Yorkton

Yorkton is a city located in southeastern Saskatchewan, Canada. It is about southeast of Saskatoon and northwest of Winnipeg, Manitoba and is the sixth-largest city in the province. Yorkton was founded in 1882 and incorporated as a city in 1928. The city is bordered by the rural municipalities of Orkney to the north, west, and south, and Wallace on the east.

History

In 1882, a group of businessmen and investors formed the York Farmers Colonization Company. Authorized to issue up to $300,000 in debentures and lenient government credit terms on land purchases encouraged company representatives to visit the District of Assiniboia of the North-West Territories with the intent to view some crown land available near the Manitoba border. They were impressed with what they saw and the group purchased portions of six townships near the Little Whitesand River (now Yorkton Creek) for the purpose of settlement and to establish a centre for trade there. This centre would become known as York Colony.

The company founded the settlers' colony on the banks of the Little Whitesand River where lots were given freely to settlers who purchased land from them. The colony remained at its site until 1889. It was originally located at PT SE 1/4 13-26-4 W2M.

In 1889, the rail line was extended to the Yorkton area. It was at this time the colony townsite relocated alongside the new rail line.

Geography

Yorkton is located in the aspen parkland ecosystem, about southeast of Saskatoon.

Climate

Yorkton has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfb), with extreme seasonal temperatures. It has warm summers and cold winters, with the average daily temperatures ranging from in January to in July.

The highest temperature ever recorded in Yorkton was on 19 July 1941. The coldest temperature ever recorded was on 20 January 1943.

