Cheadle, Alberta facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Cheadle
Hamlet
Cheadle Location in Alberta
Country	Canada
Province	Alberta
Region	Calgary Region
Census division	5
Municipal district	Wheatland County
Subdivided	1906
Government
• Type	Unincorporated
Area  (2021)
• Land	0.43 km2 (0.17 sq mi)
Elevation	990 m (3,250 ft)
Population  (2021)
• Total	83
• Density	192.3/km2 (498/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC−7 (MST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−6 (MDT)
Postal code	T1P 0X8
Highways	Highway 24, South of Highway 1
Website	www.cheadlealberta.ca

Cheadle is a small community called a hamlet in Alberta, Canada. It is part of Wheatland County. You can find Cheadle on Highway 24, about 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) south of Highway 1. It's also about 35 kilometers (22 miles) east of the big city of Calgary.

Did you know there's a small airport nearby? Cheadle Airport is about 7.4 kilometers (4.6 miles) northwest of Cheadle. It has a 1200-meter (3,900-foot) grass airstrip.

Discovering Cheadle's Past

How Cheadle Got Its Name

The Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) gave the community its name, Cheadle. It was named after Dr. Walter Butler Cheadle. He was an explorer who traveled across the prairies and Rocky Mountains in the 1860s. Dr. Cheadle and Lord Milton wrote a book together. It was called "The North-West Passage by Land" (published in London, 1865). Their book shared many details about their exciting journey.

Building the Railway

When the railway tracks were being laid between Strathmore and Cheadle, something amazing happened. The workers set a record! They laid one mile of steel tracks in just one hour. By the end of a ten-hour workday, they had laid tracks all the way to Cheadle. That was nine miles and 300 feet of track, a new record! The wooden ties for the tracks had been put in place the night before.

Cheadle's Early Days

When the first ranchers and homesteaders arrived in the late 1890s, Cheadle was very small. There was only one main building. It served as a post office, a store, and a place for CPR workers to stay. Mrs. Florence Belwer ran this important building.

Between 1906 and 1916, Cheadle started to grow. It soon had a hardware store, a barbershop, and a blacksmith. There was also a restaurant, a pool hall, and a dance hall. The community also got three grocery stores, a water tank, and a CPR station. There were even stockyards, a lumberyard, and two grain elevators. Many homes were built too. The CPR even thought about building their big Ogden Shops in Cheadle at one point.

Why Cheadle Stopped Growing

Cheadle's growth slowed down quickly. This happened when cars became popular. Also, new railway lines were built. One CPR line went from Gleichen to Calgary, passing through Carseland and Dalemead. The C.N.R. also built a line through Lyalta and Ardenode.

Another problem was that there were no signs on Highway 1 pointing to Cheadle. This meant many travelers didn't even know Cheadle existed. Because of this, Cheadle was often left off maps of Alberta.

Cheadle's Businesses Over Time

At one time, farmers would bring grain to Cheadle from Carseland. The teams transporting the grain would rest and eat in Cheadle before going back. This brought a lot of business to the hamlet. Eventually, Cheadle had three grain elevators.

By 1971, Cheadle's post office and grocery store closed. A local landowner from Switzerland, Fritz Gosteli, bought the building. He turned it into a two-story home for his family. At that time, there were two main businesses in Cheadle: Risdon's Tomato Enterprise and Ken Hendry's Manufacturing. Only a few families lived in Cheadle then.

Cheadle's Population

How Many People Live in Cheadle?

In 2021, a survey called the 2021 Census of Population counted the people in Cheadle. There were 83 people living in 35 homes. This was a decrease from 109 people in 2016. Cheadle covers a small area of about 0.43 square kilometers (0.17 square miles). This means there were about 192 people living in each square kilometer in 2021.

Back in 2016, the 2016 Census of Population showed that Cheadle had 91 people. They lived in 31 homes. This was a small increase from 84 people in 2011.

The Giant Cheetos Statue

A Big Surprise in Cheadle

In October 2022, something very unusual appeared in Cheadle! A huge statue of a Cheetos corn puff was put up at 400 Railway Avenue. This statue was about 5.2 meters (17 feet) tall!

The Cheetos Brand, which is part of PepsiCo Foods, asked for this statue to be made. It was not meant to stay in Cheadle forever. After November 4, 2022, the giant Cheetos statue left Cheadle to travel around Canada.