Walk Through The History of Sexsmith

Posted: Mon. Jul. 11/22

#exploreNWAB

Boasting one of northern Alberta's last standing grain elevators, Sexsmith is a town rich in Alberta agricultural history, and ripe for discovery.

Sexsmith, AB - Once the Grain Capital of the British Empire, the northern Alberta town of Sexsmith has deep agricultural roots ripe for exploring. Located 20 minutes north of Grande Prairie, this destination is a place that allows any traveller to go back in time to uncover Alberta’s agricultural history.

“This grain elevator, in particular, is one of the last standing in northern Alberta, and it’s right here in our town of Sexsmith,” explains born and raised Sexsmithite Flo Blais, Director of the Sexsmith Museum Society and also the coordinator for the Grain Elevator Preservation project.

“At one point, we had nine grain elevators here. The town of Sexsmith was the Grain Capital of the British Empire, from 1938 to 1947.” For those history minded travelers out there, this is your chance to head for a walk-through town to discover not only this monument to the past but several others.

“We have an awful lot to offer, as far as the history from the area, and it dates back to the early 1900’s. And we have a lot of historical buildings that people can go through, or take our walking tour,” invites Blais.

Visit Sexsmith and explore Alberta's agricultural history.

Since 2018, Blais and her team have been busy restoring this grain elevator to its past splendour, and you can check out the progress made on their website that includes with lots of before and after shots of their work.

Photo: Paul Lavoie

Walking through Sexsmith, history is around every corner.

While the museum society has been busy, so has the town’s investments in health and wellness, offering up a weekly Farmers’ Market, and walking trails that takes travelers through their Heritage Park (home to one of Alberta’s most complementary campgrounds) or walking/running/biking paths that meander right next to this historic Grain Elevator.

Connect to Alberta's deep agricultural roots in Sexsmith.

“The work we do here leaves me feeling very proud because it brings a whole group of people together to preserve the history of our town,” explains Blais.

Sexsmith Alberta history train station Paul Lavoie ZenSeekers

Photo: Paul Lavoie

Sexsmith's historic landmarks, like the train station, make for fun photo ops.

“Given I have spent my entire 60 years here in Sexsmith, it is great that we’ve found a way to preserve our history, especially when you look around to other communities who no longer see the importance of celebrating their history.”

The invitation is yours for the taking, come walk through history in Sexsmith.

Walk through Alberta history in Sexsmith.

When you Go

The Sexsmith Museum Society has a series of events this summer including their anytime self-guided historical walking tour that you can download here as a PDF, or here on the PocketSights app.

Book in at the Sexsmith Campground, one of Alberta’s most well stocked campgrounds including free firewood, free hot showers, a trout pond (where no fishing licence is required) and more.

For help planning your trip, visit the Grande Prairie Regional Tourism Association website (which encompasses the Sexmith area) for more travel ideas, places to stay, eat and explore.

Fill in the gaps and make it a week long road trip across Alberta’s North West – let us know what you find by using the hashtag #exploreNWAB and score all the inspiration you could ever need with #exploreNWAB.