|Jan maximum humidex= 6.7

|Feb maximum humidex= 10.4

|Mar maximum humidex= 21.1

|Apr maximum humidex= 29.9

|May maximum humidex= 37.5

|Jun maximum humidex= 42.7

|Jul maximum humidex= 43.4

|Aug maximum humidex= 44.7

|Sep maximum humidex= 37.3

|Oct maximum humidex= 30.2

|Nov maximum humidex= 20.0

|Dec maximum humidex= 12.4

|year maximum humidex= 44.7

|Jan record high C= 8.3

|Feb record high C= 11.0

|Mar record high C= 21.1

|Apr record high C= 31.7

|May record high C= 38.4

|Jun record high C= 38.3

|Jul record high C= 40.6

|Aug record high C= 38.3

|Sep record high C= 36.1

|Oct record high C= 31.1

|Nov record high C= 20.6

|Dec record high C= 12.7

|year record high C= 40.6

|Jan high C= -11.4

|Feb high C= -7.6

|Mar high C= -1.5

|Apr high C= 9.3

|May high C= 17.3

|Jun high C= 21.7

|Jul high C= 24.3

|Aug high C= 23.9

|Sep high C= 17.5

|Oct high C= 9.5

|Nov high C= -1.7

|Dec high C= -6.1

|year high C= 7.7

|Jan mean C= -16.7

|Feb mean C= -12.8

|Mar mean C= -6.7

|Apr mean C= 3.2

|May mean C= 10.4

|Jun mean C= 15.5

|Jul mean C= 17.9

|Aug mean C= 17.1

|Sep mean C= 11.1

|Oct mean C= 3.7

|Nov mean C= -6.3

|Dec mean C= -14.1

|year mean C= 1.9

|Jan low C= -22.0

|Feb low C= -18.0

|Mar low C= -11.9

|Apr low C= -2.9

|May low C= 3.5

|Jun low C= 9.2

|Jul low C= 11.5

|Aug low C= 10.2

|Sep low C= 4.7

|Oct low C= -2.2

|Nov low C= -10.9

|Dec low C= -19.0

|year low C= -4.0

|Jan record low C= -46.1

|Feb record low C= -45.6

|Mar record low C= -42.8

|Apr record low C= -27.2

|May record low C= -13.5

|Jun record low C= -5.0

|Jul record low C= -1.1

|Aug record low C= -2.8

|Sep record low C= -12.8

|Oct record low C= -28.3

|Nov record low C= -37.5

|Dec record low C= -42.2

|year record low C= -46.1

|Jan chill= -58.4

|Feb chill= -58.0

|Mar chill= -52.0

|Apr chill= -40.0

|May chill= -16.5

|Jun chill= -4.9

|Jul chill= 0.0

|Aug chill= -5.7

|Sep chill= -12.9

|Oct chill= -29.6

|Nov chill= -45.8

|Dec chill= -55.6

|year chill= -58.4

|precipitation colour = green

|Jan precipitation mm= 16

|Feb precipitation mm= 11.2

|Mar precipitation mm= 20

|Apr precipitation mm= 21.6

|May precipitation mm= 51.3

|Jun precipitation mm= 80.1

|Jul precipitation mm= 78.2

|Aug precipitation mm= 62.2

|Sep precipitation mm= 44.9

|Oct precipitation mm= 26.5

|Nov precipitation mm= 16.4

|Dec precipitation mm= 21

|year precipitation mm= 449.3

|rain colour = green

|Jan rain mm= 0.2

|Feb rain mm= 0.4

|Mar rain mm= 3.6

|Apr rain mm= 11.7

|May rain mm= 48.3

|Jun rain mm= 79.9

|Jul rain mm= 78.2

|Aug rain mm= 62.2

|Sep rain mm= 43.5

|Oct rain mm= 19.2

|Nov rain mm= 2.1

|Dec rain mm= 0.5

|year rain mm= 349.6

|snow colour = green

|Jan snow cm= 20

|Feb snow cm= 12.7

|Mar snow cm= 18.1

|Apr snow cm= 11.1

|May snow cm= 3.4

|Jun snow cm= 0.2

|Jul snow cm= 0

|Aug snow cm= 0

|Sep snow cm= 1.4

|Oct snow cm= 8.5

|Nov snow cm= 17.2

|Dec snow cm= 24.8

|year snow cm= 117.4

|humidity colour= green

|Jan humidity= 70.3

|Feb humidity= 69.8

|Mar humidity= 66.1

|Apr humidity= 50.4

|May humidity= 43.8

|Jun humidity= 50.3

|Jul humidity= 52.5

|Aug humidity= 49.6

|Sep humidity= 50

|Oct humidity= 54.7

|Nov humidity= 69.1

|Dec humidity= 72.3

|year humidity= 58.2

|unit precipitation days= 0.2 mm

|Jan precipitation days= 11.36

|Feb precipitation days= 8.62

|Mar precipitation days= 9.91

|Apr precipitation days= 9.54

|May precipitation days= 15.64

|Jun precipitation days= 20.96

|Jul precipitation days= 19.05

|Aug precipitation days= 16.3

|Sep precipitation days= 13.48

|Oct precipitation days= 10.43

|Nov precipitation days= 9.23

|Dec precipitation days= 12.11

|year precipitation days= 157.4

|unit rain days= 0.2 mm

|Jan rain days= 0.36

|Feb rain days= 0.72

|Mar rain days= 2.37

|Apr rain days= 5.68

|May rain days= 14.84

|Jun rain days= 20.96

|Jul rain days= 19.05

|Aug rain days= 16.3

|Sep rain days= 12.88

|Oct rain days= 7.39

|Nov rain days= 1.92

|Dec rain days= 0.79

|year rain days= 103

|unit snow days= 0.2 cm

|Jan snow days= 12

|Feb snow days= 8

|Mar snow days= 7

|Apr snow days= 3

|May snow days= 1

|Jun snow days= 0

|Jul snow days= 0

|Aug snow days= 0

|Sep snow days= 1

|Oct snow days= 4

|Nov snow days= 9

|Dec snow days= 11

|year snow days= 58

|Jan sun= 104.2

|Feb sun= 131.9

|Mar sun= 174.1

|Apr sun= 230.0

|May sun= 268.0

|Jun sun= 268.1

|Jul sun= 315.0

|Aug sun= 285.8

|Sep sun= 195.7

|Oct sun= 155.0

|Nov sun= 99.9

|Dec sun= 88.6

|year sun= 2316.3

|Jan percentsun= 39.9

|Feb percentsun= 46.8

|Mar percentsun= 47.4

|Apr percentsun= 55.5

|May percentsun= 55.6

|Jun percentsun= 54.2

|Jul percentsun= 63.2

|Aug percentsun= 63.2

|Sep percentsun= 51.4

|Oct percentsun= 46.6

|Nov percentsun= 37.2

|Dec percentsun= 35.9

|year percentsun= 49.7

|source 1= Environment Canada

Extreme weather events

On the evening of July 1, 2010, Yorkton received a severe thunderstorm warning. Soon after, Yorkton was experiencing pea sized hail, strong winds, lightning, and heavy rain. The rain created a flash flood. Broadway Street received the worst of the flood with local businesses being severely damaged, with one being completely destroyed. The city of Yorkton declared a State of Emergency and the Canadian Red Cross helped out with the victims of the flood.
On the weekend of June 29, 2014, Yorkton declared a State of Emergency after rain caused flash floods in south-eastern Saskatchewan.

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Yorkton had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.

