SWIFT CURRENT

city, southwestern Saskatchewan, Canada, on Swiftcurrent Creek (a tributary of the South Saskatchewan River) and the Trans-Canada Highway, 151 miles (243 km) west of Regina. Settled by U.S. emigrants, by Scandinavians, and by Mennonites from Germany after the arrival of the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1883, it is now a market centre serving a vast wheat-growing and cattle-ranching region. Lumbering, meatpacking, dairying, and the production of animal feed and farm implements are local industries. Oil, discovered in the vicinity in 1952, has greatly stimulated the city's economy. The first helium wells to be tapped in Canada are 9 miles (14 km) north. Swift Current is headquarters for an extensive irrigation development and is the site of one of the nation's largest experimental farms. The city's annual Frontier Days (July) is Saskatchewan's biggest rodeo. Inc. village, 1904; town, 1907; city, 1914. Pop. (1991) 14,815.