places disestablished in 2010 History of the America (North) Province of the Moravian Church Leduc County