() is a town in central
Alberta ,
Canada , located north of
Red Deer , the nearest large community; and south of
Edmonton , the nearest major city. The town is set in the beautiful, rolling parkland of central Alberta, between the Rocky Mountain foothills to the west, and the flatter Alberta prairie to the east.
Lacombe is named after Father
Albert Lacombe (28 February 1827 – 12 December 1916), a French-Canadian
Oblate (Roman Catholic) missionary who lived among and evangelized the
Cree and
Blackfoot First Nations of western Canada. He is now remembered for having brokered a peace between the Cree and Blackfoot, negotiating construction of the
Canadian Pacific Railway through Blackfoot territory, and securing a promise from the Blackfoot leader Crowfoot to refrain from joining the North-West Rebellion of 1885.
One of Lacombe's most famous residents was
Roland Michener ,
Governor General Of Canada from
1967 to
1974 . A local museum and park,
Michener House and
Michener Park , commemorate his legacy as one of Canada's most famous and influential Governors General.
Several times, the main street of this community has been used in films, since it was re-modelled to resemble a town in the early 1900s. Lacombe's lovingly restored Edwardian buildings in the downtown, a historic Flat Iron building, a working blacksmith shop, and the Michener House Museum all provide appealing visual backdrops for films, and a taste of the history of the town.
The town is also home to country singer
Gord Bamford , who shot one of his music videos there.
The
Canadian University College was first located near Lacombe in
1909 and continues to operate today.
Nestled in one of Central Alberta's most fertile valleys between Calgary and Edmonton, the local economy includes a strong agricultural base supplemented by a strong oil and gas industry.
Lacombe is also home to one of Canada's largest agricultural research facilities, the "
Lacombe Research Centre ", at which the world famous "Lacombe hog" breed was developed. A new meat packing plant in this heavily agricultural area is the most modern meat packing and research facility of its kind in Canada.
