Introduction
For the made-for-TV movie, see Mayerthorpe tragedy § In popular culture.
Town in Alberta, CanadaMayerthorpeTownTown of MayerthorpeLocation in Lac Ste. Anne CountyMayerthorpeLocation of Mayerthorpe in AlbertaCoordinates: 53°57′01″N 115°08′01″W / 53.95028°N 115.13361°W / 53.95028; -115.13361CountryCanadaProvinceAlbertaPlanning regionUpper AthabascaMunicipal districtLac Ste. Anne CountyIncorporated  • VillageMarch 5, 1927 • TownMarch 20, 1961Government • MayorAllen "AJ" Malcolm • Governing bodyMayerthorpe Town CouncilArea (2021) • Land4.39 km2 (1.69 sq mi)Elevation712 m (2,336 ft)Population (2021) • Total1,343DemonymMayerthorpianTime zoneUTC−7 (MST) • Summer (DST)UTC−6 (MDT)Area code-1+780HighwaysHighway 22Highway 43WaterwayPaddle RiverWebsitewww.mayerthorpe.ca
Mayerthorpe /ˈmɛərθɔːrp/ is a town in central Alberta, Canada. It is approximately 120 km (75 mi) northwest of Edmonton 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
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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 (RCMP) were killed in the Mayerthorpe tragedy.
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
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In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Town of Mayerthorpe had a population of 1,343 living in 551 of its 615 total private dwellings, a change of 1.7% from its 2016 population of 1,320. With a land area of 4.39 km2 (1.69 sq mi), it had a population density of 305.9/km2 (792.3/sq mi) 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 -5.6% change from its 2011 population of 1,398. With a land area of 4.37 km2 (1.69 sq mi), it had a population density of 302.1/km2 (782.3/sq mi) in 2016.
