Devon 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 Edmonton, the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta. While the EMR is not a strictly ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

, Canada. It is approximately southwest of

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

, the provincial capital, along the southern bank of the

North Saskatchewan River The North Saskatchewan River is a glacier-fed river that flows from the Canadian Rockies continental divide east to central Saskatchewan, where it joins with the South Saskatchewan River to make up the Saskatchewan River. Its water flows event ...

History

Devon owes its existence to one of the largest oil discoveries in the world. On February 13, 1947, the Imperial Leduc No. 1

well A well is an excavation or structure created on the earth by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The ...

struck oil, and the new town of Devon was constructed shortly thereafter by

Imperial Oil Imperial Oil Limited () is a Canadian petroleum company. It is Canada's second-largest integrated oil company. It is majority-owned by American oil company ExxonMobil, with a 69.6% ownership stake in the company. It is a producer of crude oil, ...

to accommodate its workers. The company was determined that the town would be well-planned, and Devon holds the distinction of being the first Canadian community to be approved by a regional planning commission. The oil industry remains a major player in the town's business sector, though the economy has diversified to include

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

manufacturing Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of the secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer ...

, and research. Devon is named after the

Devonian The Devonian ( ) is a period (geology), geologic period and system (stratigraphy), system of the Paleozoic era (geology), era during the Phanerozoic eon (geology), eon, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the preceding Silurian per ...

formation (the strata tapped in the Leduc No. 1 oil well), which in turn is named for the county of

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

in England.

Government

Devon Town Council

Member of the Legislative Assembly

Member of Parliament

Climate

Devon boasts a warm-summer

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 cold ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

: ''Dfb''), slightly cooler than

. On average at 3.6 days a year the temperature is above days above do not always occur, but on average four years in a decade. Days with temperatures below occur every year on average 8.8 nights. In about 58.4% of the days of a year the temperature can reach a value less than or equal to the freezing temperature. Frost free will go from the beginning of June until the first week of September, usually. It corresponds in average to 96 days.

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 ...

, the Town of Devon had a population of 6,545 living in 2,496 of its 2,588 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 6,578. 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 Devon recorded a population of 6,578 living in 2,415 of its 2,493 total private dwellings, a change from its 2011 population of 6,515. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2016. The population of the Town of Devon according to its 2014 municipal census is 6,650, a change from its 2009 municipal census population of 6,534.

Economy

The Town of Devon was a member of the Leduc-Nisku Economic Development Association, an economic development partnership that markets Alberta's International Region in proximity to the

Edmonton International Airport Edmonton International Airport , officially branded YEG Edmonton International Airport since 2022, is the primary air passenger and air cargo facility in the Edmonton Metropolitan Region of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian pro ...

Amenities

Devon is amply served by schools, community services such as the Devon General Hospital, and recreational facilities. It is from the

, and is close to major rail routes and highways. It is located close to a motor sports park, a bird sanctuary, the University of Alberta Botanic Garden, and a number of other attractions to residents and visitors. Devon and area is popular with cyclists, as it has a good network of paved country roads, as well as unpaved mountain bike trails, and has hosted high level cycling events such as Canada's 2010 National Road Championships.

Schools

*Devon Christian School
Holy Spirit Catholic School
* John Maland High School *Riverview Middle School *Robina Baker Elementary

Miscellaneous

Devon is the sister city to

Grimma Grimma (; , ) is a town in Saxony, Central Germany, on the left bank of the Mulde, southeast of Leipzig. Founded in 1170, it is part of the Leipzig district. Location The town is in northern Saxony, southeast of Leipzig and south of Wurz ...

, Germany. in 2008, a group of students and dignitaries from Devon travelled to Grimma to perform in an international music festival. In 2010, members of the Grimma Jugendblasorchester (Youth Orchestra) travelled to Devon to perform and to tour Alberta.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1949 establishments in Alberta Edmonton Metropolitan Region Leduc County Populated places on the North Saskatchewan River Towns in Alberta