Grimshaw is a town in

northern Alberta Northern Alberta is a geographic region located in the Canadian province of Alberta. An informally defined cultural region, the boundaries of Northern Alberta are not fixed. Under some schemes, the region encompasses everything north of the ce ...

, Canada. It is approximately west of the Town of Peace River at the junction of Highway 2 and Highway 2A and along Mackenzie Northern Railway. By virtue of being the original starting point of

Highway 35 The following highways are numbered 35: The Karakoram Highway (Urdu language, Urdu: شاہراہ قراقرم, ''Śāhirāh-i Qarāquram''), also known as the KKH, National Highway 35 (Urdu language, Urdu: قومی شاہراہ ۳۵), N-35, and ...

, which leads to the

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of Provinces and territorie ...

, Grimshaw is referred to as Mile Zero of the

Mackenzie Highway The Mackenzie Highway is a Canadian highway in northern Alberta and the Northwest Territories. It begins as Alberta Highway 2 at ''Mile Zero'' in Grimshaw, Alberta. After the first , it becomes Alberta Highway 35 for the balance of its lengt ...

History

The town was named after Dr. M.E. Grimshaw, a pioneer doctor from

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the northeastern end of Lake Ontario. It is at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River, the south end of the Rideau Canal. Kingston is near the Thousand Islands, ...

who settled in Peace River (then known as Peace River Crossing) in 1914. He practiced in the area for many years and also served at different capacities in the local government at the county and the village levels until 1922, retiring from politics as the mayor of Peace River. In 1929 he moved his family to Fairview, where he died in November of that year. Dr. Grimshaw would later be the posthumous father-in-law of actor

John Carradine John Carradine ( ; born Richmond Reed Carradine; February 5, 1906 – November 27, 1988) was an American actor, considered one of the greatest character actors in American cinema. He was a member of Cecil B. DeMille's stock company and later J ...

, who was married to Grimshaw's daughter, Doris Grimshaw (Doris Erving, Doris Rich), from 1957 until her death in 1971. ;Timeline * 1917: Grimshaw's location was chosen by the Central Canada Railway. * 1921: Originally surveyed by Alfred Driscoll. * 1930: The hamlet was incorporated as the "Village of Grimshaw". * 1953: Grimshaw was incorporated as a town.

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; ), 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 Grimshaw had a population of 2,601 living in 1,080 of its 1,232 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 2,718. 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 Grimshaw recorded a population of 2,718 living in 1,061 of its 1,194 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2011 population of 2,515. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2016.

Economy

Having developed first as a community centre for a rich mixed farming district, Grimshaw's economy has transformed to become a distribution centre for northern Alberta.

Arts and culture

Some annual festivals and events in the Grimshaw area include the following: *Family Day Celebration in February at Lac Cardinal *Alberta Pond Hockey tournament in February at Lac Cardinal *Senior Citizens Week Celebration in June *Annual Country Fair in June *Pioneer Days at Lac Cardinal Pioneer Village Museum in August *North Peace Stampede in August at Lac Cardinal Recreation Area *Annual Terry Fox Run in September *Old Fashioned Family Christmas Event at Lac Cardinal Pioneer Museum in December

Attractions

The Town of Grimshaw has numerous indoor and outdoor recreational facilities within its borders including an outdoor swimming pool, an arena, a curling rink, a family fitness centre, 6 Ball Diamonds, SK8 "N" Bike Park, an R.V. Park and a Seniors Drop In Centre. The Historic Mile 0 Mackenzie Park and the Tom Baldwin Memorial Arboretum located at the corner of Highway 2 and Highway 2A are fully landscaped passive recreational interpretive park reflecting local and regional history. The history of the communities along the Mackenzie Highway is reflected by interpretive signs situated along the walking path. The Tom Baldwin Memorial Arboretum provides an educational component to visitors and the local schools to learn about the different species of trees in the area forests. Queen Elizabeth Provincial Park and Lac Cardinal Recreation Area on the shores of Lac Cardinal are less than 10 kilometres to the northwest of Grimshaw. Wilderness Park is less than 5 kilometres to the northeast of Grimshaw. Museums include the Lac Cardinal Pioneer Village Museum and the Mile 0 Antique Museum, which closed in 2014. Located within Lac Cardinal Recreation Area, the Lac Cardinal Pioneer Village Museum features buildings from a pioneer townsite. The Mile 0 Antique Truck Museum displayed trucks used in northern cartage in the 1930s through 1950s. The museum specialized in International Trucks, and had many that were fully restored to show room condition. The museum was nominated for numerous awards before its closure.

Infrastructure

Health care

The Grimshaw Berwyn & District Community Health Centre provides the health needs of residents for Grimshaw, Berwyn and nearby communities. Other hospitals in the area include the Peace River Community Health Centre in Peace River, and the Manning Community Health Centre in Manning. The medical clinic is located in the town's downtown core. Dental services are also available in Grimshaw.

Education

Public schools in Grimshaw include the Grimshaw Public School (Grades K to 12). Separate schools include Holy Family Elementary School (Grades K to 9) with senior high school students being bussed to Glenmary School rades 7-12in Peace River. Post-secondary education is available at

Northern Lakes College Northern Lakes College is a publicly funded comprehensive community college in northern Alberta, Canada. Administrative offices are located in Slave Lake and Grouard, Alberta, with a staff of more than 275 working in more than 25 community campu ...

in the Peace River Campus.

Media

Grimshaw is served weekly by the Mile Zero News and bi-weekly by alternative newspaper The Vault Magazine.

Government

Grimshaw is within the federal electoral district of Peace River—Westlock, and is represented in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

by Arnold Viersen of the

Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada (CPC; , ), sometimes referred to as the Tories, is a Government of Canada, federal List of political parties in Canada, political party in Canada. It was formed in 2003 by the merger of the two main Right-wing ...

. Provincially, Grimshaw is within the electoral district of

Peace River The Peace River () is a river in Canada that originates in the Rocky Mountains of northern British Columbia and flows to the northeast through northern Alberta. The Peace River joins the Athabasca River in the Peace-Athabasca Delta to form the ...

and is represented in the Legislative Assembly by Dan Williams of the

United Conservative Party The United Conservative Party of Alberta (UCP) is a conservative political party in the province of Alberta, Canada. It was established in July 2017 as a merger between the Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta and the Wildrose Party ...

References

External links

* {{Alberta Regions Upper Peace 1930 establishments in Alberta Towns in Alberta