Patricia, Alberta

Patricia
Patricia
Location of Patricia
Patricia
Patricia (Canada)
Coordinates: 50°41′58″N 111°40′37″W / 50.69944°N 111.67694°W / 50.69944; -111.67694
CountryCanada
ProvinceAlberta
RegionSouthern Alberta
Census division2
Municipal districtCounty of Newell
Founded byCanadian Pacific Railway
Named afterPrincess Patricia of Connaught
Government
  TypeUnincorporated
  Governing bodyCounty of Newell Council
Area
 (2021)
  Land0.59 km2 (0.23 sq mi)
Population
 (2021)
  Total
78
  Density131.1/km2 (340/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC−07:00 (MST)
  Summer (DST)UTC−06:00 (MDT)
Area code(s)403, 587, 825

Patricia is a hamlet in southern Alberta, Canada within the County of Newell. It is located approximately 20 kilometres (12 mi) north of Highway 1 and 21 kilometres (13 mi) northeast of Brooks.

Patricia is near Dinosaur Provincial Park, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was named after Princess Patricia of Connaught.

The Hamlet of Patricia was briefly famous in the 1970s when a local rancher Albert Ketchmark gifted then Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau a lot in the community as part of their mother's estate, as a joke. The Prime Minister's ownership of the 50 by 130 foot lot became national news when the County of Newell noted Trudeau owed $3 in property tax and possibly another $3 in back taxes on the property. The Prime Minister's Office when asked about the situation stated they were unaware of the transfer and had not been supplied with a deed transfer or tax bill. The taxes were paid by Jim Nesbitt, the publisher of the local Brooks Bulletin and Liberal Party member, and Trudeau refused to accept ownership of the lot, even just to transfer it to the County. The matter was settled in Supreme Court of Alberta when Trudeau's lawyers argued the transfer amounted to an imperfect gift, and the Justice ruled the property title cancelled.