"[6][7] During the World War II an area of land 4 kilometres north of the town was appropriated by the Royal Canadian Air Force for construction of an Air Training Base.

[8][9] After the war the site was converted to the Bowden Institution, originally as a provincial facility.

In 1974 it was converted to a Corrections Canada medium security penitentiary.

[10] The town describes itself as a bedroom community,[11] meaning a large proportion of the working population commutes to other employment centres, including Red Deer and Calgary.

Nearby communities include Innisfail to the north, Caroline to the west, Huxley to the east and Olds to the south.