It was a special event 100 years in the making.
The town of Nipawin celebrated a century as a community with three days full of memorable events.
“Starting 100 years ago, we built a foundation on working together as a community and just always supporting each other,” Mayor Marlon Zacharias said. “It speaks a lot to the strength of the people who have always been a part of our community.”
Zacharias said there was just so much here to offer in terms of activities for the people who want to be outside. In fact, it’s what drew him to the community more than a decade ago.
“I heard the fishing was pretty good, and since then, I’ve picked up my first snowmobile,” he said.
Hundreds of people travelled to Nipawin for the celebration. Zacharias said it was exciting to see so many people make the journey.
“ln some of my little walk arounds chatting with people, I actually spoke with people from all four corners of the continent,” he said. “I spoke with a couple who were from Nipawin that were in the Maritimes area, somebody from Vancouver, another couple came in from LA, and there was also a gentleman who was here from Florida. It’s just so important to see people believing in Nipawin and the 100 years that they came back home from wherever they ended up in their life.”
The celebration began on Friday, July 11 with the Homecoming Meet and Greet at the Nipawin Evergreen Centre. Other events included reunion gatherings, a Nipawin Sr. Giants baseball game, and fireworks at Walleye Park.
Events on Saturday included a pancake breakfast at the Nipawin Museum, an official welcoming at the Nipawin Legion, a Grand Opening Ceremony at the Heliport, a street dance, car show, and other entertainment options.
Sunday events included a church service in the town square, the Nipawin Exhibition Parade, and the downtown Street Fair.
Zacharias said it was also fantastic to have Premier Scott Moe in attendance to celebrate with residents.
“We also had some time to chat after about the success of the community over the last 100 years and what it’s going to mean in the next 100 years,” said Zacharias. “We’re not going anywhere. We’re on a growth pattern, and we’re looking forward to maybe even being the next city in the province.”
The name Nipawin comes from the Cree word for “a bed or resting place”. The area was often used as a stopping point for Indigenous families at the height of the fur trade.
The first permanent settlement came in 1748 when Europeans established a trading post. The first homesteaders arrived in 1906 creating a community called Ravine Bank.
In 1910, the Canadian Pacific Railway established a post four miles northwest of the new settlement. In 1924, the men of Ravine Bank used teams of horses to move every building in the community to the CPR Station, which bore the name Nipawin.
Nipawin held its first village election on June 2, 1915, and received official town status on May 1, 1937.
Zacharias said with a total population of 4,570, Nipawin was the largest town in Saskatchewan as of the last census.
