Queenstown, Alberta
Queenstown | |
|---|---|
  Queenstown Location of Queenstown  Queenstown Queenstown (Canada) | |
| Coordinates: 50°38′22″N 112°56′22″W / 50.63944°N 112.93944°W | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | Alberta |
| Region | Southern Alberta |
| Census division | 5 |
| Municipal district | Vulcan County |
| Government | |
| • Type | Unincorporated |
| • Governing body | Vulcan County Council |
| Population (2007)[1] | |
• Total | 8 |
| Time zone | UTC−06:00 (Alberta Time) |
| Area codes | 403, 587, 825 |
Queenstown is a hamlet in southern Alberta, Canada within Vulcan County.[2] It is located approximately 26 kilometres (16 mi) south of Highway 1, and 92 kilometres (57 mi) southeast of Calgary.[3]
Toponymy
Queenstown was named by Irish-born Edward Dawson, employee of the Dominion Land Survey, after his home city of Queenstown in Ireland (today Cobh).[4][5]
The Blackfoot name for Queenstown is niináwaakii, meaning queen, derived from the settler name.[6][7]
History
Founding: 1888-1925
In 1888, Irish-born Edward Dawson, employee of the Dominion Land Survey, came across the future Queenstown site when reviewing the area.[4][5] He formed the Canadian Pacific Colonization Company shortly afterwards, to promote settlement in the Snake Valley.[4]
Although Dawson himself left Queenstown by 1889, promotion for the settlement was successful enough that a farming community had developed by 1907.[4][5] A post office opened for Queenstown in January 1908, with original settler William Brown serving as the first postmaster.[5][8] Queenstown School was established later that year, in April.[9] By 1911, Queenstown and its surrounding areas boasted more than 600 residents.[8]
Also in 1918, a small population of Doukhobors, a religious group of Russian origin, founded a village bordering Queenstown, named Krasivaya Dolina.[10][11] They founded a cemetery as well, though only two people would be interred there by 1924, when the village was abandoned.[10][11]
Development and decline: 1926-1969
The Canadian Pacific Railway established a stop a few miles north-west of Queenstown in 1926, and Queenstown effectively moved closer to the railway line in the next few years, including the school building.[5] The post office began operating from a general store,[12] and a community hall opened to provide recreational programming.[13]
Frequent drought affected Queenstown's agricultural economy,[12] and, by 1931, the community had declined in population to 125 residents.[5] By this time, amenities established in Queenstown included a hotel, barber shop, bank, general stores, and a restaurant.[5][14] Following the Second World War, Queenstown became host to a chapter of the Royal Canadian Legion and a small library.[5]
After Queenstown School closed in 1952, many of the community's residents relocated to Milo or surrounding localities; this effectively ended Queenstown's commercial operations within a decade.[5] By the end of the 1950s, Queenstown's post office had gone through six postmasters in about a decade, as successive holders of the office and Queenstown's general store struggled to be commercially viable.[8][12] An exception to the community's declining fortunes was the 1960 opening of the Queenstown Seed Cleaning Plant, which retained employment in the area.[5]
Krasivaya Dolina Cemetery was cleared in the 1960s, removing all markers of its two graves.[11]
Later development: 1970-present
After Queenstown's post office closed in June 1970,[8] parcel and special delivery services moved to Milo.[15] In 1971, Queenstown's Women's Institute petitioned Vulcan County to demolish the many buildings that had stood dormant in Queenstown for around a decade, including its hotel.[14][5]
Queenstown Community Hall held its final event, a New Year's dance, in December 1990.[13] Train and grain elevator services to Queenstown ended by the late 1990s, and the Queenstown Seed Cleaning Plant relocated to Milo in 1993.[5]
Calgary-based oil and natural gas company, Pulse Oil Corp, introduced an oilfield in the Queenstown area in 2017.[16] The operation remains active as of 2026.[17] In 2023, the federal and provincial governments announced funding to bring high-speed Internet access to rural communities including Queenstown.[18]
Climate
| Climate data for Queenstown | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 16 (61) |
23.5 (74.3) |
22.2 (72.0) |
29.5 (85.1) |
34 (93) |
34.5 (94.1) |
37.5 (99.5) |
37.5 (99.5) |
36.5 (97.7) |
31.1 (88.0) |
22.2 (72.0) |
21.5 (70.7) |
37.5 (99.5) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −3.7 (25.3) |
−0.5 (31.1) |
4.5 (40.1) |
12.2 (54.0) |
17.7 (63.9) |
21.8 (71.2) |
24.7 (76.5) |
24.4 (75.9) |
18.7 (65.7) |
13 (55) |
2.9 (37.2) |
−2 (28) |
11.2 (52.2) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −9.4 (15.1) |
−6.3 (20.7) |
−1.4 (29.5) |
5.4 (41.7) |
10.8 (51.4) |
15 (59) |
17.6 (63.7) |
17.1 (62.8) |
11.6 (52.9) |
6 (43) |
−2.7 (27.1) |
−7.8 (18.0) |
4.6 (40.3) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −15.1 (4.8) |
−12.2 (10.0) |
−7.4 (18.7) |
−1.5 (29.3) |
3.8 (38.8) |
8.2 (46.8) |
10.4 (50.7) |
9.7 (49.5) |
4.5 (40.1) |
−1 (30) |
−8.4 (16.9) |
−13.7 (7.3) |
−1.9 (28.6) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −37.2 (−35.0) |
−36.7 (−34.1) |
−32.5 (−26.5) |
−20.6 (−5.1) |
−7.8 (18.0) |
−1 (30) |
1.1 (34.0) |
−3 (27) |
−8.3 (17.1) |
−25 (−13) |
−33.5 (−28.3) |
−39.4 (−38.9) |
−39.4 (−38.9) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 21.4 (0.84) |
17.4 (0.69) |
24.6 (0.97) |
30.6 (1.20) |
58 (2.3) |
63.8 (2.51) |
54.3 (2.14) |
49 (1.9) |
40 (1.6) |
17.6 (0.69) |
18.3 (0.72) |
21.3 (0.84) |
416.2 (16.39) |
| Source: Environment Canada[19] | |||||||||||||
Demographics
The population of Queenstown according to the 2007 municipal census conducted by Vulcan County is 8.[1]
See also
References
- 1 2 "Alberta Population Summary: Alberta's Hamlets Alphabetically, 2010" (PDF). Alberta Population. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 11, 2021. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
- ↑ "Specialized and Rural Municipalities and Their Communities" (PDF). Alberta Municipal Affairs. June 3, 2024. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
- ↑ Carmichael, Jackie (August 8, 2024). "'Be prepared for anything': Alberta event organizers battle extreme weather events". Edmonton Journal.
