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Swift Current

Coordinates: 50°17′17″N 107°47′38″W / 50.28806°N 107.79389°W / 50.28806; -107.79389
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This article is about the city in Saskatchewan, Canada. For other uses, see Swift Current (disambiguation).
Swift Current
City
Nickname: 
Speedy Creek
Motto: 
Where life makes sense
CountryCanada Canada
ProvinceSaskatchewan
Established1883
Incorporated (village)September 21, 1903
Incorporated (town)March 15, 1907
Incorporated (city)January 15, 1914
Government
 • MayorJerrod Schafer
 • Governing bodySwift Current City Council
 • MPDavid L. Anderson (CON) - Cypress Hills—Grasslands
 • MLABrad Wall (SKP) - Swift Current
Elevation
817 m (2,680 ft)
Population
 (2011)
 • Total
15,503
 • Density686.4/km2 (1,778/sq mi)
 • Population (2001)
14,821
 From Census Canada
Time zoneUTC−6 (CST)
No. of dwellings6,891
Mean household incomeC$40,711
Websitewww.swiftcurrent.ca

Swift Current (Assiniboine: Miníȟaȟa [1]) is a small city in southwest Saskatchewan. It is situated along the Trans Canada Highway 170 kilometres (110 mi) west from Moose Jaw, and 218 kilometres (135 mi) east from Medicine Hat, Alberta. Swift Current grew 0.8% between 2001 and 2006 ending up at 14,946 residents.[2] The city is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Swift Current No. 137.

History

Halifax Provisional Battalion fording a stream near Swift Current, Saskatchewan, 1885
Census Population
1901 121
1911 1,852
1921 3,518
1931 5,296
1941 5,515
1951 7,458
1961 12,186
1971 15,415
1981 14,747
1991 14,815
2001 14,821
2006 14,946

Swift Current's history began with Swift Current Creek which originates at Cypress Hills and traverses 100 miles (160 km) of prairie and empties into the South Saskatchewan River. The creek was a camp for First Nations for centuries. The name of the creek comes from the Cree, who called the South Saskatchewan River kisiskâciwan, meaning "it flows swiftly." Fur traders found the creek on their westward treks in the 1800s, and called it "Rivière au Courant" (lit: "river of the current"). Henri Julien, an artist traveling with the North-West Mounted Police expedition in 1874, referred to it as "Du Courant", and Commissioner French used "Strong Current Creek" in his diary. While it took another decade before being officially recorded, the area has always been known as "Swift Current.".[3]

The settlement of Swift Current was established in 1881, when the CPR surveyed a railway line as far as Swift Current Creek. In 1882, initial grading and track preparation commenced, with the first settlers arriving in the spring of 1883. During the early part of its settlement, the economy was based almost exclusively on serving the new railway buildings and employees. There was also a significant ranching operation known as the "76" ranches. It included 10 ranches raising sheep and cattle and stretched from Swift Current to Calgary. The ranch located at Swift Current dealt with sheep. At one point there were upwards of 20,000 sheep grazing on the present day Kinetic Grounds. The head shepherd was John Oman, originally from Scotland. He donated land to build Oman School in 1913.[4] Other early industries included gathering buffalo or bison bones for use in fertilizer manufacturing, the making of bone china and sugar refining. Métis residents also ran a successful Red River ox cart "freighting" business to Battleford until the late 1880s. During the Riel Rebellion of 1885, Swift Current became a major military base and troop mustering area due to its proximity to Battleford but this was only for a short time. On February 4, 1904, the hamlet became a village and then a town on March 15, 1907, when a census indicated a population of 550. Swift Current became incorporated as a city on January 15, 1914, with Travis Blaine Frederick being the mayor at the time.

The Swift Current Airport was taken over by the city of Swift Current from Transport Canada in 1996. Airport services were then contracted out. There have been recent (2005–2006) plans to expand and revitalize the airport alongside the rural municipalities surrounding Swift Current.

Swift Current is sometimes known as "Speedy Creek". Considered to be slightly pejorative, this term is very seldom used by current or former residents. In more common usage by these groups are the terms "Swift", or "Swifty".

Swift Current's official slogan is "Where Life Makes Sense."

