Kensington is a Canadian town located in

Prince County A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island is an island Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. While it is the smallest province by land area and population, it is the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...

. It is northeast of the city of Summerside. In 2021, its population was 1,812 and is seeing rapid growth thanks in part to a recently opened business park.

History

The area was first known as Five Lanes End, as roads from five different communities converged at the point. It was renamed Barrett's Cross in 1824 after an early settler who established an inn in the area. In 1862, the town was renamed after

Kensington Palace Kensington Palace is a royal residence situated within Kensington Gardens in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, England. It has served as a residence for the British royal family since the 17th century and is currently the ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and it became a town after the

Prince Edward Island Railway The Prince Edward Island Railway (PEIR) was a historic Canadian railway in Prince Edward Island (PEI). The railway ran tip-to-tip on the island, from Tignish in the west to Elmira in the east, with major spurs serving Borden-Carleton's train ...

's mainline from Charlottetown to Summerside curved through the community. The town's former railyards are now rehabilitated as a tourist venue, with the former Kensington Railway Station designed by architect Charles Benjamin Chappell designated a

National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of Canada () are places that have been designated by the federal Minister of the Environment on the advice of the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (HSMBC), as being of national historic significance. Parks C ...

in 1976.

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 ...

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

Events

Aside from being a service centre for the surrounding

farming Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

, fishing and tourism areas, Kensington hosts many notable events throughout the year. These include the Kensington Harvest Festival, Community Gardens Ambassador Program, and many more.

Education

Kensington has schools from Preschool to Secondary. It is part of the English Language School Board (formerly part of the Western School Board) District of schools. At the Preschool level there are numerous organizations such as Fun Times Kindergarten, Play School, Happy Days Playschool, and Kiddietown Day Care. Kensington has one elementary school, Queen Elizabeth Elementary.Queen Elizabeth Elementary
/ref> Opened on December 3, 1976, Queen Elizabeth teaches kindergarten through grade 6. The school has two playgrounds, the front playground being used for the primary grades and the back playground for grades 4 through 6. The school contains a music room, gymnasium, French room, and library. Many extracurricular activities are offered to students, such as intramurals, choir, chess club, photography club and more. It is also home to Kensington Intermediate Senior High School which teaches grades seven to twelve. KISH (as it is often abbreviated) offers many extracurricular programs and organizations such as the Gender Sexuality Alliance, the student council, sports teams (e.g. rugby, soccer, basketball and more), Travel and Tourism, Agriculture (known commonly as Aggies), concert and jazz band and much more.

References

External links

* {{coord, 46, 26, N, 63, 39, W, region:CA_type:city_source:GNS-enwiki, display=title Communities in Prince County, Prince Edward Island Towns in Prince Edward Island Populated places established in 1824