- 1 2 3 4 Alberta Culture (2025). "Queenstown". Alberta Geographical Names Web Map. Text visible upon selecting the yellow circle.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Milo Library Archives. "Collection QTN - Queenstown collection". Alberta on Record.
- ↑ Frantz, Donald; Russell, Norma Jean (March 30, 2017), "Index", Blackfoot Dictionary of Stems, Roots, and Affixes, University of Toronto Press, pp. 323–397, doi:10.3138/9781487520632.bm1, retrieved April 1, 2026
- ↑ Dempsey, Hugh A. (1969). "Indian names for Alberta communities". University of Calgary. p. 17. Retrieved April 1, 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 Canada, Library and Archives (November 25, 2016). "Queenstown Archives / Post Offices and Postmasters". recherche-collection-search.bac-lac.gc.ca. Retrieved April 1, 2026.
- ↑ Milo Library Archives. "Collection ORS - One Room Schools collection". Alberta on Record.
- 1 2 Alberta Family Histories Society. "Krasivaya Dolina Doukhobor Cemetery (Vulcan County) Archives". Discover Alberta Ancestors. Retrieved April 1, 2026.
- 1 2 3 Kalmakoff, Jonathan J. (December 28, 2019). "Krasivaya Dolina Cemetery Site - Queenstown District, Alberta". Doukhobor Heritage. Retrieved April 1, 2026.
- 1 2 3 Speirs, Dale (ed.). "Queenstown" (PDF). Journal of Alberta Postal History. 1 (37): 22 – via Postal History Society of Canada (PHSC).
- 1 2 Queenstown Community Hall. "Series QTN.01 - Queenstown Community Hall series". Alberta on Record.
- 1 2 Queenstown Hotel. "Series QTN.02 - Queenstown Hotel series". Alberta on Record.
- ↑ Milo Library Archives. "Collection MAJ - Majorville collection". Alberta On Record.
- ↑ Choudhury, Uttara (May 8, 2018). "The dream team behind Canada's Pulse Oil may have a potential 10-bagger". Proactiveinvestors NA. Retrieved April 1, 2026.
- ↑ "Pulse Oil Corp (PUL-X) Stock Price and News". The Globe and Mail. December 1, 2025. Retrieved April 1, 2026.
- ↑ Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (July 11, 2023). "Backgrounder: Governments of Canada and Alberta invest over $96 million to bring high-speed Internet access to more than 10,000 homes". www.canada.ca. Retrieved April 1, 2026.
- ↑ Environment Canada— Deprecated link archived November 30, 2013, at archive.today. Retrieved 6 April 2010.
- ↑ Fifth Census of Canada, 1911 (PDF). Vol. Special Report on Area and Population. Dominion Bureau of Statistics. February 27, 1912. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
- ↑ Ninth Census of Canada, 1951 (PDF). Vol. SP-7 (Population: Unincorporated villages and hamlets). Dominion Bureau of Statistics. March 31, 1954. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
- ↑ Census of Canada, 1956 (PDF). Vol. Population of unincorporated villages and settlements. Dominion Bureau of Statistics. October 25, 1957. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
- ↑ "Population of unincorporated places of 50 persons and over, Alberta, 1961 and 1956". 1961 Census of Canada: Population (PDF). Series SP: Unincorporated Villages. Vol. Bulletin SP—4. Ottawa: Dominion Bureau of Statistics. April 18, 1963. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
- ↑ "Population of unincorporated places of 50 persons and over, 1966 and 1961 (Alberta)". Census of Canada 1966: Population (PDF). Special Bulletin: Unincorporated Places. Vol. Bulletin S–3. Ottawa: Dominion Bureau of Statistics. August 1968. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
- ↑ "Population of Unincorporated Places of 50 persons and over, 1971 and 1966 (Alberta)". 1971 Census of Canada: Population (PDF). Special Bulletin: Unincorporated Settlements. Vol. Bulletin SP—1. Ottawa: Statistics Canada. March 1973. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
- ↑ 1981 Census of Canada (PDF). Place name reference list. Vol. Western provinces and the Territories. Ottawa: Statistics Canada. May 1983. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
- ↑ Census Canada 1986: Population (PDF). Alberta: Population and Dwelling Counts – Provinces and Territories. Statistics Canada. June 1977. pp. 12–1 to 12–2. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
- ↑ "Table 16: Population and Dwelling Counts, for Urban Areas, 1991 and 1996 Censuses – 100% Data". 96 Canada (PDF). A National Overview: Population and Dwelling Counts. Ottawa: Statistics Canada. April 1997. pp. 184–198. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
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