Rimbey, Alberta (Canada)

Rimbey Alberta has adopted a new design for its municipal flag.

Melissa Beebe, Executive Assistant with the Town of Rimbey offered the following explanation:

The design was created to incorporate some of the old with a new look to define Rimbey. In the past Rimbey used to use a handshake to define itself as a friendly community then as the years progressed and the town developed the Smithson International Truck Museum which houses a collection of International Pick up trucks. The International pick up truck then was incorporated into the Town pin and Rimbey became the Friendly International Town. The Recreation Director and the Town's Executive Assistant worked on the new design to incorporate the old with the new and that is where the new concept came from. The intention was to keep the antique truck and incorporate friendly without having to say any words. The grey color featured in the illustration below is actually going to be silver and the significance of the blue color is because the International truck that was rebuilt and is in the Smithson International Truck Museum is blue. The design of the new flag is intended to be versatile and would give recognition to the community.

Darrell Neuman, 1 June 2007

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From the Rimley website:

The flag consists of the Town's colours of blue, silver and white. In the bottom-left corner, a silver Canadian maple leaf signifies the gratitude and honour we feel for being Canadian. The centre of the flag consists of the Town's name along with two silver parallel lines. In the top-right corner, there is a logo with an IHC truck in the centre that is a testament to our extensive collection of International trucks at the Smithson International Truck Museum. The outside edge of the logo depicts the shaking of hands to represent our friendly and embracing spirit.

From the town website:

Kansas Ridge was the first name given to this community at the turn of the century as many of the settlers came from Kansas. Among them were the three Rimbey brothers, Sam, Ben and Jim, for whom the town was officially named after in 1904. A 1909 brochure declared Rimbey to "have every prospect of becoming a good town. It now has two stores, a large hotel, grist mill, saw mill, ... creamery, school, Methodist Church and Church of England."

The village of Rimbey grew along a dirt street faced with frame buildings with boom town fronts to distinguish them from the homes that were being built.

In 1919 the railway reached Rimbey and there was much enthusiasm for the "new town" by the tracks (now Highway #20). Two grain companies built elevators the following year and Rimbey's population swelled to 319 by 1921.

Through the 1920's the community grew, the lumber yards thrived, and the scene of people moving to town became popular.

The Village always managed to bounce back after frequent fires destroyed businesses on Jasper Avenue, now 50th Avenue.

Village merchants sold everything from modern farm implements to photographic supplies and opened a number of service stations.

In 1930, the Village acquired a hospital, giving a welcome boost to the size of Rimbey's workforce.

The Second World War brought abrupt changes to Rimbey, as young men and sometimes their families left the Village. When war was over some returned and others did not. Many new faces came to Rimbey and the population surged to 634 by 1946.

No explanation as to the symbolism, but the truck obviously refers to the town being home of the Smithson International Truck Museum, the largest museum of International Harvester trucks.
Phil Nelson, 13 May 2007