Magrath is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

Cardston County Cardston County is a municipal district in southern Alberta, Canada. It is located in Census Division 3 around the Town of Cardston. The municipal district was established on January 1, 1954, through the amalgamation of the ''Municipal Dist ...

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. Its population was 2,481 in 2021. Magrath is (approximately 25 minutes) south of

Lethbridge Lethbridge ( ) is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. With a population of 106,550 in the 2023 Alberta municipal censuses, 2023 municipal census, Lethbridge became the fourth Alberta city to surpass 100,000 people. The nearby Canadian ...

and (approximately 2.5 hours) south of

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

History

Magrath was established in 1899 by settlers sent by

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

(LDS Church) from

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

and

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

. These

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian restorationist Christian denomination and the largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement. Founded durin ...

settlers were recruited by the Alberta Railway and Irrigation Company to construct

irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering of plants) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has bee ...

works in the area funded by British interests by the family of Sir Alexander Galt. The settlers were paid in cash and land in the town. This was the first major irrigation work in Canada and was made possible by the settlers' experience with the extensive irrigation projects undertaken by their church in Utah and Idaho. The irrigation system was completed in November 1899 and spanned ninety-miles. It was the first large-scale irrigation system in Canada. The area's irrigation canal system supplies water to farmers throughout Southern Alberta and was the first major irrigation project in Canada. In its early years Magrath was known as The Irrigation Capital of Canada, and later as "The Garden City" for its beautiful natural setting and plentiful trees. The design and layout of Magrath was based on the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ' Plat of Zion' urban design model. Magrath also has historical links to the internationally recognized British Garden City tradition which was piloted in England during this same period. Magrath was named after

Charles Alexander Magrath Charles Alexander Magrath (April 22, 1860 – October 30, 1949) was a Canadian land surveyor and statesman. He conducted foundation surveys of the North-West Territories (NWT) from 1878 until 1885. He joined Sir Alexander Tilloch Galt and Elli ...

, the son-in-law of Sir Alexander Galt. Magrath

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...

was established 1 March 1900, with Ammon Mercer as first postmaster.

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 Magrath had a population of 2,481 living in 803 of its 830 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 2,374. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. The population of the Town of Magrath according to its 2017 municipal census is 2,435, a change of from its 2015 municipal census population of 2,398. In the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Town of Magrath recorded a population of 2,374 living in 757 of its 794 total private dwellings, a change from its 2011 population of 2,217. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2016.

Religious affiliation

The following is a breakdown of Magrath's population by religious affiliation from the 2001 federal census. * Protestant: 84% * Catholic: 4% * No religious affiliation: 11% * Christian Orthodox: <1% * Christian (unspecified denomination): <1% Statistics Canada includes 44 churches in its 2001 Protestant definition, including members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the

Community of Christ Community of Christ, known legally and from 1872 to 2001 as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS), is an American-based international church, and is the second-largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement ...

. The religious affiliation within Magrath is primarily from the LDS Church. There is a

stake A stake is a large wooden or metal implement designed to be driven into the ground and may refer to: Tools * Archer's stake, a defensive stake carried by medieval longbowmen * Survey stakes, markers used by surveyors * Sudis (stake) (Latin for ...

based in Magrath, which is composed of ten congregations (eight wards and two branches) in the town and surrounding area. As of June 2016, the total membership in the Magrath Alberta Stake was reported as 2433 members.

Attractions

* Buffalo Bin Elevator - Magrath, the first of five ever built in the Province. The "Buffalo Bin" style

grain elevator A grain elevator or grain terminal 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 lowe ...

was built as an experiential elevator for

Alberta Wheat Pool The Alberta Wheat Pool was the first of Canada's wheat agricultural cooperative, farmer co-operatives in 1923. History Early years In 1923, the United Farmers of Alberta met with then Attorney General John Edward Brownlee to consider setting up ...

in the 1970-1980s, today only three of the original buffalo bins remain. The others still standing are Foremost and

Fort Saskatchewan Fort Saskatchewan is a city along the North Saskatchewan River in Alberta, Canada. It is northeast of Edmonton, the provincial capital. It is part of the Edmonton Capital Region#Edmonton CMA, Edmonton census metropolitan area and one of 24 muni ...

. * Galt Irrigation Canal, first major irrigation project in Canada, 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 ...

. * Galt Canal Nature Trail * Magrath Golf club * Magrath Skateboard Park * Magrath Wind farm

Notable people

* Randall K. Bennett, general authority of the LDS Church. *

Phil Tollestrup Phil Tollestrup (born October 12, 1949) is a former Canadian basketball player and Olympian. Among his accomplishments, he was the fourth overall scorer in the 1976 Summer Olympics (21.3 ppg), where Canada competed for the bronze medal; was dra ...

(b. 1949), Olympics basketball player and member of the Canadian Basketball Hall of Fame * Gordon McOmber (1919–2018), Lieutenant Governor for Montana (1988–1989) was born in Magrath. * Christian Jensen (1868–1958), inductee in the Canadian Agricultural Hall of Fame, namesake of Jensen Reservoir *

Joseph Schow Joseph Schow is a Canadian politician who was elected in the 2019 Alberta general election to represent the electoral district of Cardston-Siksika in the 30th Alberta Legislature. He is a member of the United Conservative Party, and he has been ...

, MLA

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1901 establishments in the Northwest Territories Cardston County Latter-day Saint settlements in Canada Populated places established in 1899 Towns in Alberta