Chetwynd, British Columbia
District of Chetwynd
The townsite of Chetwynd in the foothills of the Rocky
Mountains
Flag
Coat of arms
Nickname(s): Little Prairie
Coordinates: 55°41′50″N 121°38′00″W /
55.69722°N 121.633333°W / 55.69722;
-121.633333Coordinates: 55°41′50″N
121°38′00″W / 55.69722°N 121.633333°W /
55.69722; -121.633333
Country
Canada
Province
British Columbia
Regional District
Peace River
Settled
1918 (trading post)
Incorporated
25 Sep 1962 (village)
31 May 1983 (district)
Government
- Mayor
Evan Saugstad
- Governing body District Council
- MP
Jay Hill
- MLA
Blair Lekstrom
Area
- Total
64.32 km2 (24.8 sq mi)
Elevation
615 m (2,018 ft)
Population (2006)
- Total
2,633
- Density
43.1/km2 (111.6/sq mi)
Time zone
Mountain Time Zone
(UTC-7)
- Summer (DST)
not observed (UTC-7)
Postal code
V0C 1J0
Area code(s)
+1-250
Website
District of Chetwynd
The District of Chetwynd
(pronounced
/ˈtʃɛtwɪnd/) is a small town in the foothills of
the Rocky Mountains in northeastern British
Columbia, Canada. Situated on an ancient
floodplain, it is the first town encountered
after emerging from the Rockies along High-
way 97 and acts as the gateway to the Peace
River Country. The town developed during
the construction of infrastructure through
the Rocky Mountains in the 1950s, and was
used as a transshipment point during the
construction of hydroelectric dams in the
1960s and 1970s and the new town of Tum-
bler Ridge in the early 1980s. Home to ap-
proximately 2,600 residents, the population
has increased little in the last 25 years but is
significantly younger than the provincial av-
erage.[1]
Once known as Little Prairie, the com-
munity adopted its current name in honour of
provincial politician Ralph L.T. Chetwynd just
prior to
its
incorporation in 1962. The
64 square kilometres (25 sq mi) municipality
consists of the town, a community forest, and
four exclave properties. Chetwynd has
dozens of
chainsaw carvings displayed
throughout town as public art and is home to
the weekly newspaper, the Chetwynd Echo,
and a Northern Ligh