Land for sale in the Dauphin area, Manitoba

About the Dauphin area

The area

This page groups Manitoba listings closest to the City of Dauphin, in the Parkland region between the Riding and Duck mountains. Dauphin had about 8,400 people in 2021 and is the farm service centre for the region. Around the city is the RM of Dauphin (about 2,100 people). Nearby are the RMs of Mossey River (about 1,450) and Lakeshore (about 1,200), and the municipalities of Gilbert Plains (about 1,400), Grandview (about 1,400) and Ethelbert (about 650). The lowland between the escarpment and Dauphin Lake is mostly farmland; the escarpment uplands are thinly settled.

History

The city sits on Treaty 2 land, the territory of the Anishinaabeg, Cree, Oji-Cree, Assiniboine, Dakota and Dene peoples and homeland of the Red River Métis. La Vérendrye set up a fur post, Fort Dauphin, in 1741. The Lake Manitoba Railway reached the townsite from Gladstone in 1896, and Dauphin grew into a key Canadian Northern divisional point. Ukrainian settlers began farming the area in 1896-98. Dauphin became a village in 1898, a town in 1901 and a city in 1998.

Services and access

Dauphin Regional Health Centre, the second-largest hospital in Prairie Mountain Health, has an emergency department. Highway 10 runs south from Dauphin through Riding Mountain National Park, whose northern edge is 13 km away, to Brandon. Gilbert Plains sits on Highway 5, about 360 km northwest of Winnipeg. The nearest scheduled flights (WestJet to Calgary) leave from Brandon.

Land and climate

Dauphin Lake covers about 500 km² but averages only about 2.4 m deep. Seven streams, including the Vermilion, Turtle, Ochre and Valley rivers, drain into it from the mountains, and it empties north through the Mossey River to Lake Winnipegosis. Yearly precipitation is a little over 500 mm, and summer storms can bring sudden local flooding: the lake hit a record level in 2011, and heavy June rain in 2026 brought overland flooding and washed-out roads across the RM of Dauphin. Most rural wells tap small sand and gravel aquifers; deeper bedrock water is saltier, better for livestock. The RM runs a rural water pipeline utility and must approve tile drainage under its bylaw.

Before you buy

The RMs of Dauphin, Lakeshore and Mossey River form the Lakeshore Planning District, which sets the development plan; each RM has its own zoning bylaw. In the RM of Dauphin a development permit comes first, then the Office of the Fire Commissioner issues building and plumbing permits. Ethelbert, Gilbert Plains and Grandview form the Mountainview Planning District. The City of Dauphin runs its own building services and zoning bylaw. Subdivisions need provincial approval; the province's Community and Regional Planning office is in Dauphin.

Sources

• Statistics Canada, 2021 Census population and dwelling counts (table 98-10-0002)
• Manitoba, Planning Districts Regulation 25/2015
• City of Dauphin: welcome, construction and zoning, airport
• Manitoba Historic Resources, Dauphin Canadian Northern Railway Station
• The Canadian Encyclopedia, Dauphin
• Manitoba Historical Society, Dauphin (City)
• Province of Manitoba, Dauphin Regional Health Centre emergency department
• Parks Canada, Riding Mountain National Park, getting here
• Brandon Municipal Airport, arrivals and departures
• Province of Manitoba, Dauphin Lake watershed hydrology and groundwater reports
• RM of Dauphin: permits, development and zoning, subdivisions, flooding, water
• Municipality of Gilbert Plains, history

Written by AcreScout from the sources listed; facts checked October 1, 2026. Rules change: confirm anything that matters with the municipality.