| Eckville | |
| Official Name: | Town of Eckville |
| Settlement Type: | Town |
| Motto: | Community of Choice |
| Pushpin Map: | Canada Alberta |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location of Eckville in Alberta |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | Canada |
| Subdivision Type1: | Province |
| Subdivision Name1: | Alberta |
| Subdivision Type2: | Region |
| Subdivision Name2: | Central Alberta |
| Subdivision Type3: | Census division |
| Subdivision Name3: | 8 |
| Subdivision Type4: | Municipal district |
| Subdivision Name4: | Lacombe County |
| Government Footnotes: | [1] [2] |
| Leader Title: | Mayor |
| Leader Name: | Colleen Ebden |
| Leader Title1: | Governing body |
| Leader Name1: | Eckville Town Council |
| Leader Title2: | MP |
| Leader Name2: | Blaine Calkins -Cons |
| Leader Title3: | MLA |
| Leader Name3: | Jason Nixon (UCP) (Rimbey-Rocky Mountain House-Sundre) |
| Established Title: | Founded |
| Established Title1: | Incorporated[3] |
| Established Date1: | |
| Established Title2: | • Village |
| Established Date2: | 3 November 1921 |
| Established Title3: | • Town |
| Established Date3: | 1 July 1966 |
| Area Footnotes: | (2021) |
| Area Land Km2: | 1.61 |
| Population As Of: | 2021 |
| Population Total: | 1014 |
| Population Density Km2: | 629.5 |
| Timezone: | MST |
| Utc Offset: | −7 |
| Timezone Dst: | MDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | −6 |
| Coordinates: | 52.3622°N -114.3614°W |
| Elevation Footnotes: | [4] |
| Elevation M: | 930 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code span |
| Postal Code: | T0M 0X0 |
| Area Code: | 1+403 |
| Blank Name: | Highways |
| Blank Info: | Highway 766 |
| Blank1 Name: | Waterways |
| Blank1 Info: | Medicine River |
Eckville is a town in central Alberta, Canada. It is west of Red Deer on Highway 766 just north of Highway 11.
Eckville gets its name from A. E. T. Eckford, a pioneer citizen.[5] Eckville relocated to its current location in 1912, after the Canadian Northern Railway completed its local line. The current location on the Canadian Northern Railway was briefly known as Kootuk, but the name Eckville prevailed. Eckville was incorporated as a village in 1921 and became a town in 1966.
Eckville experiences a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfb) which borders on a subarctic climate (Dfc).
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Town of Eckville had a population of 1,014 living in 425 of its 472 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 1,125. With a land area of, it had a population density of in 2021.[6]
In the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Town of Eckville recorded a population of 1,125 living in 443 of its 465 total private dwellings, which represents no change from its 2011 population of 1,125. With a land area of 1.6km2, it had a population density of in 2016.[7]
Eckville is home to several festivals and events throughout the year:
Eckville has two public schools, Eckville Junior/Senior High School and Eckville Elementary. The town is relatively close to Sylvan Lake and many students from Eckville attend schools there. Eckville is also a short drive from Red Deer College.
Eckville Junior/Senior High School attracted national attention in 1984 when history teacher and vice-principal James Keegstra was charged under the Criminal Code of Canada for teaching his students antisemitic material, including Holocaust denial. Keegstra was stripped of his teaching credentials and convicted. His appeals eventually reached the Supreme Court of Canada in 1990, where his conviction was upheld in R v Keegstra. Keegstra was mayor of Eckville at the time, but was defeated in a subsequent election.