Wildwood is a

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

in west-

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 within Yellowhead County. It is on the Yellowhead Highway (Highway 16), approximately west of Edmonton and east of Edson. The Yellowhead Highway's intersection with Cowboy Trail (Highway 22) is east of the hamlet. The Lobstick River, which flows from Chip Lake to the west, runs through the hamlet.

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 ...

recognizes Wildwood as a

designated place A designated place (DPL) is a type of community or settlement identified by Statistics Canada that does not meet the criteria used to define municipalities or population centres. DPLs are delineated every 5 years for the Canadian census as the s ...

. Farming and ranching are an important part of Wildwood's economy. Th
Wildwood and District Agricultural Society
was organized in 1939 and holds an Agricultural Fair every August.

History

Originally named ''Junkins'', Wildwood was established in 1908 by a group of 20 African-American immigrants as a

block settlement A block settlement (or bloc settlement) is a particular type of land distribution which allows settlers with the same ethnicity to form small colonies. This settlement type was used throughout western Canada between the late 19th and early 20th c ...

. The new Black Canadian homesteaders arrived from

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

and

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, just three years after Alberta became a province in 1905. The Grand Trunk Pacific Railway arrived in Junkins in 1908. People arriving at "end of steel" transferred their goods to wagons and travelled to their homesteads.

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by

, Wildwood had a population of 257 living in 118 of its 136 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 273. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. As a designated place in the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Wildwood had a population of 273 living in 139 of its 157 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2011 population of 294. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2016.

References

{{coord, 53, 36, 34, N, 115, 14, 15, W, scale:60000_region:CA, display=title, name=Wildwood Black Canadian culture in Alberta Black Canadian settlements Designated places in Alberta Former villages in Alberta Hamlets in Alberta Yellowhead County Populated places disestablished in 1990 Populated places established by African Americans

History

Demographics

See also

References