Settlers, Rails, and Trails Heritage Park

Settlers, Rails & Trails Inc is home to Argyle & Balmoral’s first & only rural park. Before 2019, this 12-acre property was simply a farmer’s open field and volunteers have spent the last four years developing this heritage park from scratch! With a central focus on local, provincial, and national history, the community has diversified to include a broader community than most museums in Manitoba can offer and draws in over 900 visits per year. It provides recreational opportunities (community walking/biking trails, winter tobogganing hills, open areas for heritage games), environmental areas (prairie ecosystem, lowland sinkhole, community gardens) and an agricultural educational zone (living cropland & livestock areas).

For the last 32 years, people from the community of Argyle, Balmoral and beyond have been meeting at the space for tours, presentations, concerts & community events. They are partnered with various other community groups, such as the Interlake School Division, local Royal Canadian Legions, the Association of Manitoba Museums, Prime Meridian Trail Association, and regional sporting, curling, and skating clubs.

The connection to our community space goes well beyond our local area too. The growing Manitoba Brick & We display flags, artifacts, photographs and stories here in Argyle, conduct outreach programs to schools and have created exhibits around the province, including seven times at the Manitoba Legislature. Now that the space’s historical buildings are in place and restored, they require paint, stain & a historically appropriate planting of foliage.

“It is a loving connection to our heritage organization’s space that fosters volunteers to give their time to administer, fundraise, act as tour guides, and lend their time/skills to see our community space continue to flourish.”