Landmarks

Lyric Theater in downtown Swift Current

Swift Current is home to Saskatchewan's oldest operating theatre: the Lyric Theater, built in 1912 at a cost of $50,000 is the "crown jewel" of Swift Current's historical downtown buildings, with instantly recognizable advertisements painted on the north and south sides of the building dating back to the early 1920s. The building has served many functions over the years: at first it housed glamorous vaudeville performances by traveling companies, was later converted into a movie theatre and, in the mid 1980s, a bar and nightclub. A volunteer non-profit group (Southwest Cultural Development Group) purchased the facility in 2005 and is raising money for its preservation while staging cultural events, such as a mock Chautauqua in July 2008 and open mic nights throughout the year, and administering rentals of the building. The current musician in residence is Al Hudec.

Swift Current's tallest commercial building is the EI Wood Building in downtown.

The longest running business in Swift Current is the Imperial Hotel, also known as The Big "I". It was built in 1903 and was used as evidence that Swift Current should be granted village status. The owner, R.H. Corbett of Medicine Hat, needed the designation to obtain a liquor licence.[5]

The Swift Current railway station has been designated a historic railway station in 1991. [6] The Court House is also a designated historical building.

Demographics

Canada census – Swift Current community profile
2011
Population15,503 (3.7% from 2006)
Land area24.04 km2 (9.28 sq mi)
Population density644.9/km2 (1,670/sq mi)
Median age
Private dwellings7,266 (total) 
Median household income
References: 2011[7] earlier[8][9]

Climate

Swift Current experiences a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfb) that does not fall far from being classified as semi-arid (Köppen BSk). Winters are long, dry and cold, while summers are short, warm and relatively wet. The coldest month is January, with a mean temperature of −12.2°C, while the warmest month is July, with a mean temperature of 17.9°C. The driest month is February, with an average of 14mm of precipitation, while the wettest month is June, with an average of 68mm. Annual precipitation is low, with an average of 377mm.

Climate data for Swift Current
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 11.7
(53.1) 		17.2
(63.0) 		20.6
(69.1) 		33.8
(92.8) 		37.3
(99.1) 		38.9
(102.0) 		37.8
(100.0) 		38.9
(102.0) 		36.1
(97.0) 		31.7
(89.1) 		22.2
(72.0) 		20.0
(68.0) 		38.9
(102.0)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) −7
(19) 		−4.5
(23.9) 		2.4
(36.3) 		11.2
(52.2) 		17.9
(64.2) 		22.2
(72.0) 		24.9
(76.8) 		24.6
(76.3) 		18.1
(64.6) 		11.5
(52.7) 		0.9
(33.6) 		−5.5
(22.1) 		9.7
(49.5)
Daily mean °C (°F) −12.2
(10.0) 		−9.6
(14.7) 		−2.9
(26.8) 		4.8
(40.6) 		11.0
(51.8) 		15.5
(59.9) 		17.9
(64.2) 		17.4
(63.3) 		11.4
(52.5) 		5.1
(41.2) 		−4.2
(24.4) 		−10.5
(13.1) 		3.6
(38.5)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −17.2
(1.0) 		−14.6
(5.7) 		−8.3
(17.1) 		−1.6
(29.1) 		4.2
(39.6) 		8.7
(47.7) 		10.8
(51.4) 		10.1
(50.2) 		4.6
(40.3) 		−1.3
(29.7) 		−9.3
(15.3) 		−15.6
(3.9) 		−2.5
(27.5)
Record low °C (°F) −42.8
(−45.0) 		−41.7
(−43.1) 		−35.6
(−32.1) 		−28.9
(−20.0) 		−12.2
(10.0) 		−2.9
(26.8) 		1.7
(35.1) 		−1.1
(30.0) 		−9.4
(15.1) 		−24.2
(−11.6) 		−33.7
(−28.7) 		−44.4
(−47.9) 		−44.4
(−47.9)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 16.7
(0.66) 		14.1
(0.56) 		20.1
(0.79) 		23.5
(0.93) 		52.0
(2.05) 		67.9
(2.67) 		55.2
(2.17) 		43.5
(1.71) 		30.6
(1.20) 		17.3
(0.68) 		15.1
(0.59) 		21.2
(0.83) 		377.1
(14.85)
Mean monthly sunshine hours 98.4 122.7 166.4 230.1 275.6 299.8 340.4 301.1 202.5 175.6 110.4 83.9 2,406.9
Source: Environment Canada[10]

Arts and culture

Swift Current Museum

The city is home to the Swift Current Museum, the Art Gallery of Swift Current, the Lyric Theatre and the Swift Current Library. The city is also host to the Windscape Kite Festival, which is the largest festival of its kind in Western Canada.

