Gimli

Sister cities

• Akureyri

History

The first European settlers in Gimli were Canadian Icelanders. Icelandic immigrants began settling the area in 1875. The Icelandic settlers arrived from Kinmount, Ontario, and settled at the site of Gimli, the new home of New Iceland. Volcanic eruptions in Iceland at the time spurred additional immigration to the Gimli and New Iceland area. Three hundred people left Iceland, arrived in Ontario and took a ship to Duluth, from there they made their way to Grand Forks, North Dakota, and took a steamer up to the mouth of the Assiniboine River. About 75 to 100 people stayed in the Winnipeg area while the rest made their way to Lake Winnipeg on flat boats and one York boat to save money. During World War II an area west of the community was appropriated by the Royal Canadian Air Force to construct a training facility. RCAF Station Gimli was opened in 1943 and remained in operation until 1945. The Station was reactivated in 1950 and was closed again in 1971. In 1983, the Gimli Industrial Park Airport became famous when an Air Canada Boeing 767 ran out of fuel over southern Manitoba and successfully glided to a landing at Gimli Motorsport Park. The aircraft in that incident became known as the Gimli Glider. The Town of Gimli amalgamated with the Rural Municipality of Gimli in 2003,