Opal, Alberta

Hamlet in Alberta, Canada

53°59′29″N 113°13′21″W / 53.99139°N 113.22250°W / 53.99139; -113.22250CountryCanadaProvinceAlbertaRegionCentral AlbertaCensus division13Municipal districtThorhild CountyGovernment

• TypeUnincorporated • MayorJayce Cornelius • Governing bodyThorhild County CouncilPopulation

(2009)^[1]

• Total24Time zoneUTC−07:00 (MST) • Summer (DST)UTC−06:00 (MDT)Area code(s)780, 587, 825

Opal is a hamlet in central Alberta, Canada within Thorhild County.^[2] It is located 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) north of Highway 28, approximately 53 kilometres (33 mi) northeast of Edmonton. Originally named Rutherford after Alberta's first premier, Alexander Cameron Rutherford but was renamed to the unique "Opal" when the first post office opened on November 15, 1912.^[3]

In the late 1920s and early 1930s, Opal had a Roman Catholic Church (built in 1915), grain elevator (built 1918 by the Gillespie Grain Company), general store,^[4] International Harvester Company dealership, hardware store, lumber yard, blacksmith, Massey-Harris dealership, meat market, hotel (built in 1938), community hall, pool hall, railway station and school. In November 1954 the Opal Church^[5] was moved to Redwater. ^[3]

Demographics

The population of Opal was 24, as of a 2009 census conducted by Thorhild County.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b "Alberta Population Summary: Alberta's Hamlets Alphabetically, 2010" (PDF). Alberta Population. Retrieved September 25, 2021.^{[permanent dead link]}
^ "Specialized and Rural Municipalities and Their Communities" (PDF). Alberta Municipal Affairs. January 12, 2022. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
^ ^a ^b Thorhild and District Historical Society (1985). Building and working together: a study of the Thorhild area. Vol. 1. p. 9. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
^ Main Street Opal
^ Opal Church