Manitoba Communities: Virden (Town)

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Population | Mayors / Reeves | Memorable Manitobans | Historic Sites | History Books | Maps | Contact Information | Sources

Virden was established in 1882 as a stopping point on the Canadian Pacific Railway as it moved west across the prairies. Initially known as Gopher Creek, for a creek that flowed into the Assiniboine River, its name was changed to Virden in 1883, for the country estate of the Duke of Manchester, who served on the CPR Board of Directors. Oil was discovered in its vicinity in 1957, making Virden the centre of Manitoba’s “oil patch.”

Present Status	Town of Virden (14 September 1904)
Incorporation History	Village of Virden (2 August 1890) Town of Virden (14 September 1904)
Adjoining Municipalities	Wallace-Woodworth
Land Area (square km)	8.97

Population

Year	Total
1891	606
1901	901
1906	1471
1911	1550
1916	1618
1921	1361
1926	1380
1931	1590
1936	1481
1941	1619
1946	1597
1951	1746
1956	3225
1961	2708
1966	2933
1971	2823
1976	2936
1981	2940
1986	3054
1991	2894
1996	3137
2001	3109
2006	3010
2011	3114
2016	3322

Mayors

Term	Mayor
1890-1892	Robert Adamson (1852-?)
1893-1894	William James Kennedy (1857-1912)
1895-1896	B. F. Foster
1897	Benjamin Meek (1834-1905)
1898-1904	Duncan McDonald (1856-1920)
1905	Richard Langtry (1866-1954)
1906-1907	J. A. Blakeman
1908-1909	George Clingan (1868-1953)
1910-1911	James Robert Mullins (1864-1941)
1912	William A. Bridgett (1867-?)
1913	T. A. Carscadden
1914-1916	T. M. Mitchell
1917-1918	D. S. Carnahan
1919-1921	H. N. Thompson (?-1953)
1922	James Henderson Chalmers (1876-1942)
1923-1924	James Gardner
1924-1925	James E. Rothnie (1887-1937)
1926-1931	James Gardner
1932-1935	A. E. Higginbotham
1936-1941	George Jacob Gabel (1884-?)
1942-1947	H. N. Thompson (?-1953)
1948	R. J. Timms
1949	James Gardner
1950-1951	Clarence Moore (1884-1977)
1952-1953	H. N. Thompson (?-1953)
1954-1957	D. J. Reid
1958-1961	John Clifford Cory (1904-1971)
1962-1970	H. J. McNeill
1971-1975	Steven Hegion
1976-1977	Brian Archer
1978-1980	Allen Shepherd Case (c1928-2010)
1981-1986	W. Glen McKinnon
1987-1989	Richard Joseph “Rick” Plaisier (1948-2017)
1990-1993	W. Glen McKinnon
1994-1995	Darcy Cockbill
1996-1998	J. Richard Armstrong
1999-2001	David J. Reid
2002-2006	Stan Ward
2006-2010	Bruce Dunning
2010-2018	Jeffrey “Jeff” McConnell
2018-?	Murray Wright

Memorable Manitobans

Search the MHS collection of biographies for ones connected to Virden:

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Historic Sites

Go here for a list of historic sites in Virden.

History Books

Go here for a list of history books for Virden.

Maps

Sources

Geographic Names of Manitoba, Manitoba Conservation, 2000.

We thank Jeff McConnell for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 18 January 2020