Mount Stewart is a

rural municipality A rural municipality is a classification of municipality, a type of local government, found in several countries. These include: * Rural municipality (Canada), Rural municipalities in Canada, a Lists of municipalities in Canada, type of municipa ...

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", ...

, Canada. It is located in the northeastern part of Queens County, at the head of the once-navigable portion of the Hillsborough River at the point where the river begins to narrow significantly. Mount Stewart had a population of 226 at the time of the 2021 Census. The community played an important role in the province's early transportation history, being the site of a bridge over the river along the route between the capital at

Charlottetown Charlottetown is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Prince Edward Island, and the county seat of Queens County, Prince Edward Island, Queens County. Named after Queen Charlotte, Charlott ...

and the shire town of Kings County at Georgetown.

History

In the early 1870s, 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 ...

ran its mainline between both communities through Mount Stewart. If any one wanted to travel to Georgetown or Souris from Charlottetown, they would have to come through or make a stop at Mount Stewart. Mount Stewart also came to be referred to as Mount Stewart Junction after the PEIR built a line northeast to Morell and Souris. During the 1930s, the community became the centre of all railway service accessing eastern PEI after the

Hillsborough River Bridge The Hillsborough River Bridge is a bridge crossing the Hillsborough River (Prince Edward Island), Hillsborough River estuary between Charlottetown and Stratford, Prince Edward Island, Stratford in Queens County, Prince Edward Island. The current ro ...

carrying the railway line to Murray Harbour between Charlottetown and Southport was condemned. The CNR constructed what was known as the "Short Line" between Mount Stewart and Lake Verde, permitting rail traffic to continue to serve the southeastern part of the province. People would also use the railways to transport vegetables, potatoes, lumber, and other resources. The last train that came here was from Charlottetown in 1989, it was also when the railway stopped running.

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 ...

, Mount Stewart 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.

Education

There is one school that is currently operating in Mount Stewart. It was built on May 7, 1976. It is located at 120 Main Street. There are approximately 160 students as of April 2013. The grades are kindergarten up to grade 8. In 2009 two schools joined Mount Stewart Consolidated, St. Teresa's and Tracadie Cross. After students finish grade 8, they go to Morell Regional High School for grades 9-12. The school that was operating before the current school is now being used for storage.

Sports

Baseball in Mount Stewart and the surrounding areas was and still is very popular. The local teams have won the Atlantic championships multiple times over the years. They also had a team in the KCBL (Kings County Baseball League). Some of the local players went on to play in the Florida Rookie League, for university-level players who show dedication to playing pro ball.

References

{{PEI Communities in Queens County, Prince Edward Island Rural municipalities in Prince Edward Island