Minitonas is an unincorporated urban community in the

Municipality of Minitonas – Bowsman The Municipality of Minitonas – Bowsman is a rural municipality (RM) in the Parkland Region of Manitoba, Canada. More precisely, it is located in the Swan Valley area. History The RM was incorporated on January 1, 2015 via the amalgamation ...

Manitoba , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Winn ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. It is surrounded by the Swan Valley and is located 15 km east of the Town of Swan River. The community is close to the Duck Mountain Provincial Park. Founded in 1898, it was categorized as a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

from 1996 until 1 January 2015, when it was

amalgamated Amalgamation is the process of combining or uniting multiple entities into one form. Amalgamation, amalgam, and other derivatives may refer to: Mathematics and science * Amalgam (chemistry), the combination of mercury with another metal **Pan am ...

with the Rural Municipality of Minitonas and Village of Bowsman. According to the 2011 census, Minitonas had a population of 522.

History

The Cowan Trail was blazed from Dauphin to Minitonas in 1897, and still exists today. A campsite of tents was established on the West Favel River, southwest of the present community site in 1898. In 1899, the community was moved to its present site along the railway. A cairn marks the original location of the tent town. The earliest settlers came from the

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Eastern Canada Eastern Canada (also the Eastern provinces or the East) is generally considered to be the region of Canada south of the Hudson Bay/ Strait and east of Manitoba, consisting of the following provinces (from east to west): Newfoundland and Labrado ...

, and the US. In the late 1920s, there was a wave of

Czechoslovak Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) **Fourth Czechoslovak Repub ...

, Ukrainian, German, and Polish immigrants. Immigration continued during World War II, and into the 1950s. The Rural Municipality of Minitonas was incorporated in 1901; followed by the Village of Minitonas being incorporated in 1948, and gaining town status in 1996. On 1 January 2015, the Town of Minitonas was

with the RM of Minitonas and Village of Bowsman to form the

. Since then, Minitonas has been categorized as an unincorporated urban community.

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, Minitonas had a population of 465 living in 228 of its 257 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 465. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.

Amenities and lifestyle

Schools in Minitonas are governed by the Swan Valley School Division #35. The one public school in the community is called Minitonas School, serving

kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th ce ...

to Grade 8. The former Minitonas Middle Years School had been nominated in the past as one of Canada's best schools.

Economy

Forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. ...

and

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people t ...

are the two main industries. In 1996,

Louisiana-Pacific Louisiana-Pacific Corporation, commonly known as "LP", is an American building materials manufacturer. It was founded in 1973 and is currently based in Nashville, Tennessee. LP pioneered the U.S. production of oriented strand board (OSB) panels ...

opened an OSB mill in the Rural Municipality of Minitonas, creating many new jobs. The Mill is located three miles east of the community on PTH 10. Despite Minitonas' close proximity to the much larger town of Swan River, it offers many services. There are two schools, a community store (which includes a Swan Valley Credit Union agency), a library, post office, liquor outlet, hotel, and a restaurant.

Transportation

The community is located just south of

Manitoba Highway 10 Provincial Trunk Highway 10 (PTH 10) is a provincial primary highway located in the Canadian province of Manitoba. PTH 10 begins at the International Peace Garden along the Canada–United States border near Boissevain. The highway runs north ...

on Provincial Road 366. Minitonas is sometimes known as the Northern Gateway to the Duck Mountains, as PR 366 leads directly to Duck Mountain Provincial Park. A CN rail line runs through the community also, terminating at the

mill.

Recreation

In the community itself there is an arena with artificial ice. Between the one school, four baseball diamonds, three soccer fields, and two playgrounds are found. A sportsground is located at the northern edge of the community. It includes four more baseball diamonds, a concession, and non modern washrooms. A hiking trail follows the East Favel River. Numerous parks and benches are scattered through the community as well. In the municipality, groomed snowmobile trails can be found. Duck Mountain Provincial Park is 29 kilometers south of Minitonas. Hunting and Fishing are big attractions of the area. A mile west of community is Centennial Park, a picnic area at the original location of the tent town.

References

External links

Former Town of Minitonas Website
{{Coord, 52, 05, 10, N, 101, 02, 21, W, region:CA_type:city_source:GNS-enwiki, display=title Designated places in Manitoba Unincorporated communities in Parkland Region, Manitoba Unincorporated urban communities in Manitoba Former towns in Manitoba Populated places disestablished in 2015