Morris | |
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Town | |
The Manitoba Stampede and Exhibition in Morris
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Location of Morris in Manitoba | |
Coordinates: 49°21′18″N 97°21′54″W / 49.35500°N 97.36500°WCoordinates: 49°21′18″N 97°21′54″W / 49.35500°N 97.36500°W | |
Country | Canada |
Province | Manitoba |
Region | No. 3 |
Post office established | 1874 |
Incorporated town | 1883 |
Government | |
• Governing Body | Morris Town Council |
• MP (Provencher) | Ted Falk (CPC) |
• MLA (Morris) | Shannon Martin (PC) |
Area | |
• Total | 6.10 km2 (2.36 sq mi) |
Population (2016) | |
• Total | 1,885 |
• Density | 309.1/km2 (801/sq mi) |
Time zone | CST (UTC−6) |
• Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC−5) |
Area code(s) | 204 |
Website | Official website |
Morris is a small town in the Pembina Valley region of Manitoba, Canada, located 51 km south of Winnipeg and 42 km north of Emerson.
Highway 75 which turns into Interstate 29 is the major highway which runs from Winnipeg to Missouri. Morris is the only town in which Highway 75 is called Main Street. The town of Morris is mostly surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Morris, except for a relatively small eastern border with the northwest corner of the Rural Municipality of Montcalm, across the Red River of the North.
Morris is host to the annual Manitoba Stampede & Exhibition.
The town has a very long history involving floods and fur trade companies. Fur traders started to settle in the Morris area in the late 18th century because of its strategic location along the Red River. By 1801, there were two fur-trading stations at the settlement, the North West Company and the XY Company. Barges came up and down the Red River, and the Red River ox carts that travelled between Fort Garry and the Pembina Settlement went right through Morris, and offered many opportunities for trade.(see Red River Trails)
By 1874, the ox carts began to carry settlers to the areas around the Scratching River (now the Morris River) and the population began to grow. The town of Morris was named after Alexander Morris, the second Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba and was officially incorporated in 1883.