Mayerthorpe is a town in

central Alberta Central Alberta is a region located in the Canadian province of Alberta. Central Alberta is the most densely populated rural area in the province. Agriculture and energy are important to the area's economy. Geography Central Alberta is bordered ...

, Canada. It is approximately northwest 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 ...

at the intersection of Highway 43 and Highway 22 (Cowboy Trail). The town is surrounded by Lac Ste. Anne County and is in Alberta's Census Division No. 13.

History

The name of the post office, established in 1915, honours R. I. Mayer, the first postmaster. "Thorpe" is from the Old English for hamlet or village. Mayerthorpe incorporated as a village on March 5, 1927. It then incorporated as a town just over 34 years later on March 20, 1961. On March 3, 2005, four officers serving with the Mayerthorpe and Whitecourt detachments of the

Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; , GRC) is the Law enforcement in Canada, national police service of Canada. The RCMP is an agency of the Government of Canada; it also provides police services under contract to 11 Provinces and terri ...

(RCMP) were killed in the

Mayerthorpe tragedy The Mayerthorpe tragedy occurred on March 3, 2005, on the farm of James Roszko, approximately north of Rochfort Bridge, Alberta, Rochfort Bridge near the town of Mayerthorpe in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Albe ...

. On July 29, 2008, the Mayerthorpe Arena was destroyed by a fire. In 2011, after three years of planning and fundraising, the new arena, now called the Mayerthorpe Exhibition Centre, was officially opened. In 2016, a string of suspicious fires in the area resulted in the destruction of a CN trestle bridge. The bridge was rebuilt shortly thereafter, in about twenty 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 Mayerthorpe had a population of 1,343 living in 551 of its 615 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 1,320. 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 Mayerthorpe recorded a population of 1,320 living in 540 of its 600 total private dwellings, a change from its 2011 population of 1,398. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2016.

Media

The local weekly newspaper serving Mayerthorpe and area is the ''Mayerthorpe Freelancer''.

Sports

The Whitecourt Wild Senior "AA" ice hockey team was added to the North Central Hockey League in 2013. The team plays in the Mayerthorpe Exhibition Centre.

Notable Residents

References

External links

* {{Alberta Regions Upper Athabasca 1927 establishments in Alberta Lac Ste. Anne County Towns in Alberta