Yorkton !

Yorkton – population 19,859 (2021 census)

To get to Yorkton from Good Spirit Lake Provincial Park, take Highway 229 west, then Highway 9 for a smooth ride. A little further on, you’ll find some suggested excursions to extend your tour before returning to Yorkton, if you wish.

Let’s go back in time, if you will. In 1882, a group of businessmen and investors formed the York Farmers Colonization Company, whose representatives were invited to visit the Assiniboia District of the Northwest Territories with the intention of viewing some of the Crown lands available near the Manitoba border. They were impressed, and the group purchased portions of 6 townships near the Little Whitesand River (now Yorkton Creek), with the intention of settling and establishing a trading centre there. In 1889, the railway line was extended to the Yorkton area. It was at this time that the townsite of the colony was moved along the new railway line.

The town of Yorkton has grown considerably and is now an important service centre for all of east central Saskatchewan.