Tisdale, Saskatchewan

History

English explorer Henry Kelsey passed through this area in 1690 during his exploration of the Carrot River.

The post office of Tisdale, provisional District of Saskatchewan, North-West Territories was created on 1 February 1904. The community was originally known as "Doghide" after the Doghide River that flows through the town, but with the arrival of the railway the community was renamed "Tisdale" in honour of F.W. Tisdale, an employee of the Canadian Northern Railway.{{cite web | access-date =7 February 2013 }}

Western Canada's biggest gun shoot out took place just east of Tisdale in 1920. The historic gunfight involved a squad of Saskatchewan Provincial Police and four outlaws.

In 2005, Tisdale celebrated its 100th birthday with a homecoming celebration in conjunction with Saskatchewan's centennial. The town also underwent beautification projects, including the construction of a new town square.

In 2016, Tisdale changed its town motto from "The land of rape[seed] and honey" to "Opportunity grows here".

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Tisdale had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of 6.56 km2, it had a population density of in 2021.

Economy

For 60 years, until October 2015, Tisdale was known as the "Land of Rape and Honey" due to its significance in both rapeseed and honey production. Tisdale is also known as the Honey Capital of Saskatchewan. One third of the farmland in the Northeast region is cropped into canola and 10% of the honey produced in Canada comes from this area. Traditionally the area produces about 9000000 lb ($7.2 million) in honey. Due to the sexual alternate meaning, industrial metal band Ministry named their 1988 album The Land of Rape and Honey after seeing the motto on a Tisdale souvenir mug. The town adopted the new motto "Opportunity Grows Here" on 22 August 2016.

Attractions

• The world's second largest (only to that of Falher's) honey bee statue. The bee is 2.1 m in height, 4.9 m long and has a wingspan of 3.5 m and is located as a roadside attraction in Tisdale.{{Citation | access-date = 27 May 2007 }}{{Citation | access-date = 27 May 2007 }}
• Falkon Theatre has operated since 1935.
• Tisdale Stock Car Club{{cite web | archive-url =https://archive.today/20130412001128/http://www.tisdalemotorspeedway.com/ | url-status =usurped | archive-date =April 12, 2013 | access-date =7 February 2013 }} hosts the Silvertown Speedway race track.
• The Tisdale & District Museum{{cite web | access-date =7 February 2013 }} is located in Henry Hamilton Park.{{Citation

Parks

Five major parks are located within the town. Some regional and provincial parks near Tisdale are:

• Kipabiskau Regional Park is located in the Barrier Valley nearby.
• Greenwater Lake Provincial Park is the largest neighbouring park.
• Wapiti Valley Regional Park is located nearby on Codette Lake.
• Wapiti Valley is a skiing venue for winter sports enthusiasts.
• Doghide River Trail is a scenic nature trail located on the Doghide River.

Sports

Tisdale is the regional sports hub which boasts a 6 sheet curling rink, indoor and outdoor skating rinks, soccer and football fields, indoor gun range and one of Saskatchewan's most picturesque 9 hole golf courses situated along the Doghide River. Tisdale's sporting facilities draw teams and individuals from all over Northeast Saskatchewan and beyond.

Infrastructure

Tisdale Hospital is a 24-bed hospital with four doctors, an ambulance service, and long-term care facilities.{{cite web | access-date =7 February 2013 }}

Tisdale has eight churches, two schools, and Suncrest College.

Tisdale Airport has a paved runway 14/32 with ARCAL (Aircraft Radio Control of Aerodrome Lighting), two grass runways, 17/35 and 08/26, a terminal building, and several hangars.

Tisdale RecPlex

Tisdale RecPlex (Tisdale's Recreational Centre){{cite web | access-date =7 February 2013 }} is a large 100,000 square foot joint-use complex that includes the following:

• Suncrest College,{{cite web | access-date =6 June 2025 }}
• Tisdale Middle and Secondary School{{cite web | access-date =7 February 2013 }}
• The Wapiti Regional Library and the school library
• a daycare
• a state of the art artificial ice arena and a 6 sheet curling rink
• The John Baron Auditorium
• The Maurice Taylor Performing Arts Theatre. An outdoor pool, outdoor ice rink, trails and playing fields are located on the grounds surrounding the complex.

Notable people

• Susan Aceron, actress
• Brent Butt, comedian and actor
• Lyall Dagg, 1964 Canadian and World Curling Champion
• Anne Edwards, politician
• Emily Farnham, 1993 curling hall of fame inductee
• William King, politician
• Lesley Magnus, field hockey player
• Paul Nicklen, biologist and photographer
• Ross Perkins, professional ice hockey player
• Dean Schmeichel, Olympic wrestler
• Sharon Thesen, poet
• John Messer, politician

References

References

1. (August 22, 2016). "Canadian town drops 'land of rape and honey' slogan". The Guardian.
2. (22 August 2016). "Saskatchewan town officially changes 'Land of Rape and Honey' slogan". The Globe and Mail.
3. (23 August 2016). "Canadian town changes 'Land of rape and honey' slogan after 60 years".
4. (February 9, 2022). "Population and dwelling counts: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (municipalities), Saskatchewan". [[Statistics Canada]].
5. (Oct 14, 2015). "'Rape and honey' slogan dropped by Tisdale, Sask.". [[CBC News]].
6. [http://www.exclaim.ca/index.asp?layid=22&csid=1&csid1=1423 Exclaim! Canada's Music Authority]
7. (22 August 2016). "Tisdale, Sask., drops 'rape', adds 'opportunity' to town slogan". [[CBC News]].
8. "Tisdale".
9. (9 December 2020). "Brent Butt releasing animated Christmas special and single". Humboldt Journal.