Opal, Alberta facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Opal
Hamlet
Opal Location in Alberta Show map of Alberta Opal Location in Canada Show map of Canada
Country	Canada
Province	Alberta
Region	Central Alberta
Census division	13
Municipal district	Thorhild County
Government
• Type	Unincorporated
Population  (2009)
• Total	24
Time zone	UTC−07:00 (MST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−06:00 (MDT)
Area code(s)	780, 587, 825

Opal is a tiny community known as a hamlet in central Alberta, Canada. It is part of Thorhild County. You can find it about 5 kilometers (3 miles) north of Highway 28. It's also roughly 53 kilometers (33 miles) northeast of the city of Edmonton.

History of Opal

Opal wasn't always called Opal. Its first name was Rutherford. This name honored Alexander Cameron Rutherford, who was Alberta's very first premier. A premier is like the leader of a province's government.

The name changed to "Opal" when the first post office opened. This happened on November 15, 1912.

In the late 1920s and early 1930s, Opal was a busy little place. It had many important buildings and businesses.

Here are some things Opal had back then:

• A Roman Catholic Church, built in 1915.
• A grain elevator, built in 1918 by the Gillespie Grain Company. This was used to store grain from local farms.
• A general store where people could buy everyday items.
• Dealerships for farm equipment from companies like International Harvester Company and Massey-Harris.
• A hardware store for tools and building supplies.
• A lumber yard to get wood.
• A blacksmith, who made and repaired metal items.
• A meat market.
• A hotel, built in 1938, where travelers could stay.
• A community hall for gatherings.
• A pool hall for recreation.
• A railway station, which was important for travel and shipping goods.
• A school for the children.

In November 1954, the Opal Church was moved to a nearby town called Redwater.

Population

According to a census taken by Thorhild County in 2009, the population of Opal was 24 people. This shows it's a very small community.