Ethnicity

The first settlers to the Yorkton colony were English from Eastern Ontario and Great Britain. west were Scottish settlers at the settlement of Orkney.

! colspan="2" |2016

! colspan="2" |2011

! colspan="2" |2006

! colspan="2" |2001

!Population (human biology)|

| European

| 11,495

| 12,725

| 13,065

| 12,750

| 12,940

| Indigenous

| 2,055

| 1,900

| 1,700

| 1,715

| 1,655

| Southeast Asian

| 1,120

| 625

| 240

| 10

| South Asian

| 635

| 250

| 0

| 40

| 25

| African

| 345

| 245

| 155

| 110

| 30

| East Asian

| 120

| 105

| 95

| 85

| 140

| Middle Eastern

| 50

| 0

| 25

| 20

| Latin American

| 40

| 10

| 0

| 15

| 0

| Other/multiracial

| 60

| 20

| 0

! Total responses

! 15,920

! 15,285

! 14,750

! 14,820

|- class="sortbottom"

! Total population

! 16,280

! 16,343

! 15,669

! 15,038

! 15,107

|- class="sortbottom"

| colspan="11" |

{| class="wikitable"

! colspan=3 | Major ethnic groups in Yorkton, Saskatchewan, 2021

! Ethnic group !! Population !! Percent

|| Ukrainian || 4,805||

| English|| 3,870||

| German ||3,540 ||

| Scottish || 2,185||

| First Nations/Métis || 2,055 ||

| Irish || 1,610||

|| Polish || 1,405 ||

| Scandinavian ||1,350 ||

| French || 1,060 ||

| Filipino || 1,030 ||

| Total respondent population || 15,925 || 100%

Attractions

thumb|200px|Hudson's Bay Company Store (heritage site)

thumb|200px|Yorkton Court House (heritage site)

thumb|200px|Yorkton Armoury (heritage site)

The Yorkton Gallagher Centre is an entertainment complex constructed in 1977 by the civic government and the Yorkton Exhibition Association. The centre includes an arena, curling rink, conference rooms and an indoor swimming pool. Until 2005, the facility was called the Parkland Agriplex. In the early 1900s an older Agriplex building was located on the fair grounds adjacent to the Gallagher Centre.

Yorkton is home to a branch of the Saskatchewan Western Development Museum, which houses a number of exhibits depicting pioneer life in the town and on the surrounding prairie. The museum includes an early pioneer log home and an extensive outdoor exhibit of agricultural machinery, including early tractors and steam engines.

Located on several buildings in downtown Yorkton are murals depicting historic personalities.

Historic sites

A number of heritage buildings are located within the city. Yorkton Tower Theatre is a single screen movie theatre built in the 1950s. Army Navy and Air Force Veterans Building, Dulmage Farmstead, Hudson's Bay Company Store, St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Yorkton Armoury, Yorkton Court House, 29 Myrtle Avenue, 81 Second Avenue North, Old Land Titles Building and Yorkton Organic Milling Ltd are also listed historic places.

Yorkton Film Festival

Film Festivals have been an enduring part of life in Yorkton since the projector spun to life in October 1947. At that time the Yorkton International Documentary Film Festival was born. The international component was dropped in 1977, deciding to focus on Canadian short film instead. The festival renamed itself the Yorkton Short Film Festival also in 1977. In 2009 it became the Yorkton Film Festival.

Sports

The city of Yorkton hosted the 1999 Royal Bank Cup (Junior "A" ice hockey National Championship), the 2006 World Junior A Challenge (an international Junior "A" ice hockey tournament) and the 2009 Canada Cup of Curling.

Teams

The Yorkton Terriers are a team in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League. The Yorkton Rawtec Maulers are a Midget AAA ice hockey team and they are a member of the SMAAAHL. The teams play their games in the 2,300 seat Westland Arena in the Yorkton Gallagher Centre

Yorkton Cardinals were a baseball team playing in the Western Canadian Baseball League.

The Yorkton Bulldogs are a retired box lacrosse team formed in 2003. They are a member of the Prairie Gold Lacrosse League.

Government

Municipal

The current mayor as of 2024 is Aaron Kienle. He is serving with councillors Dustin Brears, Stephanie Ortynsky, Quinn Haider, Randy Goulden, Greg Litvanyi, and Darcy Zaharia.

Provincial

The city is located in the Provincial Electoral District of Yorkton. This riding is served in the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan by Saskatchewan Party MLA Greg Ottenbreit.

