St. Jean Baptiste, Manitoba

St. Jean Baptiste is an unincorporated community recognized as a local urban district in Manitoba. It is located in the Rural Municipality of Montcalm along Highway 75, 40 km north of Emerson at the United States border, and 60 km south of Winnipeg.The community has a distinct French Canadian flavour. The area was first settled by Métis families from St. Norbert, Manitoba and, in 1878, French Canadian families from the United States arrived in the area and purchased land. The post office opened in 1877 and a parish and Canadian National railway point were also part of the early development.The community was originally called Grosse Pointe. It became Mission de la Rivière aux Prunes and received its present name from Archbishop Taché in 1872. It has since then been known as St. Jean Baptiste or St. Jean.