Rapid City is an unincorporated community recognized as a local urban district that also once held town status in southwest

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

, Canada within the Rural Municipality of Oakview. It is located about 30 km north of Brandon. Rapid City is a farming community that is developed on the banks of the

Little Saskatchewan River The Little Saskatchewan River is a river in western Manitoba. It originates in Riding Mountain National Park at Lake Audy and flows about south through the communities of Minnedosa and Rapid City. Its approximate length is 185 km. It jo ...

. The dam and reservoir in Rapid City were built by the province in 1961, the reservoir stores and provides a water supply and recreational facility for the community.

History

As the railroad expanded in the 1870s, settlers were drawn to the area to build their homes and set up their businesses. The community was originally called Ralston's Colony (after John Ralston, an early settler). Around 1877, it was decided to rename the community Rapid City. Since the community was on the banks of the Little Saskatchewan River, and it was a "rapid stream," "rapid" and "city" were chosen and reflected the optimism of those early settlers. It was assumed that the projected northerly route away from

Portage la Prairie Portage la Prairie () is a small city in the Central Plains Region of Manitoba, Canada. In 2016, the population was 13,304 and the land area was . Portage la Prairie is approximately west of Winnipeg, along the Trans-Canada Highway (exactly ...

would take it through Rapid City and its narrow river crossing; however, the route suddenly changed to a more westerly route. That brought it through the location of present-day Brandon, which resulted in that city's boom and growth.

Education

Rapid City Elementary School provides K-8 education for children in the community, and is part of the Rolling River School Division.

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 ...

, Rapid City had a population of 796 living in 353 of its 364 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 478. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. In 2011, the average dwelling is home to 2.3 people. The median value of a household in Rapid City is $100,317, almost three times lower than the national median at $280,552. The median income an individual makes is $27,088, and the median (after-tax) income in Rapid City is $43,199, lower than the national median at $54,089. Almost every person in Rapid City reported their

mother tongue A first language (L1), native language, native tongue, or mother tongue is the first language a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongue'' refers ...

as English (97.6%). The 2011 National Household Survey reported that everyone in the community was

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

. However, 13.3% of the population claim to have some Aboriginal ancestry. Over half (56.0%) of the residents are of a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

faith, and 42.9% say they have no religious beliefs.

References

Manitoba Community Profiles - Town of Rapid City
{{Authority control Designated places in Manitoba Former towns in Manitoba Local urban districts in Manitoba Populated places disestablished in 2015 2015 disestablishments in Manitoba