Beausejour () is a town in the

Canadian province Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North ...

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

. It is 46 kilometres northeast of

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

, just west of the

Canadian Shield The Canadian Shield (french: Bouclier canadien ), also called the Laurentian Plateau, is a geologic shield, a large area of exposed Precambrian igneous and high-grade metamorphic rocks. It forms the North American Craton (or Laurentia), the anc ...

and

Whiteshell Provincial Park Whiteshell Provincial Park is a provincial park in southeast Manitoba, approximately east of the city of Winnipeg. The park is considered to be a Class II protected area under the IUCN protected area management categories. It is in size. ...

. The French name means "beautiful stay". The town is surrounded by the

Rural Municipality of Brokenhead The Rural Municipality of Brokenhead is a rural municipality (RM) in the Canadian province of Manitoba. The Town of Beausejour, a separate urban municipality, lies within the borders of Brokenhead. History The RM was incorporated on 15 November ...

. Originally known as Stony Prairie, Beausejour was named in 1877 by Mrs H.W.D. Armstrong, wife of a government railway surveyor, when a telegraph office was installed there to serve settlers along the nearby Brokenhead River.

History

In 1906, the "Manitoba Glass Works" was founded, in a town now known as Beausejour, by Joseph Keilback and his partners. Sustained by a nearby deposit of high quality sand, it was the first glass container factory in Western Canada. Glassblowers from Poland and the United States, supported by local labour, used silica sands to produce bottles for breweries and soft drink companies in

. In 1909 it was taken over by a Winnipeg businessman, who expanded production to include jars, medicine bottles, and ink bottles. At its peak, the Manitoba Glass Works employed 350 workers, but because of its inability to compete with Eastern Canadian manufacturers, was purchased in 1913 by a Montreal company and relocated to Redcliff, Alberta. The factory site remains, and was designated as a Provincial Heritage Site (number 41) on 27 September 1989.Manitoba Provincial Heritage Sites
/ref> In 1912, the Town of Beausejour was incorporated.http://www.townofbeausejour.ca It is the birthplace of former Provincial Premier and Governor General

Edward Schreyer Edward Richard Schreyer (born December 21, 1935) is a Canadian politician, diplomat, and statesman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 22nd since Canadian Confederation. Schreyer was born and educated in Manitoba, and was first electe ...

. Edward Schreyer School is named after him in his honour. Beausejour was the setting for the 1990 film ''

The Outside Chance of Maximilian Glick ''The Outside Chance of Maximilian Glick'' is a 1988 Canadian film based on the novel by Morley Torgov. The film was shot in Winnipeg and Beausejour, Manitoba. Plot The early 1960s: In preparation for his Bar Mitzvah, a Jewish boy from a small Man ...

'', & its 1990-91 television dramedy series adaptation, ''

Max Glick ''Max Glick'' is a Canadian television comedy-drama series, which aired on CBC Television from 1990 to 1991. Based on the Morley Torgov novel ''The Outside Chance of Maximilian Glick'' and its 1988 film adaptation, the series centred on Maximilia ...

''. The film was largely filmed there.

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 cultur ...

, Beausejour had a population of 3,307 living in 1,483 of its 1,572 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 3,219. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.

Access

Major highways servicing Beausejour are PTH 44 and PTH 12, which run concurrently north of town. From the south, Beausejour can be reached by traveling PTH 12 and Provincial Road 215 east into town or by taking PR 302. PTH 44, PR 215, and PR 302 intersect at the west side of town. Prior to the construction of the

Trans-Canada Highway The Trans-Canada Highway ( 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 Atlantic Ocean o ...

, PTH 44 was the main route from Winnipeg to the Ontario border.

Economy

Beausejour's current economy is based on agriculture (grain production) and tourism. Its location as a main access point to the

, a popular cottage region and tourist attraction, allows Beausejour to cater to visitor traffic through the area. It also serves as the main commercial centre for farmers and residents of the surrounding areas.

Notable people

Raquel Dancho Raquel Dancho (born April 16, 1990) is a Canadian politician who serves as the member of Parliament (MP) for Kildonan—St. Paul, Manitoba. A member of the Conservative Party, Dancho was elected following the 2019 Canadian federal election. ...

, politician * Bob Davie, former

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

defenceman *

Monika Deol Monika Deol is a Canadian television personality. She began as an entertainment reporter for Citytv in Toronto, Ontario, and later became a VJ for MuchMusic, hosting and co-producing ''Electric Circus'' from 1988 to 1996. Simultaneously, Deol w ...

