Wilkie

The Wilkie water tower.

David McLennan

Town, pop 1,282, located approximately 55 km SW of North Battleford at the junction of Hwys 14 and 29. Settlers began arriving in the fall of 1905, and building at the townsite began in 1907. In 1910 Wilkie became a town, and the first history of the community was published by the Wilkie Press that year.

The Wilkie Post Office, built 1930. The first post office in the immediate vicinity of Wilkie was known as Glen Logan, and it was officially established by Charles John Logan in 1907 about a mile east of the present community. There, Logan ran a stopping place and a store. In 1908 Logan built a new store which included the post office within the town limits of Wilkie, and in October that year the name was changed to that of the community, which itself had been named in honour of Daniel Robert Wilkie, president of the Imperial Bank of Canada and a backer of the CPR.

David McLennan

Wilkie grew through to the end of the 1950s, becoming a centre of over 1,600. After 1960 it declined, as did many rural communities in the province. Wilkie’s community leaders, however, did not accept decline as inevitable: when the hospital was closed in 1996, they responded with proactive and imaginative initiatives to foster economic development. Partnerships were formed with the town of Unity and other neighbouring communities. A number of new agriculture-based businesses were started, creating close to 100 new jobs and revitalizing not only the local economy, but also community spirit. Residents made conscious efforts to shop locally and use as many local services as possible.

The Catholic Church of St. James the Apostle is one of six churches in Wilkie. Constuction began in 1953, the first mass was held on Christmas Eve in 1956, and the church was blessed on July 25, 1957. Other churches in the town are the Wilkie United Church, Wilkie Pentacostal Church, Trinity Lutheran Church, St. Paul's Anglican Church, and the Foursquare Gospel Church.

David McLennan

Today, the town has a diverse array of businesses, a range of medical services, an RCMP detachment, and a number of churches, recreational facilities and cultural organizations. The adjacent Wilkie Regional Park has facilities for camping, swimming, baseball, and golf.

David McLennan