Kensington, Prince Edward Island

Kensington
Town
Coat of arms of Kensington
Coat of arms
Nickname: 
K'town
Kensington is located in Prince Edward Island
Kensington
Kensington
Kensington in Prince Edward Island
Coordinates: 46°26′16″N 63°38′08″W / 46.43775°N 63.63564°W / 46.43775; -63.63564
CountryCanada
ProvincePrince Edward Island
CountyPrince County
Founded1824
Government
 • MayorRowan Caseley
 • Deputy MayorJeff Spencer
 • CouncillorsBonnie MacRae
Rodney Mann
Ivan Gallant
Wade Toombs
Tyler Doucette
Area
[1]
 • Total
3.17 km2 (1.22 sq mi)
Elevation
35 m (115 ft)
Population
 (2021)[1]
 • Total
1,812
 • Density570/km2 (1,500/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC-4 (Atlantic (AST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-3 (ADT)
Canadian Postal code
C0B 1M0
Area code(s)902 (836 exchange)
NTS Map011L05
GNBC CodeBABMQ
Websitewww.kensington.ca

Kensington is a Canadian town located in Prince County, Prince Edward Island. It is 15 km (9.3 mi) northeast of the city of Summerside. In 2021, its population was 1,812[1] and is seeing rapid growth thanks in part to a recently opened business park.

History

The area was first known as Five Lanes End, as roads from five different communities converged at the point. It was renamed Barrett's Cross in 1824 after an early settler who established an inn in the area. In 1862, the town was renamed after Kensington Palace in London and it became a town after the Prince Edward Island Railway's mainline from Charlottetown to Summerside curved through the community. The town's former railyards are now rehabilitated as a tourist venue, with the former Kensington Railway Station designed by architect Charles Benjamin Chappell[2] designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1976.[3]

Demographics

Federal census population history of Kensington
YearPop.±%
1921556—    
1931612+10.1%
1941767+25.3%
1951811+5.7%
1956854+5.3%
1961884+3.5%
19661,022+15.6%
19711,086+6.3%
19761,150+5.9%
19811,143−0.6%
19861,105−3.3%
19911,332+20.5%
19961,383+3.8%
20011,385+0.1%
20061,485+7.2%
20111,496+0.7%
20161,619+8.2%
20211,812+11.9%
Source: Statistics Canada
[4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15]

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Kensington had a population of 1,812 living in 865 of its 897 total private dwellings, a change of 11.9% from its 2016 population of 1,619. With a land area of 3.17 km2 (1.22 sq mi), it had a population density of 571.6/km2 (1,480.5/sq mi) in 2021.[15]

Events

Aside from being a service centre for the surrounding farming,fishing and tourism areas, Kensington hosts many notable events throughout the year. These include the Kensington Harvest Festival, Community Gardens Ambassador Program, and many more.

Education

Kensington has schools from Preschool to Secondary. It is part of the English Language School Board (formerly part of the Western School Board) District of schools. At the Preschool level there are numerous organizations such as Fun Times Kindergarten, Play School, Happy Days Playschool, and Kiddietown Day Care.

Kensington has one elementary school, Queen Elizabeth Elementary.[16] Opened on December 3, 1976, Queen Elizabeth teaches kindergarten through grade 6. The school has two playgrounds, the front playground being used for the primary grades and the back playground for grades 4 through 6. The school contains a music room, gymnasium, French room, and library. Many extracurricular activities are offered to students, such as intramurals, choir, chess club, photography club and more.

It is also home to Kensington Intermediate Senior High School which teaches grades seven to twelve. KISH (as it is often abbreviated) offers many extracurricular programs and organizations such as the Gender Sexuality Alliance, the student council, sports teams (e.g. rugby, soccer, basketball and more), Travel and Tourism, Agriculture (known commonly as Aggies), concert and jazz band and much more.

References

  1. ^ a b c "Census Profile, 2021 Census: Kensington, Town [Census subdivision], Prince Edward Island". Statistics Canada. Retrieved June 16, 2022.
  2. ^ Canada, Province of Prince Edward Island. "Charles Benjamin Chappell (1857-1931)". Canada's Historic Places. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
  3. ^ Kensington Railway Station. Canadian Register of Historic Places. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  4. ^ "Table 6: Population by census subdivisions, 1901–1961". 1961 Census of Canada (PDF). Series 1.1: Historical, 1901–1961. Vol. I: Population. Ottawa: Dominion Bureau of Statistics. March 8, 1963. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  5. ^ "Table 2: Population of Census Subdivisions, 1921–1971". 1971 Census of Canada (PDF). Population. Vol. Census Subdivisions (Historical). Ottawa: Statistics Canada. July 1973. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  6. ^ "1976 Census of Canada: Population - Geographic Distributions" (PDF). Statistics Canada. June 1977. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  7. ^ "1981 Census of Canada: Census subdivisions in decreasing population order" (PDF). Statistics Canada. May 1992. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  8. ^ "1986 Census: Population - Census Divisions and Census Subdivisions" (PDF). Statistics Canada. September 1987. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  9. ^ "91 Census: Census Divisions and Census Subdivisions - Population and Dwelling Counts" (PDF). Statistics Canada. April 1992. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  10. ^ "96 Census: A National Overview - Population and Dwelling Counts" (PDF). Statistics Canada. April 1997. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  11. ^ "Population and Dwelling Counts, for Canada, Provinces and Territories, and Census Subdivisions (Municipalities), 2001 and 1996 Censuses - 100% Data (Prince Edward Island)". Statistics Canada. August 15, 2012. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  12. ^ "Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), 2006 and 2001 censuses - 100% data (Prince Edward Island)". Statistics Canada. August 20, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  13. ^ "Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), 2011 and 2006 censuses (Prince Edward Island)". Statistics Canada. July 25, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  14. ^ "Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), 2016 and 2011 censuses – 100% data (Prince Edward Island)". Statistics Canada. February 8, 2017. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  15. ^ a b "Population and dwelling counts: Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), Prince Edward Island". Statistics Canada. February 9, 2022. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
  16. ^ Queen Elizabeth Elementary

46°26′N 63°39′W / 46.433°N 63.650°W / 46.433; -63.650