Valhalla Centre
Hamlet
Valhalla Lutheran Church
Location of Valhalla Centre in Alberta
Coordinates: 55°24′13″N 119°22′55″W / 55.4036°N 119.3819°W / 55.4036; -119.3819
Country	Canada
Province	Alberta
Census division	No. 19
Municipal district	County of Grande Prairie No. 1
Government
• Type	Unincorporated
• Reeve	Leanne Beaupre
• Governing body	County of Grande Prairie No. 1 Council Leanne Beaupre Corey Beck Daryl Beeston Harold Bulford Peter Harris Bob Marshall Karen Rosvold Ross Sutherland Linda Dianne Waddy
Area  (2021)[1]
• Land	1.22 km2 (0.47 sq mi)
Elevation	735 m (2,411 ft)
Population  (2021)[1]
• Total	40
• Density	32.7/km2 (85/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC−7 (MST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−6 (MDT)

Valhalla Centre is a hamlet in northern Alberta, Canada within the County of Grande Prairie No. 1.^[2]

It is located in the Peace River Country at the junction of Highway 59 and Highway 723, northeast of the Village of Hythe and west of the Town of Sexsmith. It is approximately 40 kilometres (25 mi) east of the British Columbia border and has an elevation of 735 metres (2,411 ft).

The hamlet is located in Census Division No. 19 and in the federal riding of Peace River.

History

The hamlet was founded in 1912 by Scandinavians that moved north from Edson. It was named by Reverend Halvar N. Ronning after Valhalla, Odin's hall in Norse mythology. The first post office was established in 1916. The settlement grew around a creamery until 1945. The Melsness Mercantile building was built in 1925, and functioned as a store and post office until 1951.^[3] Today it hosts a museum dedicated to the Scandinavian heritage of the area, and was declared a Provincial Historic Site.

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Valhalla Centre had a population of 40 living in 19 of its 22 total private dwellings, a change of 166.7% from its 2016 population of 15. With a land area of 1.22 km² (0.47 sq mi), it had a population density of 32.8/km² (84.9/sq mi) in 2021.^[1]

As a designated place in the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Valhalla Centre had a population of 15 living in 9 of its 9 total private dwellings, a change of -66.7% from its 2011 population of 45. With a land area of 1.22 km² (0.47 sq mi), it had a population density of 12.3/km² (31.8/sq mi) in 2016.^[4]

Economy

The economy is centred on farming and stock raising.

Amenities

The hamlet has a church (Valhalla Lutheran Church), curling rink, skating rink, museum and K-8 school (Valhalla Community School). The school is one of 13 publicly funded Alberta Chartered Schools.