Swan Hills is a town in

northern Alberta Northern Alberta is a geographic region located in the Canadian province of Alberta. An informally defined cultural region, the boundaries of Northern Alberta are not fixed. Under some schemes, the region encompasses everything north of the ce ...

, Canada. It is in the eponymous

Swan Hills Swan Hills is a town in northern Alberta, Canada. It is in the eponymous Swan Hills (Alberta), Swan Hills, approximately north of Whitecourt and northwest of Fort Assiniboine. The town is at the junction of Alberta Highway 32, Highway 32 and Alb ...

, approximately north of

Whitecourt Whitecourt is a town in Northern Alberta, Canada that is surrounded by Woodlands County. It is approximately northwest of Edmonton and southeast of Grande Prairie at the junction of Alberta Highway 43, Highway 43 and Alberta Highway 32, Highw ...

and northwest of

Fort Assiniboine Fort Assiniboine is a hamlet in northwest Alberta, Canada, within Woodlands County. It is located along the north shore of the Athabasca River at the junction of Highway 33 and Highway 661. It is approximately northwest of Barrhead, sou ...

. The town is at the junction of

Highway 32 The following highways are numbered 32: International * Asian Highway 32 * European route E32 Australia * Great Western Highway * Barrier Highway * East Derwent Highway * Mitchell Highway Canada * Alberta Highway 32 * Manitoba Highway 3 ...

and Grizzly Trail, and is surrounded by Big Lakes County. It is the nearest major settlement to the geographic centre of the province. In 1989, local resident Roy Chimiuk used a

minimum bounding box In geometry, the minimum bounding box or smallest bounding box (also known as the minimum enclosing box or smallest enclosing box) for a point set in dimensions is the box with the smallest measure (area, volume, or hypervolume in higher dime ...

method to place a cairn marking the exact location at , about 30 kilometres south of the town. The site is protected by the Centre of Alberta Natural Area, a 3-kilometre hike from Highway 33.

History

Initially a base camp for workers in the Swan Hills oilfield, accommodations and facilities were moved from a nearby site and jointly developed in the present location by the government of Alberta and oil companies between 1959 and 1961. Casually nicknamed 'Oil Hills', the town's official name was taken from the area of densely forested uplands in which it is located, although 'Chalmers' was also considered, after T.W. Chalmers, who had surveyed and cut the Klondike Trail through the area. The

New Town New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz (South Korean band), The Boyz * New (album), ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** New (Paul McCartney song), "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * New (EP), ''New'' (EP), ...

of Swan Hills was incorporated on September 1, 1959, and R.L. Maxfield was appointed as Development Officer and Secretary Treasurer. Twenty-four parcels of industrial land were sold at the first land auction in November 1959. The first all-weather road into the area was completed in 1960, replacing the treacherous forestry road connecting Swan Hills to

; the Swan Hills Post Office was opened the same year. The New Town of Swan Hills was officially opened by Premier

Ernest Manning Ernest Charles Manning (September 20, 1908 – February 19, 1996) was a Canadian politician and the eighth premier of Alberta between 1943 and 1968 for the Social Credit Party of Alberta. He served longer than any other premier in the province' ...

in June 1962. Two teachers provided instruction for forty students in the first two-room school, which was quickly replaced by a seven-room building due to the rapidly increasing population as oil field workers began to relocate their families to the town. Two mobile radio units provided communications and an isolated diesel generating plant provided power until

Alberta Government Telephones Alberta Government Telephones (AGT) was the telephone provider in most of Alberta from 1906 to 1991. AGT was formed by the Liberal Party of Alberta, Liberal government of Alexander Cameron Rutherford in 1906Wilson, Kevin G., Deregulating Teleco ...

installed service and Canadian Utilities Ltd. completed a transmission line in 1960. In November 1965, Swan Hills became the most northerly town in Alberta to be served with natural gas by Northwestern Utilities. Swan Hills' status was changed when it was formally incorporated as a town on January 1, 1967, making it the first town incorporated during Canada's centennial year. Tom Parkinson was elected the first mayor, serving in the position until 1971. Situated within dense boreal forest, Swan Hills has been evacuated at least 6 times as wildfires threatened the town: 1972, 1981, 1983, twice in 1998 and the most recent in May 2023 due to the Grizzly Complex wildfire. The town has since implemented a FireSmart program, reducing fire fuel within and around the urban perimeter.

