Stony Plain is a town in the

Edmonton Metropolitan Region The Edmonton Metropolitan Region (EMR), also commonly referred to as Greater Edmonton or Metro Edmonton, is a conglomeration of municipalities centred on Alberta's provincial capital of Edmonton. The EMR's commonly known boundaries are coincide ...

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 Ter ...

, Canada that is surrounded by

Parkland County Parkland County is a municipal district in central Alberta, Canada. Located west of Edmonton in Census Division No. 11, its municipal office, Parkland County Centre, is located north of the Town of Stony Plain on Highway 779. History ;20 ...

. It is west of

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

adjacent to the City of

Spruce Grove Spruce Grove is a city that is west of Edmonton, Alberta in Canada. The city is adjacent to the Town of Stony Plain and is surrounded by Parkland County. With a 2021 population of 37,645, Spruce Grove is the ninth-largest city in Alberta. T ...

and sits on

Treaty 6 Treaty 6 is the sixth of the numbered treaties that were signed by the Canadian Crown and various First Nations between 1871 and 1877. It is one of a total of 11 numbered treaties signed between the Canadian Crown and First Nations. Specifica ...

land. Stony Plain is known for its many painted murals representing various periods, events and people throughout the town's history. The town was originally known as Dog Rump Creek.

History

The name of the town is believed to have come from one of two possible origins. The first is that the

Stoney people The Nakoda (also known as Stoney or ) are an Indigenous people in Western Canada and, originally, the United States. They used to inhabit large parts of what is now Alberta, Saskatchewan and Montana, but their reserves are now located in Albe ...

camped in the area historically. The second possibility is that Dr. James Hector, a

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althou ...

on the Palliser Expedition, noticed

boulders In geology, a boulder (or rarely bowlder) is a rock fragment with size greater than in diameter. Smaller pieces are called cobbles and pebbles. While a boulder may be small enough to move or roll manually, others are extremely massive. In co ...

scattered across the area. The official name for the settlement was adopted in 1892. Alex McNabb and McPherson were the first homesteaders in the area. File:Stony Plain, Alberta (1910).jpg, Train station, 1910 File:Welcome to Stony Plain, Alberta (circa 1912).jpg, Circa 1912 File:Stony Plain, Alberta (circa 1912).jpg, Circa 1912 File:Stony Plain, Alberta (circa 1925).jpg, Circa 1935

Geography

Climate

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 ...

(

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, notabl ...

Dfb DFB may refer to: * Deerfield Beach, Florida, a city * Decafluorobutane, a fluorocarbon gas * Dem Franchize Boyz, former hip hop group, Atlanta, Georgia * Dfb, Köppen climate classification for Humid continental climate * Distributed-feedback ...

'') It falls into the NRC

Plant Hardiness Zone A hardiness zone is a geographic area defined as having a certain average annual minimum temperature, a factor relevant to the survival of many plants. In some systems other statistics are included in the calculations. The original and most wide ...

4a.

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 ...

, the Town of Stony Plain had a population of 17,993 living in 7,134 of its 7,475 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 17,189. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. The population of the Town of Stony Plain according to its 2019 municipal census is 17,842, a change of from its 2015 municipal census population of 16,127. In the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Town of Stony Plain recorded a population of 17,189 living in 6,641 of its 6,954 total private dwellings, a change from its 2011 population of 15,051. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2016.

Arts and culture

Stony Plain is home to many colourful

mural A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' is a Spani ...

s that depict important figures and events of local history. The Town held a mural project in 2006 where artists were selected through open competition to paint two murals. The Parkland Potters Guild & Crooked Pot Gallery is also located within Stony Plain. Cultural institutions in the town include the Stony Plain Public Library, the Multicultural Heritage Centre, and the Stony Plain Pioneer Museum. Stony Plain celebrates Farmers' Days in the first week of June each year, complete with the Farmers' Days Parade, the Kinsmen rodeo, a pancake breakfast and fair grounds. The town also plays host to the Great White North Triathlon in the first week of July. In the summer, Stony Plain hosts two major festivals — the Blueberry Bluegrass and Country Music Festival, which is held in early August and is the largest bluegrass event in western Canada, and the Cowboy Poetry and Country Music Gathering held in late August. In December, the town sets up a large Christmas tree on Main Street and is lit throughout the Christmas season. To celebrate New Year's Eve, the town holds its Family Fest event at Heritage Park. Family Fest features outdoor ice skating, hot chocolate and fireworks.

Attractions

The Town of Stony Plain jointly owns and operates the

TransAlta Tri Leisure Centre Spruce Grove is a city that is west of Edmonton, Alberta in Canada. The city is adjacent to the Town of Stony Plain and is surrounded by Parkland County. With a 2021 population of 37,645, Spruce Grove is the ninth-largest city in Alberta. T ...

sports complex located within neighbouring Spruce Grove. The town is also home to the Multicultural Heritage Centre, the Pioneer Museum, and multiple parks including Shikaoi and Rotary, a skate park, a BMX park and a green path system running through town.

Government

The town is governed by one mayor and six councillors.

Infrastructure

;Health care Stony Plain is home to the

WestView Health Centre WestView Health Centre is a medical facility with a 24-hour emergency department located in Stony Plain, Alberta that is operated by Alberta Health Services Alberta Health Services (AHS) which is headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta is the sin ...

, a 68-bed public hospital.

Education

Parkland School Division operates five schools and an outreach centre within the town.

Evergreen Catholic Separate Regional Division No. 2 Evergreen Catholic Separate School Division or Evergreen Catholic Schools is a separate school authority within the Canadian province of Alberta operated out of Spruce Grove. Schools *Spruce Grovebr>St. Joseph Catholic SchoolPre-Kindergarten to ...

operates a school for students in kindergarten through grade 8. There are also a variety of small private schools and home schooling organizations.

Sports

The Stony Plain Eagles of

Allan Cup Hockey West The Allan Cup Hockey West (ACHW) (formerly the Chinook League) is a multi-tier Canadian Senior ice hockey league based in Alberta, on hiatus as of 2021. The ACHW is one of two Allan Cup-eligible ice hockey leagues currently operating in Canada; t ...

play out of Glenn Hall Arena.

Media

Newspapers covering Stony Plain include the ''Stony Plain Reporter'' and the ''Tri Area News''. On the radio 88.1 The One'

Notable people

* Cornelia Lucinda Railey Wood - Canadian politician, Social Credit MLA (1959-1967), former mayor of Stony Plain

Sister town

Stony Plain is twinned with

Shikaoi, Hokkaido is a town located in Tokachi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. The name "Shikaoi" means "Following (hunting) deer". As of September 2016, the town has an estimated population of 5,570 and a density of 14 persons per km2. The total area is 399.69 ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1907 establishments in Alberta Edmonton Metropolitan Region Towns in Alberta