Sexsmith, Alberta
# Sexsmith, Alberta

Sexsmith is a town in northern Alberta, it is on Highway 2, 20 kilometres (12 mi) north of Grande Prairie.

Sexsmith is located in the Peace River Country region of Alberta, one of the most fertile growing areas in the province. The town was once known as the "grain capital of the British Empire": In a 10-year period from 1939 to 1949, it shipped more grain than any other port in the empire.

## History

The townsite of Sexsmith was established on the homestead of Benny Foster, a 1911 settler, and was originally named "Bennville" or "Benville", but it was discovered that the name had already used by another town, so it was renamed Sexsmith after a local trapper who came to the area in 1898. The railway arrived in 1916, and grain companies began building grain elevators in 1917. Because of the fertile soil, the area is one of the largest grain producing areas in the world, and by 1949 became the Grain Capital of the British Empire, shipping more grain than any other region.

## Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Town of Sexsmith had a population of 2,427 living in 853 of its 929 total private dwellings, a change of -7.4% from its 2016 population of 2,620. With a land area of 13.01 $km^2$ (5.02 sq mi), it had a population density of $186.5/km^2$ (483.2/sq mi) in 2021.

In the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Town of Sexsmith recorded a population of 2,620 living in 873 of its 937 total private dwellings, a change of 8.4% from its 2011 population of 2,418. With a land area of 13.24 $km^2$ (5.11 sq mi), it had a population density of $197.9/km^2$ (512.5/sq mi) in 2016.

## Economy

Ovintiv owns an oil and natural gas liquid processing plant with a total capacity of 115,000 barrels per day, from wells drilled into the Montney Formation.

## Sports

| Club | League | Sport | Venue | Established | Championships |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Sexsmith Vipers | NWJHL | Ice Hockey | Sexsmith Arena | N/A | 0 |
| Sexsmith Skating Club | | Figure skating | Sexsmith Arena | N/A | 0 |
| Sexsmith Shamrocks | Mighty Peace Bantam Football League | Canadian Football | Shamrock Football Field | N/A | 0 |

## Education

Sexsmith has three schools:

* Robert W. Zahara Public School
* Sexsmith Secondary School
* St. Mary's Catholic School

Sexsmith is also the home of a post-secondary institution:

* Peace River Bible Institute

## Notable people

* Colin Carter
* Jason Duda
* Garry Edmundson
* Walter Paszkowski
* Carter Rowney
