Canada is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

Marion County, Kansas Marion County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat is Marion and its most populous city is Hillsboro. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 11,823. The county was named in honor of Francis Marion, a b ...

, United States. It is named for many

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

immigrants coming to the area.Marion County Kansas, Past and Present; Sondra Van Meter; 1972. It is located between Hillsboro and

Marion Marion or MARION may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Marion (band), a British alternative rock group * ''Marion'' (miniseries), a 1974 miniseries * ''Marion'' (1920 film), an Italian silent film * ''Marion'' (2024 film), a UK short People a ...

, approximately 0.5 mile south of the intersection of Nighthawk Road and

U.S. Route 56 U.S. Route 56 (US 56) is an east–west United States highway that runs for approximately in the Midwestern United States. US 56's western terminus is at Interstate 25 Business (I-25 Bus.), US 412 and New Mexico State Road 21 (NM 21) in Sp ...

highway, southwest of the Hillsboro Cove of the

Marion Reservoir Marion Reservoir is a body of water on the Cottonwood River, north-west of Marion on the western edge of the Flint Hills region of Kansas in the United States. The reservoir was completed in 1968 for flood control and is operated by the Army ...

History

Early history

For many

millennia A millennium () is a period of one thousand years, one hundred decades, or ten centuries, sometimes called a kiloannum (ka), or kiloyear (ky). Normally, the word is used specifically for periods of a thousand years that begin at the starting p ...

, the

Great Plains The Great Plains is a broad expanse of plain, flatland in North America. The region stretches east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, and grassland. They are the western part of the Interior Plains, which include th ...

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

was inhabited by

nomadic Nomads are communities without fixed habitation who regularly move to and from areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the population of nomadic pa ...

Native Americans. From the 16th century to 18th century, the

Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the Middle Ages, medieval and Early modern France, early modern period. It was one of the most powerful states in Europe from th ...

claimed ownership of large parts of

. In 1762, after the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

, France secretly ceded

New France New France (, ) was the territory colonized by Kingdom of France, France in North America, beginning with the exploration of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Kingdom of Great Br ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, per the Treaty of Fontainebleau.

19th century

In 1802, Spain returned most of the land to France. In 1803, most of the land for modern day Kansas was acquired by the United States from France as part of the 828,000 square mile

Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana Purchase () was the acquisition of the Louisiana (New France), territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. This consisted of most of the land in the Mississippi River#Watershed, Mississipp ...

for 2.83 cents per

acre The acre ( ) is a Unit of measurement, unit of land area used in the Imperial units, British imperial and the United States customary units#Area, United States customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one Chain (unit), ch ...

. In 1854, the

Kansas Territory The Territory of Kansas was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until January 29, 1861, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the United States, Union as the Slave and ...

was organized, then in 1861

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

became the 34th

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

. In 1855, Marion County was established within the

, which included the land for modern day Canada. David Christie, former

Speaker of the Senate of Canada The speaker of the Senate of Canada () is the presiding officer of the Senate of Canada. The speaker represents the Senate at official functions, rules on questions of parliamentary procedure and parliamentary privilege, and presides over debat ...

, sent his sons to buy near the future site of Canada. Many Canadian immigrants moved to the area, thus becoming the source of the community. Canada was platted on December 15, 1883, but never incorporated. As early as 1875, city leaders of

held a meeting to consider a branch railroad from

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

. In 1878,

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the largest Class 1 railroads in the United States between 1859 and 1996. The Santa Fe was a pioneer in intermodal freight transport; at vario ...

and parties from Marion and McPherson counties chartered the

Marion and McPherson Railway Company The Marion and McPherson Railroad was a short-line railroad in central Kansas. History As early as 1875, city leaders of Marion held a meeting to consider a branch railroad from Florence to Marion. In 1878, the ''Marion and McPherson Railway Comp ...

.''Marion County Kansas : Past and Present''; Sondra Van Meter; MB Publishing House;

LCCN The Library of Congress Control Number (LCCN) is a serially based system of numbering cataloged records in the Library of Congress, in the United States. It is not related to the contents of any book, and should not be confused with Library of ...

72-92041; 344 pages; 1972. In 1879, a branch line was built from Florence to

McPherson McPherson is a Scottish surname. It is an Anglicised form of the Gaelic ''Mac a' Phearsain'' and ''Mac a Phearsoin'', meaning "son of the parson". Notable people with the surname include: In sports *Adrian McPherson, American football player ...

; in 1880 it was extended to

Lyons Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

and in 1881 was extended to Ellinwood. The line was leased and operated by the

. The line from Florence to Marion was abandoned in 1968.Railway Abandonment 1968
/ref> In 1992, the line from Marion to McPherson was sold to

Central Kansas Railway The Central Kansas Railway (CKR) was a short-line railroad operating of trackage in the U.S. state of Kansas and west to Scott City, Kansas. All trackage was former Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway branchlines in Kansas and northern Oklahoma ...

. In 1993, after heavy flood damage, the line from Marion through Canada to McPherson was abandoned and removed. The original branch line connected Florence, Marion, Canada, Hillsboro, Lehigh,

Canton Canton may refer to: Administrative divisions * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and entertainment * Canton (band), an It ...

Galva Galva may refer to: Places ;United States * Galva, Illinois * Galva, Iowa * Galva, Kansas Galva is a city in McPherson County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 834. History Early history Fo ...