Sports and recreation

Swift Current is home to the Swift Current Broncos, a hockey team that plays in the Western Hockey League. They play in the 3,239 seat Credit Union iPlex in the east end of town. The team has raised some of the world's greatest hockey players to the professional level, such as Dave "Tiger" Williams, Joe Sakic, and Bryan Trottier. The Credit Union iPlex is also the home of the Swift Current Rampage a junior box lacrosse team. San Jose Sharks and Canadian International hockey player, Patrick Marleau was born in Swift Current.

Swift Current is also home to the Swift Current Indians, a baseball that plays in Canada's premier summer collegiate level baseball league called the Western Major Baseball League (WMBL). Former Major League Baseball players Reggie Cleveland (Boston Red Sox), Jim Dedrick (Baltimore Orioles) and Shawn Wooten (Anaheim Angels) all played for Swift Current before being drafted into professional baseball. Since 1992, Swift Current has won an unprecedented 10 league championships (1992, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2005, 2006, and 2010). The Indians play at Mitchell Field, located just north of the Iplex.

Other sports institutions in the city include:

  • Speedy Creek Racing Club
  • Chinook Golf Course
  • Elmwood Golf Course
  • Vipers Ball Hockey

Lake Diefenbaker and Saskatchewan Landing Provincial Park are 50 km north of the city on Highway 4. The park provides recreational activities like fishing, swimming, boating, camping, hiking and 4 RV parks.

Swift Current Motorcross Club has a track on the west side of town, just off 11th Ave NW.

Media

Print
Radio
Television
  • Channel 12 - CKMC-TV, CTV (analogue repeater of CKCK-DT Regina)
  • Southwest TV News is an internet-based news program focused on Swift Current and area. It is sometimes broadcasted on Citytv Saskatchewan.

Swift Current was previously served by CJFB-TV channel 5, a private CBC Television outlet; this station would close down in 2002, with its transmitter becoming CBKT-4, a repeater of CBKT Regina. CBKT-4 would close down on July 31, 2012, due to budget cuts handed down by the CBC.[11][12]

Notes

  1. ^ "AISRI Dictionary Database Search--prototype version. Assiniboine. "Montana"". Retrieved May 26, 2012.
  2. ^ Saskatoon Star Phoenix (ed.). Saskatoon sees 2.8% hike; Regina rises by 0.6%. Saskatoon Star Phoenix newspaper Wednesday March 14, 2007. p. B1.
  3. ^ Tourism Swift Current
  4. ^ McGown, Don C. The Green and Growing Years: Swift Current, 1907-1914. Victoria: Cactus Publications, 1982.
  5. ^ McGowan, Don C. Grassland Settlers: The Swift Current Region During the Era of the Ranching Frontier. Regina: Canadian Plains Research Centre, University of Regina, 1975.
  6. ^ "Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada - The Directory of Designated Heritage Railway Stations in Saskatchewan". Parks Canada. Retrieved February 7, 2011.
  7. ^ "2011 Community Profiles". 2011 Canadian census. Statistics Canada. March 21, 2019. Retrieved May 20, 2012.
  8. ^ "2006 Community Profiles". 2006 Canadian census. Statistics Canada. August 20, 2019.
  9. ^ "2001 Community Profiles". 2001 Canadian census. Statistics Canada. July 18, 2021.
  10. ^ Environment Canada—Canadian Climate Normals 1971–2000, accessed July 27, 2012.
  11. ^ Speaking notes for Hubert T. Lacroix regarding measures announced in the context of the Deficit Reduction Action Plan
  12. ^ Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2012-384, July 17, 2012.

50°17′17″N 107°47′38″W / 50.28806°N 107.79389°W / 50.28806; -107.79389

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