In 1874, after the establishment of the Mennonite
East Reserve,
William Hespeler, who had recruited
Mennonites to the area, saw the opportunity to develop a rail station to supply the new Mennonite settlements, at a location selected by railway tycoon
Joseph Whitehead. Initially the town that grew up around the station was named Hespeler, but eventually became known by the name of the railway station, Niverville, after 18th-century explorer and fur trader Chevalier
Joseph Boucher de Niverville. The first grain elevator in western Canada, a unique round structure was built in Niverville in 1879 by Hespeler. Originally within the
Rural Municipality of Hanover, Niverville was incorporated as a village in 1969. In 1970, Niverville was host to the
Niverville Pop Festival, the first rock festival in Manitoba. Niverville has expanded on multiple occasions through annexation of land from the
Rural Municipality of Ritchot to the west and Hanover to the east and north. It was incorporated as a town in 1993. Many inhabitants today are Mennonite or British, with a growing number of immigrants of other backgrounds. In recent years, Niverville has grown into a "bedroom community" of Winnipeg and is among the fastest growing towns in the province. == Geography ==