Gravelbourg () is a small multicultural town in south-central

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

, Canada. It is located just west of the Wood River at the junction of provincial Highway 43 and Highway 58, approximately 125 kilometres from Moose Jaw,

Swift Current Swift Current is the sixth-largest city in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It is situated along the Trans-Canada Highway west of Moose Jaw, and east of Medicine Hat, Alberta. As of 2024, Swift Current has an estimated population of ...

, and the United States border. The region served as a path for

First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...

peoples many years ago, and was also integrated into the Redcoat Trail of the 19th century. Gravelbourg is now a key link on the 21st century Trans Canada Trail. Gravelbourg is also referenced in the fourth verse of the North American version of " I've Been Everywhere", written by Geoff Mack and made popular in North America by Hank Snow and more recently

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter. Most of his music contains themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially songs from the later stages of his career. ...

History

Gravelbourg was settled in the early 1900s and was one of the French block settlements of the Gravelbourg- Lafleche- Meyronne area in southwestern Saskatchewan. In 1930 it became the cathedral city of the

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

diocese of Gravelbourg. Gravelbourg carries the name of its founder Abbé Louis-Pierre Gravel, who was designated a Person of National Historic Significance in 1956. The inscription on the monument in Gravelbourg built in 1958 to honour him reads: Gravelbourg celebrates its many cultures at its annua
Summer Solstice Festival d'été
.

Historic buildings

A number of heritage buildings are located within the community. Our Lady of the Assumption Roman Catholic Cathedral, the former Convent of Jesus and Mary and the former Bishop's Residence were designated the Gravelbourg Ecclesiastical Buildings National Historic Site of Canada in 1995. Gravelbourg Court House, College Mathieu Pavilion, Gravelbourg Post Office, Gaiety Theatre and Canadian National Railway Station are also listed heritage sites.

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 ...

, Gravelbourg had a population of 986 living in 438 of its 482 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 1,083. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. In the 2011 Canada Census, out of a total of 1,116 residents 625 chose English while 300 chose French as their mother tongue. Thirty nine percent or 430 residents spoke both English and French. Gravelbourg's French-language Fransaskois community is the subject of a short documentary ''Les Fransaskois'', produced for the documentary series '' The Grasslands Project''. Other languages spoken in Gravelbourg were: Bisayan languages (5), Chinese (10), Dutch (5), German (15), Korean (5), Lao (5), Spanish (5), Swahili (5) and Tagalog (Pilipino, Filipino) (50).

Climate

Education

École Gravelbourg School (Grades K to 12) is located on 1st ave in Gravelbourg. The principal is Jody Lehmann. The Convent of Jesus & Mary (Past: Gravelbourg Elementary School), is now home to the GCMC (Gravelbourg Community Music Centre). The town has for the past four decades been noteworthy for College Mathieu, a francophone

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. They have existed for many centuries, and now extend acr ...

for boys and girls who wish to acquire or retain fluency in French. The College offers courses such as welding, nursing and early childhood education. The high school is now named École Mathieu de Gravelbourg and is run by Le CÉF. The school has attracted students from throughout the southern part of the province as well as other areas of Canada and overseas, notably Africa. It offers classes from Grade 8 to 12. École Beau-Soleil offers K to Grade 7 in French.

Churches

Former Catholic bishopric

From 1930 to 1998 the town was the cathedral city of the

diocese of Gravelbourg, headed by a Francophone

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

. In 1998, Pope John Paul II suppressed the residential diocese, so that it is now a

titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbi ...

. The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption was at that time designated a "co-cathedral" of the Archdiocese of Regina.

Protestants

Lorne Calvert, the 13th Premier of Saskatchewan, was the minister of the

United Church of Canada The United Church of Canada (UCC; ) is a mainline Protestant denomination that is the largest Protestant Christian denomination in Canada and the second largest Canadian Christian denomination after the Catholic Church in Canada. The United Chu ...

in Gravelbourg. There are also the Gravelbourg Lutheran Church and the Church of Christ.

Notable people

* Larry Hornung, played in the NHL for the Edmonton Oilers, St. Louis Blues, Winnipeg Jets, and in the WHA for the San Diego Mariners * Gord Sherven, played in the NHL for the Edmonton Oilers, Hartford Whalers, and Minnesota North Stars * Toby Tarnow

References

External links

* {{Authority control Designated places in Saskatchewan Towns in Saskatchewan Gravelbourg No. 104, Saskatchewan French communities Division No. 3, Saskatchewan