, McPherson,

Conway Conway may refer to: Places United States * Conway, Arkansas * Conway County, Arkansas * Lake Conway, Arkansas * Conway, Florida * Conway, Iowa * Conway, Kansas * Conway, Louisiana * Conway, Massachusetts * Conway, Michigan * Conway Townshi ...

, Windom,

Little River Little River may refer to several places: Australia Streams New South Wales *Little River (Dubbo), source in the Dubbo region, a tributary of the Macquarie River * Little River (Oberon), source in the Oberon Shire, a tributary of Coxs River (Haw ...

, Mitchell, Lyons,

Chase Chase or CHASE may refer to: Businesses * Chase Bank, a national American financial institution * Chase UK, a British retail bank * Chase Aircraft (1943–1954), a defunct American aircraft manufacturer * Chase Coaches, a defunct bus operator in ...

and Ellinwood. A post office existed in Canada from February 20, 1884 to February 28, 1954.

20th century

From 1964 to 1968, the

was constructed north of Canada.

21st century

In August 2015, a film crew for an advertising agency in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

came to Canada to interview residents and give away

New Balance New Balance Athletics, Inc. (NB), doing business as New Balance, is one of the world's major sports footwear and apparel manufacturers. Based in Boston, Massachusetts, the multinational corporation was founded in 1906 as the New Balance Arch Su ...

shoes for a Canadian TV commercial.

Geography

Canada is located at

coordinates In geometry, a coordinate system is a system that uses one or more numbers, or coordinates, to uniquely determine and standardize the Position (geometry), position of the Point (geometry), points or other geometric elements on a manifold such as ...

38.3541802, -97.1128030 in the scenic

Flint Hills The Flint Hills, historically known as Bluestem Pastures or Blue Stem Hills, are a region of hills and prairies that lie mostly in eastern Kansas. It is named for the abundant residual flint eroded from the bedrock that lies near or at the surfa ...

and

of the state of

. It is approximately halfway between

and Hillsboro.

Area attractions

, one mile (two km) north of Canada. The Hillsboro cove is closest to Canada. Exits along

US-56 U.S. Route 56 (US 56) is an east–west United States highway that runs for approximately in the Midwestern United States. US 56's western terminus is at Interstate 25 Business (I-25 Bus.), US 412 and New Mexico State Road 21 (NM 21) in Spri ...

: French Creek cove (Limestone Road), Hillsboro cove (Nighthawk Road), Overlook and Dam (Old Mill Road), Marion cove and Cottonwood Point cove (Pawnee Road).

Education

The community is served by Marion–Florence USD 408 public school district. All students attend schools in

. The high school is a member of T.E.E.N., a shared video teaching network between five area high schools. * Marion High School, located in

. * Marion Middle School, located in

. * Marion Elementary School, located in

.Marion Elementary School
/ref>

Media

Print

* ''

Marion County Record The ''Marion County Record'' is a weekly newspaper published in Marion, Kansas, United States, and the newspaper of record for the city and Marion County. It publishes Wednesdays. Its offices are across the street from the Marion County Courth ...

'', county newspaper from

. * ''

Hillsboro Free Press The ''Hillsboro Free Press'' is a local weekly newspaper from Hillsboro, Kansas Hillsboro is a city in Marion County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 2,732. The city was named after John Hill ...

'', free newspaper for greater Marion County area.

Infrastructure

Transportation

highway is north of the community. U.S. 56 was previously located south of the community.

Utilities

* Internet ** Satellite is provided by

HughesNet Hughes Network Systems, LLC is an American telecommunications company that specializes in providing satellite-based communication services for consumer and enterprise markets. It is headquartered in Germantown, Maryland and provides satellite ...

StarBand StarBand was a two-way satellite broadband Internet service available in the U.S. from 2000–2015. StarBand ceased operations effective September 30, 2015 citing increased competition from other internet providers. The StarBand satellite Internet ...

WildBlue Viasat, Inc. (formerly stylized as ViaSat) is an American communications company based in Carlsbad, California, with additional operations across the United States and worldwide. Viasat is a provider of high-speed satellite broadband services an ...

. * TV ** Satellite is provided by

DirecTV DirecTV, LLC is an American Multichannel television in the United States, multichannel video programming distributor based in El Segundo, California. Originally launched on June 17, 1994, its primary service is a digital Satellite television, s ...

Dish Network DISH Network L.L.C., often referred to as DISH, an abbreviation for Digital Sky Highway, is an American provider of satellite television and IPTV services and wholly owned subsidiary of EchoStar Corporation. The company was originally establ ...

. ** Terrestrial is provided by regional

digital TV Digital television (DTV) is the transmission of television signals using digital encoding, in contrast to the earlier analog television technology which used analog signals. At the time of its development it was considered an innovative adv ...

stations. * Electricity ** Community and Rural areas provided b
Flint Hills RECA
* Water ** Community and Rural areas provided by Marion County RWD #4
map
.

References

External links

*

archive of KsGenWeb
Marion County history bibliography

Marion County school bibliography
Kansas Historical Society
Topo Map of Marion / Aulne / Canada area
USGS {{Authority control Unincorporated communities in Kansas Unincorporated communities in Marion County, Kansas Populated places established in 1883 1883 establishments in Kansas