Grande Prairie
Grande Prairie is a city in northwest Alberta, Canada within the southern portion of an area known as Peace River Country. It is located at the intersection of Highway 43 (part of the CANAMEX Corridor) and Highway 40 (the Bighorn Highway), approximately 456 km (283 mi) northwest of Edmonton. The city is surrounded by the County of Grande Prairie No. 1.
Grande Prairie | |
|---|---|
| City of Grande Prairie | |
Skyline of Grande Prairie viewed from the northeast | |
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Seal | |
| Nickname: Swan City | |
City boundaries | |
Grande Prairie Location in Canada Grande Prairie Location in Alberta Grande Prairie Location in Grande Prairie County | |
| Coordinates: 55°10′15″N 118°47′46″W | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | Alberta |
| Region | Northern Alberta |
| Planning region | Upper Peace |
| Municipal district | County of Grande Prairie No. 1 |
| Federal electoral district | Grande Prairie-Mackenzie |
| Provincial electoral districts | Grande Prairie Grande Prairie-Wapiti |
| Incorporated | |
| • Village | April 30, 1914 |
| • Town | March 15, 1919 |
| • City | January 1, 1958 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Jackie Clayton |
| • Governing body |
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| • City Manager | Robert Nicolay (Interim) |
| • MP | Chris Warkentin (Conservative) |
| • MLA | Nolan Dyck (UCP) Ron Wiebe (UCP) |
| Area (2021) | |
| • Land | 132.71 km2 (51.24 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 650 m (2,130 ft) |
| Population (2021) | |
| • Total | 64,141 |
| • Density | 483.3/km2 (1,252/sq mi) |
| • Municipal census (2018) | 69,088 |
| • Estimate (2020) | 69,355 |
| Time zone | UTC−07:00 (MST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−06:00 (MDT) |
| Forward sortation areas | T8V - T8X |
| Area code(s) | 780, 587, 825, 368 |
| Highways | 40, 43, 43X |
| Waterways | Wapiti River Bear River (Bear Creek) |
| Website | cityofgp |
Grande Prairie was the seventh-largest city in Alberta in 2016, with a population of 63,166, and was one of Canada's fastest growing cities between 2001 and 2006, and Canada's northernmost city with more than 50,000 people.
The city has adopted the trumpeter swan as its official symbol due to its proximity to the birds migration route and its summer nesting grounds. For that reason, Grande Prairie is sometimes nicknamed the "Swan City". The dinosaur has also emerged as an unofficial symbol of the city due to paleontology discoveries in the areas north and west of Grande Prairie.