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Whitecourt

Whitecourt
Town
Town of Whitecourt
Whitecourt's entrance sign on Highway 43
Whitecourt's entrance sign on Highway 43
Nickname(s): Snowmobile Capital of Alberta
Motto: Let's Go...
Whitecourt is located in Alberta
Whitecourt
Whitecourt
Coordinates: 54°08′30″N 115°41′00″W / 54.1417°N 115.6833°W / 54.1417; -115.6833Coordinates: 54°08′30″N 115°41′00″W / 54.1417°N 115.6833°W / 54.1417; -115.6833
Country  Canada
Province  Alberta
Region Central Alberta
Census division 13
Municipal district Woodlands County
Founded 1910
Incorporated  
 • Village January 1, 1959
 • New town August 15, 1961
 • Town December 20, 1971
Government
 • Mayor Maryann Chichak
 • Governing body
 • CAO Peter Smyl
 • MP Arnold Viersen
 • MLA Oneil Carlier
Area (2011)
 • Total 26.14 km2 (10.09 sq mi)
Elevation 690 m (2,260 ft)
Population (2010)
 • Total 9,605
 • Density 367.4/km2 (952/sq mi)
 • Municipal census (2013) 10,574
Time zone MST (UTC−7)
 • Summer (DST) MDT (UTC−6)
Postal code span T7S
Area code(s) +1-780
Highways Highway 43
Highway 32
Waterways Athabasca River
McLeod River
Sakwatamau River
Beaver Creek
Website www.whitecourt.ca

Whitecourt is a town in central Alberta, Canada within Woodlands County. It is located approximately 177 km (110 mi) northwest of Edmonton and 279 km (173 mi) southeast of Grande Prairie at the junction of Highway 43 and Highway 32, and has an elevation of 690 m (2,260 ft). The Whitecourt meteor impact crater is found on nearby Whitecourt Mountain.

Whitecourt is also located at the confluence of four waterways – the Athabasca River, McLeod River, Sakwatamau River and Beaver Creek. A Canadian National rail line runs through the town.

The Town has branded itself as the Snowmobile Capital of Alberta and its motto is Let's Go....

The community was formed in the place known by the Cree as Sagitawah (the place where the rivers meet). While the first Hudson's Bay Company trading post was established in 1897, the first permanent resident on the present day town site was John Goodwin, who settled here in 1905. In 1910, with the expansion of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway, immigrants were encouraged by Premier Arthur Lewis Sifton to settle in the vast scarcely inhabited area between Edmonton and the Peace River Country. The name "Whitecourt" was chosen in 1910 by Walter White, the postmaster of the young community. White was the son-in-law of former Kansas governor John W. Leedy who also settled in the community.


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