This community of 6,200, is located in south central Manitoba 120 km from Winnipeg. In the middle of one of the province's richest agricultural areas, Morden has utilized its natural advantages and then diversified, bringing in additional industry and promoting tourism, to give the town a stability and optimism envied by many.

HISTORY
Millions of years ago mosasaurs, plesiosaurs, giant turtles and other monstrous fish swam in the prehistoric salt
water known as the Western Interior Seaway which covered most of Southern Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and the United States to the Gulf of Mexico. Thousands of years later the Mound Builders came and grew corn, squash, pumpkins, beans and tobacco.

When Lake Agassiz retreated, it left a soil rich in nutrients, in which grew saskatoons, plums, all types of berries, wild herbs, flowers and shrubs. The Chipewayan, Cree and Assiniboine were among those who came to inhabit this part of the country after the Mound Builders left.

The establishment of fur trading here by the Northwest Company brought the first settlers - the Metis. In the valleys west of Morden they lived for decades.

Later, the Mennonite settlers to the east grew wheat, oats, potatoes, watermelons and flowers in abundance on the land lying between the Red River and Morden.

It was the building of the railway by the Canadian Pacific that brought Morden into prominence. The Mort Cheval Creek provided water for the steam locomotives, and prompted the railway to immediately build a water tower at the creek crossing. They named the stopping place "Cheval" and in a few months changed it to "Morden" after the original owner of the property.

Under the leadership of civic and community organizations the town's modern-minded population encouraged many improvements. One of the earliest important additions to the town was the establishment in 1915 of the Dominion Experimental Station adjoining the east borders of Morden. Early settler A.P. Stevenson started an orchard on his homestead and provided many Manitobans with apples, plums and other fruits as well as nursery stock for many years. Stevenson is credited with growing one of the first apple crops on the prairies and proved how rich the land around Morden was, and what a variety of crops it could grow. The Federal government's decision to place the research station here was due to his work.

TODAY
Diversification is the keyword to Morden's dynamic growth. The community has utilized its natural advantages to bring in industry and promote tourism, to give the town a stability and optimism envied by many. A world-class golf and country club, Lake Minnewasta/Colert Beach and campground, art galleries, museums, professional sporting events and a variety of festivals are among the attractions. The main attractions are the friendly residents who share a real sense of community.