Melita is a town located in the southwestern corner of the Canadian province of Manitoba. It is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Arthur and occupies a bend of the Souris River. The population, as of the 2006 census, is 1,051.[1] It sits at the junction of Highways 3 and 83, approx. 320 km southwest of Winnipeg. Melita is known as the "Grasslands Bird Capital of Manitoba"[2] and is located in Manitoba's banana belt.
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Evidence of First Nations habitation in the area includes the Linear Mounds Archaeological Site and the Brockinton Archaeological Site, which have provided artifacts dating back to 800 A.D.[3]
Charles West was the first recorded European settler, in 1879.[4] The early inhabitants chose the name "Melita" for the town after hearing a bible reading (Acts 28:1) about St. Paul's shipwreck on the island of Malta (Melita is an older name for the island).[5]
Betty Fox, cancer research activist and mother of Terry Fox, was raised in Melita.[6]
| Virden Pipestone |
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| Pierson | Deloraine | |||
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| Westhope, North Dakota |
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