Nanton is a town in

southern Southern may refer to: Businesses * China Southern Airlines, airline based in Guangzhou, China * Southern Airways, defunct US airline * Southern Air, air cargo transportation company based in Norwalk, Connecticut, US * Southern Airways Express, M ...

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 T ...

, Canada. Nanton was named after Sir Augustus Meredith Nanton of Winnipeg (1860–1925) who directed firms which offered financing for farms and ranches throughout the west. It is located south of

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, maki ...

at the junction of Highway 2 and Highway 533. Nanton was historically known as "Tap Town", after providing passing motorists with free water supplied from the foothills via a stand tap on the northbound highway. This water was one of the first to be bottled and sold in Canada, resulting in the creation of Nanton Water & Soda Ltd, still a thriving business in the town today. Traditionally a farming and ranching community, Nanton is now a popular tourist destination.

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 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 cultu ...

, the Town of Nanton had a population of 2,167 living in 953 of its 1,004 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 2,181. 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 Nanton originally recorded a population of 2,130 living in 922 of its 959 total private dwellings, a change from its 2011 population of 2,132. Statistics Canada subsequently amended the 2016 census results for Nanton to a population of 2,181 living in 948 of its 987 total dwellings, a change from its 2011 population of 2,132. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2016.

Attractions

Nanton is known primarily for three distinct features: an

aviation museum An aviation museum, air museum, or air and space museum is a museum exhibiting the history and artifacts of aviation. In addition to actual, replica or accurate reproduction aircraft, exhibits can include photographs, maps, models, dioramas ...

Bomber Command Museum of Canada The Bomber Command Museum of Canada, formerly the Nanton Lancaster Society Museum, is an aviation museum in Nanton, Alberta. The museum opened in 1986 and was founded to protect and restore Avro Lancaster FM159, one of only 17 remaining in the ...

(formerly known as the Nanton Lancaster Society Museum) situated in the centre of town on Highway 2 south, adjacent to Highway 533; a high number of

antique An antique ( la, antiquus; 'old', 'ancient') is an item perceived as having value because of its aesthetic or historical significance, and often defined as at least 100 years old (or some other limit), although the term is often used loosely ...

shops; and two fully restored grain elevators on northbound Highway 2. One of the main attractions at the aviation museum is its preserved

Avro Lancaster The Avro Lancaster is a British Second World War heavy bomber. It was designed and manufactured by Avro as a contemporary of the Handley Page Halifax, both bombers having been developed to the same specification, as well as the Short Stir ...

bomber FM159 which performs regular runs of its

Rolls-Royce Merlin The Rolls-Royce Merlin is a British liquid-cooled V-12 piston aero engine of 27-litres (1,650 cu in) capacity. Rolls-Royce designed the engine and first ran it in 1933 as a private venture. Initially known as the PV-12, it was late ...

engines. The aviation museum is also home to a number of other significant

RAF Bomber Command RAF Bomber Command controlled the Royal Air Force's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. Along with the United States Army Air Forces, it played the central role in the strategic bombing of Germany in World War II. From 1942 onward, the British bo ...

era aircraft, including a Bristol Blenheim Mk IV. Nanton's antique shops and galleries have contributed in making Nanton a popular tourist destination. They are organized around the notion of a downtown walk. The

Canadian Grain Elevator Discovery Centre The Canadian Grain Elevator Discovery Centre is a set of restored grain elevators located in Nanton, Alberta, Canada. The centre's goal is to preserve examples of old grain elevators to educate visitors about the town's, and Alberta's, agricult ...

is a set of restored

grain elevator A grain elevator is a facility designed to stockpile or store grain. In the grain trade, the term "grain elevator" also describes a tower containing a bucket elevator or a pneumatic conveyor, which scoops up grain from a lower level and deposi ...

s located in the centre of Nanton. The "Save One" society's goal is to preserve examples of old grain elevators to educate visitors about the town's, and Alberta's, agricultural history. Th
Coutts Centre for Western Canadian Heritage
was launched in June 2011, having been gifted from the late Dr. Jim Coutts (LLD '12) to the

University of Lethbridge , mottoeng = '' Let there be light'' , type = Public , established = , academic_affiliations = Universities Canada , endowment = $73 million (2019) , chancellor = Charles Weas ...

. Just east of Nanton, AB, the Coutts Centre consists of a quarter section of land on the more than 100-year-old property that once belonged to Dr. Coutts's grandfather. The quarter section of land includes the original homestead, extensive gardens and restored outbuildings. It preserves and celebrates the diverse heritage that is central to the spirit of the west.

Arts and culture

Nanton's Agriculture park, home of Nanton Ag society, hosts a variety of events that includes Alberta High School Rodeos, TNT Roping and Barrel Racing, the Medicine Tree Ranch Rodeo, Nanton FCA Rodeo, Nanton Wrangler Youth Rodeo Series, as well is the venue for the long-standing tradition, the Nanton Nite Rodeo Series. In 2013 they played host to the Canadian High School Rodeo Finals. Nanton was selected as one of fifty host communities for Alberta Culture Days 2014, to be held September from 26 to 28. Nanton Round Up Days is a series of celebratory community events centered in the downtown core and typically held the first weekend in August. Celebrations culminate with a fireworks display. The Shady Grove Bluegrass Festival, held at Broadway Farm, is an annual music festival held in August that has run for more than 20 years. Nanton Lights The Way and the Distinctly Nanton Market are festival events traditionally held in the last week of November, to mark the beginning of the Christmas season.

Parks and recreation

Nanton has two parks, Centennial Park and Lions Park, both located alongside the southbound highway. Centennial Park has ball diamonds, a skate park and children's play area. The Tom Hornecker Recreation Centre offers an outdoor heated pool, ice rink, curling sheets, gymnasium, and a racquetball court. Nanton Golf club is an 18-hole course. A campground is adjacent to Nanton Golf Course and Agricultural Park. Facilities include a large, coin-operated shower building with washrooms, water taps throughout, camp kitchen, group camping and treed sites.

Sports

The Nanton Palominos senior A hockey team have been in operation since 1947. They currently play in the Ranchland Hockey League. The Palominos earned a spot at the 2013 Investor's Group Hockey Alberta Senior Men's AA/A Provincial Championships in Innisfail, AB after winning the 2013 Ranchland Hockey League Championship. The team was led to victory by captain Steve "Smac" McMasters, winning the 2013 Senior A Championship.

Education

The first school opened in 1902. There are two schools presently providing K-12 education in Nanton. A.B. Daley School houses grades K-6, while J.T. Foster provides grades 7-12. Each school has a population of approximately 200 students.

Notable people

Jim Coutts James Allan Coutts (May 16, 1938 – December 31, 2013) was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and former advisor to two prime ministers. Biography Born in High River, Alberta, he was raised in Nanton, Alberta. He received a Bachelor of Arts degr ...

, lawyer, businessman and advisor to two

prime ministers A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is no ...

Orest Kindrachuk Orest Michael Kindrachuk (born September 14, 1950) is a Canadian-American former professional ice hockey centre who played ten seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Washington Capitals. ...

, NHL player with the

Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team play ...

and

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference, and have playe ...

Images

MacEwan School House Visitor Information Centre Nanton T0L 1R0.jpg, MacEwan Schoolhouse visitor information centre Shaw & Cooper building Main Street Nanton.JPG, Shaw & Cooper Building Tree lined path at the Coutts Centre for Western Canadian Heritage.jpg, Tree lined path at the Coutts Centre W S Keely building North Bound Hwy 2 Nanton.JPG, W.S. Keely Building

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1903 establishments in the Northwest Territories Populated places established in 1903 Towns in Alberta