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population 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 ...

, the Town of Swan Hills had a population of 1,201 living in 512 of its 728 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 1,301. 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 Swan Hills recorded a population of 1,301 living in 535 of its 724 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2011 population of 1,465. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2016.

Economy

The primary industry in Swan Hills is oil and gas, although th
Swan Hills Treatment Centre
north of the town, is also a local employer. It is also a service centre for the logging industry.

Attractions

Swan Hills' wilderness setting makes it a popular year-round destination for nature enthusiasts and outdoor sports including

camping Camping is a form of outdoor recreation or outdoor education involving overnight stays with a basic temporary shelter such as a tent. Camping can also include a recreational vehicle, sheltered cabins, a permanent tent, a shelter such as a Bivy bag ...

hunting Hunting is the Human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products (fur/hide (sk ...

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

trapping Animal trapping, or simply trapping or ginning, is the use of a device to remotely catch and often kill an animal. Animals may be trapped for a variety of purposes, including for meat, fur trade, fur/feathers, sport hunting, pest control, and w ...

and ATV riding. Annual Events * Snowmobiling: Swan Hills is one of the three points o
The Golden Triangle
a groomed

snowmobile A snowmobile, also known as a snowmachine (chiefly Alaskan), motor sled (chiefly Canadian), motor sledge, skimobile, snow scooter, or simply a sled is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow. Their engines normally ...

trail. A large number of people visit town for the annua
Swan Hills Snow Goers
snowmobile rally. * Motocross: The Swan Hills Dirt riders host an annual

motocross Motocross is a form of off-road motorcycle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits. The sport evolved from motorcycle trials competitions held in the United Kingdom. History Motocross first evolved in Britain from motorcycle trials competi ...

meet. * Target Shooting: Swan Hills Outdoor Recreation Club hosts an annual skeet-shooting competition at the gun range * Golfing: The 9-hole Swan Hills

Golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

and Country Club, south of town is open from mid-April to mid-October, depending on snowfall and hosts several annual tournaments. * Curling: In the winter there are several annual bonspiels hosted by the Swan Hills

Curling Curling is a sport in which players slide #Curling stone, stones on a sheet of ice toward a target area that is segmented into four concentric circles. It is related to bowls, boules, and shuffleboard. Two teams, each with four players, take t ...

Cub. * Hockey: In the winter there are several tournaments hosted by Swan Hills Minor

Hockey ''Hockey'' is a family of List of stick sports, stick sports where two opposing teams use hockey sticks to propel a ball or disk into a goal. There are many types of hockey, and the individual sports vary in rules, numbers of players, apparel, ...

Education

Kindergarten to Grade 12 students are served by Swan Hills Schoolbr>
in the Pembina Hills Public Schools district.

Health Services

Emergency and other medical services are provided at th
Swan Hills Healthcare Centre
Family and community social programs and services are available through FCSS (Family & Community Support Services) 780-333-4119

Government

Local affairs in Swan Hills are managed by a

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

and

town council A town council, city council or municipal council is a form of local government for small municipalities. Usage of the term varies under different jurisdictions. Republic of Ireland In 2002, 49 urban district councils and 26 town commissi ...

under

Alberta Municipal Affairs Alberta Municipal Affairs is a ministry of the Executive Council of Alberta. Its major responsibilities include assisting municipalities in the provision of local government, administering the assessment of linear property in Alberta, administeri ...

. Swan Hills is located in the provincial riding of Barrhead-Morinville-Westlock. Federally, the town is in the

constituency An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...

of Peace River-Westlock.

Notable people

* Evan Williams, actor and musician *

Leland Irving Leland Bruce Irving (born April 11, 1988) is a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender, currently an unrestricted free agent. He most recently played for HC Lugano in the National League (NL). He was a first-round selection of the Calgary F ...

, professional hockey player

Nearby

* Goose Mountain Ecological Reserve * E.S. Huestis Demonstration Forest * Trapper Lea's Cabin * Centre of Alberta Natural Area * Swan Hills Airport

References

External links

* {{Alberta Regions Upper Athabasca 1959 establishments in Alberta Big Lakes County Towns in Alberta Former new towns in Alberta