Federal

The federal constituency of Yorkton—Melville is represented in the House of Commons of Canada by Cathay Wagantall of the Conservative Party of Canada.

From 1968 to 1993, Yorkton was represented federally by New Democratic Party MP Lorne Nystrom who at his first election win was the youngest person to be elected to the Canadian Parliament.

Infrastructure

Health care

Yorkton established its first hospital in 1902, and this was followed by a maternity care home which lasted a couple of decades. The current hospital, the Yorkton Regional Health Centre, is located on Bradbrooke Drive and is part of the Saskatchewan Health Authority.

Transportation

thumb|right|Yellowhead Highway near Yorkton

Air

During the Second World War an airport was built north of Yorkton for the Royal Canadian Air Force's No. 11 Service Flying Training School. It is now operated as the Yorkton Municipal Airport .

Roads

Yorkton is located at the intersection of Hwy 52, Hwy 10, Hwy 9 and The Yellowhead which is part of the Trans-Canada Highway

Rail

Yorkton is served by Canadian National Railway (JCT Yorkton Sub, Sk. (CN)) branch line and Canadian Pacific Railway (Yorkton IMS, Sk (CPRS)) mainline track.

Transit

Yorkton Transit runs two routes, covering the majority of the city.

Education

Tertiary institutions

Parkland College has campuses in Yorkton.

High schools

Sacred Heart High School was founded by the Sisters Servants of Mary Immaculate, and the school celebrated its 75th anniversary in 1991. Yorkton Regional High School opened November 10, 1967 offering grades 9 to 12.

Elementary schools

There are four separate Catholic elementary schools. St. Alphonsus Elementary School provides pre-kindergarten through Grade 8.

Dr. Brass Elementary School is named after the dentist, Dr. David James Brass and offers pre-Kindergarten to Grade 8. M.C. Knoll Elementary School opened in August 1998, and is named after Milton Clifford Knoll. Yorkdale Central School is also a part of Good Spirit School Division No. 204 and offers Kindergarten to Grade 8.

Military

The 64th (Yorkton) Field Battery, Royal Canadian Artillery is garrisoned at the Yorkton Armouries.

During World War II the Yorkton airport was home to No. 23 Elementary Flying Training School and No. 11 Service Flying Training School – both schools being a part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. Among the present users is a Gliding Centre, operated for the Royal Canadian Air Cadets.

The Royal Canadian Air Force Station Yorkton (ADC ID: C-51) was a Long Range Radar (LRR) and Ground Air Transmitter Receiver (GATR) facility of the Pinetree Line. The site was SAGE compatible from day one. The facility which was in use during the Cold War was renamed CFS Yorkton (Canadian Forces Station) in 1967. The station located near Yorkton was operational from 1963 to 1986.

Media

Newspapers

;Weeklies

The Yorkton News Review (defunct)
Yorkton This Week

Radio

{|class="wikitable sortable" width="100%"

!Frequency

!Call sign

!Branding

!Format

!Owner

!Notes

|AM 540

|CBK (AM)

|CBC Radio One

|public broadcasting

|Canadian Broadcasting Corporation

|Clear-channel station broadcasting from Watrous

|AM 940

|CJGX

|GX94

|country music

|Harvard Broadcasting

|FM 91.7

|CBK-FM-3

|CBC Music

|public broadcasting

|Canadian Broadcasting Corporation

|Rebroadcaster for CBK-FM

|FM 92.9

|CJLR-FM-5

|MBC Radio

|First Nations community radio

|Missinipi Broadcasting Corporation

|Rebroadcaster for CJLR-FM

|FM 94.1

|CFGW-FM

|Cruz FM

|adult hits

|Harvard Broadcasting

|FM 98.5

|CJJC-FM

|98.5 The Rock

|Christian music

|Dennis M. Dyck

Television

Cable television services are supplied by Access Communications. Access is a Saskatchewan-owned not-for-profit co-operative established in 1974. It also supplies home phone and Internet service to the community.

SaskTel provides maxTV and maxTV stream services on both DSL and Fiber. SaskTel is a Crown Corporation owned by the provincial government to serve the people of Saskatchewan with telephone, Internet, and TV services. Current internet speeds are up to 50/10 on DSL and up to 1000/500 on fiber. Business is up to 5000/5000 in select markets.

The only terrestrial television station serving Yorkton is CICC-TV channel 10, a CTV affiliate station.

Yorkton was previously served by CKOS-TV channel 5, a private CBC Television outlet; formerly a sister station of CICC, it became an owned-and-operated repeater of CBKT in 2002, before closing down with the rest of CBC's repeater network in 2012.