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Manitoba Communities: Virden (Town)

Link to:
Population | Mayors / Reeves | Memorable Manitobans | Historic Sites | History Books | Photos & Maps | 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:

Custom Search

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

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