, TV host *

Peter Engbrecht Peter Engbrecht (January 27, 1923 – April 23, 1991) was an ethnic Mennonite-Canadian air gunner. He was the only known Canadian non-pilot ace of the Second World War. Engbrecht was awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Medal by King George ...

, WWII pilot *

Jason Gunnlaugson Jason Gunnlaugson is a Canadian curler currently living in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Gunnlaugson is known for having been hired by the Russian Curling Federation (RCF) to represent the country at the 2014 Winter Olympics. The deal which was announce ...

, curler * Fred Klym, politician * Mark Koenker, politician * Hayley Marie Kohle, model *

, former

Premier of Manitoba The premier of Manitoba (french: premier ministre du Manitoba) is the first minister (i.e., head of government or chief executive) for the Canadian province of Manitoba—as well as the ''de facto'' President of the province's Executive Council ...

and

Governor general of Canada The governor general of Canada (french: gouverneure générale du Canada) is the federal viceregal representative of the . The is head of state of Canada and the 14 other Commonwealth realms, but resides in oldest and most populous realm, t ...

John Mouat Turner John Mouat Turner (28 May 1900 – 24 February 1945) was a Canadian politician. Life He was born in Beausejour, Manitoba, sold brewery products for a living, and worked as a hotel manager in Winnipeg.Anton Weselak Anton Bernard Weselak (11 February 1918 – 17 January 1989) was a Canadians, Canadian lawyer and politician. Weselak was a Liberal Party of Canada, Liberal party member of the House of Commons of Canada. He was born in Beausejour, Manitoba ...

, politician

Recreation

The town is home to the Canadian Power Toboggan Championships, the Double B Agricultural Festival (formerly Double B Rodeo and Country Fair) and the annual Brokenhead River Agricultural Conference. Beausejour is also known for its annual "Shades of the Past" car show on the last Sunday of August. The car show encompasses all of Park Avenue and attracts over 500 classic and special interest vehicles. Beausejour has also hosted the 2011 Manitoba provincial men's curling championship (then known as the Safeway Championship) won by Jeff Stoughton (Charleswood), and two Manitoba provincial women's curling championships,

Scott Tournament of Hearts The Scotties Tournament of Hearts (''french: Le Tournoi des Cœurs Scotties''; commonly referred to as the Scotties) is the annual Canadian women's curling championship, sanctioned by Curling Canada, formerly called the Canadian Curling Associat ...

, at the Sun Gro Centre. The 2004 Manitoba Scott Tournament of Hearts was won by Lois Fowler (Brandon, Wheat City Curling Club), while the 2016 Scotties Tournament of Hearts was won by Kerri Einarson (East St. Paul Curling Club), with Beausejour's Selena Kaatz playing third.

Sports

Beausejour hosted the 2006 Power Smart Manitoba Games. The opening ceremonies were held at the CPTC Racetrack, and the closing ceremonies at the

Sun Gro Centre The Sun Gro Centre is a multi-purpose recreation complex located in the town of Beausejour, Manitoba. The complex features a 1,100 seat ice hockey arena, a curling club, an outdoor pool, and an indoor walking track. The complex opened in 2002 a ...

. Beausejour's hockey teams are known as the Blades. Beausejour's CRJHL team is the Beausejour Comets. The Eastman Selects of the Manitoba Midget 'AAA' Hockey League plays in the town. Hockey games are played in the Sun Gro Centre, which also has a curling rink.

Media

The ''Beausejour Review'' published its final issue on 27 June 2013. There are two local weekly community newspapers serving the Beausejour and Brokenhead area. The Clipper Weekly and The Lac du Bonnet Clipper. The Clipper Publishing Corp. Town Radio Beausejour broadcasts to Beausejour and the surrounding area as CKBJ-FM at 93.9 on the FM dial.

Climate

Beausejour has 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 freezing ...

influenced by its far inland position in the higher mid-latitudes, resulting in warm and occasionally hot summers and frequently severely cold winters, with January average highs being below .

References

External links

Official Town of Beausejour Website
* https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/beausejour#:~:text=Originally%20known%20as%20Stony%20Prairie,along%20the%20nearby%20Brokenhead%20River. {{Authority control Towns in Manitoba Urban municipalities in Eastman Region, Manitoba