Two Hills, Alberta: History, Things to Do and Travel Guide
Two Hills is a small town in Alberta’s Central Prairies, set where Highways 36 and 45 meet in east-central farm country. It works as a service stop, local heritage stop and county base, with grain-country views, prairie roads, Ukrainian and eastern European settlement context, and a town centre that still reflects its railway origins.
Travellers should think of Two Hills as a place for a deliberate pause: stretch your legs, look for local history, stock up, then continue into the lakes, farms and small communities of the surrounding county.
How Two Hills Started
The first homestead in the Two Hills area was registered more than a century ago by Tom Watt, a veteran of the Canadian Militia. Early settlers were mainly English-speaking, but by the turn of the 20th century immigrants from central and eastern Europe changed the area’s cultural character.
The Canadian Pacific Railway was the key turning point. When the line arrived in 1927, the Hamlet of Two Hills was established. The name came from a nearby post office named for two prominent hills west of the community. The railway made Two Hills an important trading centre on the line between Edmonton and Lloydminster. A restaurant opened in 1926 to serve construction crews, and the Bank of Commerce opened a branch in 1927. Two Hills incorporated as a village in 1929 and became a town in 1955.
What Two Hills Is Like Today
Two Hills had 1,416 residents in the 2021 census. It remains the urban service centre inside a rural county of farms, small hamlets, lakes and regional roads. The County of Two Hills describes the area as gently rolling agricultural land, with the North Saskatchewan River forming much of the northern boundary and the Vermillion River flowing through the town.
The town’s everyday role is practical: municipal offices, schools, local businesses, churches, recreation facilities and highway services. Its heritage identity is strongest when read through the railway, early businesses and settlement stories preserved by the local historical society.
Things to Do and Places Nearby
Two Hills Heritage Park is the natural starting point. The Town notes the lifelike pioneer statues unveiled there in 1992, carved by John Weaver and donated by the Dowhaniuk family as a tribute to pioneers of the Two Hills area. The park gives visitors a simple way to connect the town centre with its settlement history.
Walk or drive the main streets for local businesses and civic buildings, then use Two Hills as a base for county exploring. The surrounding municipality includes Jackfish Lake, Sandy Lake and Lac Sante, along with routes through Myrnam, Willingdon and rural farm districts. These are best approached as relaxed prairie drives rather than packed attraction lists.
Quick Facts
- Province: Alberta
- Region: Central Prairies
- Municipality type: Town
- Population: 1,416 in the 2021 census
- Official website: https://www.townoftwohills.com/
- Main travel themes: railway history, Heritage Park, prairie services, county lakes and agricultural roads
Travel Notes
Two Hills is most useful by car. Check hours before relying on small-town services, especially on evenings, Sundays and holidays. The prairie setting is exposed, so winter driving can change quickly with wind and snow. In warmer months, county lakes and rural roads make good additions, but distances are larger than they look on a map.