Gleichen, Alberta facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Gleichen
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 Gleichen
Location in Alberta
Gleichen
Location in Canada
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| Country | Canada |
| Province | Alberta |
| Region | Southern Alberta |
| Census division | 5 |
| Municipal district | Wheatland County, Alberta |
| Government | |
| • Type | Unincorporated |
| Area
(2021)
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| • Land | 1.42 km2 (0.55 sq mi) |
| Population
(2021)
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| • Total | 314 |
| • Density | 221.3/km2 (573/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC−07:00 (MST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−06:00 (MDT) |
| Area code(s) | 403, 587, 825 |
Gleichen (say "GLEE-shen") is a small community called a hamlet in southeast Alberta, Canada. It is part of Wheatland County.
Gleichen is located right next to the Siksika Nation. You can find it where Highway 1 and Highway 547 meet. It's about 40 kilometers (25 miles) southeast of Strathmore. The hamlet is 903 meters (2,963 feet) above sea level.
Contents
History of Gleichen
Gleichen was named in 1884 after Lord Edward Gleichen. It started as a village on January 24, 1899. Later, on May 6, 1910, it became a town. This meant it had its own local government.
For almost 100 years, Gleichen was a town. But on March 31, 1998, it changed back to being a hamlet. Now, Wheatland County is in charge of its local services.
Early Growth and Changes
When Alberta was becoming a province, Gleichen was important enough to have its own representative. This person would speak for the area in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. At its busiest, in 1921, Gleichen had 668 people living there.
The community was close to the railroad, which made it easy for farmers and ranchers to use. However, most buildings were made of wood. This meant fires were a big risk. After a second major fire in 1912, many people moved away. Most of them went to Calgary.
Climate and Weather
Gleichen has a semi-arid climate. This means it's usually quite dry. Winters are long, cold, and don't get much snow. Summers are short and warm. The area gets about 336 millimeters (13.2 inches) of rain or snow each year.
Temperature Records
There was a story that Gleichen once had a temperature of 46.1 °C (115 °F) on July 28, 1903. But official weather records show the temperature that day was only 21.3 °C (70.3 °F). Gleichen has never officially recorded a temperature higher than 37.8 °C (100 °F). If the old story were true, Gleichen would have held the record for Canada's highest temperature for a long time.
| Climate data for Gleichen, Alberta | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 16.7 (62.1) |
22.0 (71.6) |
26.5 (79.7) |
31.1 (88.0) |
35.0 (95.0) |
37.2 (99.0) |
37.8 (100.0) |
37.8 (100.0) |
35.0 (95.0) |
31.0 (87.8) |
25.0 (77.0) |
21.7 (71.1) |
37.8 (100.0) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −3.4 (25.9) |
−0.1 (31.8) |
4.3 (39.7) |
12.5 (54.5) |
17.8 (64.0) |
21.6 (70.9) |
24.6 (76.3) |
24.7 (76.5) |
18.8 (65.8) |
12.6 (54.7) |
2.4 (36.3) |
−2.8 (27.0) |
11.1 (52.0) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −9.4 (15.1) |
−6.3 (20.7) |
−1.9 (28.6) |
5.2 (41.4) |
10.4 (50.7) |
14.5 (58.1) |
17.0 (62.6) |
16.6 (61.9) |
11.1 (52.0) |
5.2 (41.4) |
−3.3 (26.1) |
−8.6 (16.5) |
4.2 (39.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −15.4 (4.3) |
−12.5 (9.5) |
−8.1 (17.4) |
−2 (28) |
3.0 (37.4) |
7.3 (45.1) |
9.4 (48.9) |
8.5 (47.3) |
3.4 (38.1) |
−2.2 (28.0) |
−9.1 (15.6) |
−14.3 (6.3) |
−2.7 (27.1) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −46.7 (−52.1) |
−47.2 (−53.0) |
−38.9 (−38.0) |
−26.7 (−16.1) |
−11.1 (12.0) |
−2.8 (27.0) |
0.0 (32.0) |
−3.5 (25.7) |
−12.8 (9.0) |
−28 (−18) |
−36.5 (−33.7) |
−43.3 (−45.9) |
−47.2 (−53.0) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 9.2 (0.36) |
7.8 (0.31) |
16.4 (0.65) |
20.0 (0.79) |
45.3 (1.78) |
64.1 (2.52) |
57.1 (2.25) |
44.5 (1.75) |
43.2 (1.70) |
11.2 (0.44) |
9.9 (0.39) |
8.8 (0.35) |
337.6 (13.29) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
1.8 (0.07) |
13.5 (0.53) |
40.1 (1.58) |
64.1 (2.52) |
57.1 (2.25) |
44.5 (1.75) |
42.2 (1.66) |
6.8 (0.27) |
1.8 (0.07) |
0.3 (0.01) |
273.3 (10.76) |
| Average snowfall cm (inches) | 9.0 (3.5) |
8.0 (3.1) |
15.0 (5.9) |
7.0 (2.8) |
5.0 (2.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
1.0 (0.4) |
4.0 (1.6) |
8.0 (3.1) |
9.0 (3.5) |
65.0 (25.6) |
| Source: Environment Canada | |||||||||||||
Population of Gleichen
Statistics Canada counts how many people live in different places.
Recent Population Counts
- In the 2021 Census, Gleichen had 314 people. They lived in 139 homes.
- In the 2016 Census, Gleichen had 324 people. They lived in 137 homes.
- In the 2011 Census, there were 336 people.
The land area of Gleichen is about 1.42 square kilometers (0.55 square miles). This means there are about 221 people living in each square kilometer.
