Turtleford

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Turtleford is a small town in Saskatchewan, Canada, in the Rural Municipality of Mervin No. 499. It sits on Highway 26 near where it meets Highways 3 and 303, not far from North Battleford and Lloydminster. The Turtlelake River runs through Turtleford, with Brightsand Lake and Turtle Lake nearby. The town features Ernie, Canada’s largest turtle statue (over eight feet tall), on Highway 26 at the south edge of town.

The area was first settled in 1907–1908 and named for a ford on the Turtlelake River. A post office opened in 1913. The Canadian Northern Railway reached Turtleford in 1914, and by 1915 the town had many businesses and became an important local center. The rail line later became part of Canadian National and operated until about 2005, serving several nearby communities and grain elevators.

In the 2021 Census, Turtleford had 503 residents living in about 1.66 square kilometers, for a density of about 303 people per square kilometer. The town has Turtleford School (part of Northwest School Division) and is served by the Lakeland Library Region’s Turtleford Branch. The postal code is S0M 2Y0.