New Bothwell, Manitoba, a local urban district in the Rural Municipality of Hanover, Canada, is a charming community with a rich history and a thriving cheese industry. Located approximately 15 kilometres northwest of Steinbach on Provincial Road 216, it's a small community with a population of around 500. The town is well-serviced with a post office, a restaurant/convenience store, a recreation centre, an elementary/junior high school, a fire station, and two nearby churches. The local Chamber of Commerce and the local recreation committee organize community events such as an annual fall dinner, the winter carnival, and the summer fair.
The New Bothwell area was originally inhabited by the nomadic Ojibway-speaking Anishinabe people. After signing Treaty 1 in 1871, the Anishinabe people moved onto reserves such as the Brokenhead Indian Reserve and Roseau River Anishinabe First Nation Reserve.
In 1874, Mennonites began immigrating to the area from the Bergthal Colony in southern Russia (now Ukraine). They established several small villages throughout the East Reserve, including Kronsthal, which was located on the western edge of what is now New Bothwell.
The first public school districts in the area—Arran, Moray, Seaton, and Bothwell—were created in 1919. The Bothwell School was located a half mile east of Kronsthal. As businesses and families began to locate themselves near the school, the entire village ended up moving a half mile east. Over the years, New Bothwell expanded westward to encompass the former site of Kronstal.
The name Bothwell originates with the establishment of the Bothwell School in 1919. The Canadian government deliberately chose British names, such as Mitchell, Randolph, Bothwell, and others in an attempt to assimilate the Mennonites into Canadian culture. The town, however, remained under the name Kronsthal until 1939, when the post office was established. "Bothwell" had been the first choice to register as the community's official name, as it was the name of the public school. However, this name was already registered in Ontario, so the word "New" was added to the town name.
By the 1960s, New Bothwell remained as the only village in the surrounding area. The old school districts that served the area were eliminated and replaced with a new government run school at New Bothwell, part of the new Hanover School Division. Although no longer in existence, the old villages and school districts are still referred to by those who remember them.
In the 1990s, the Rural Municipality of Hanover established a fire station at New Bothwell, one of four operated by the municipality's fire department. New Bothwell was organized as a local urban district within the R.M. of Hanover in 2022.
New Bothwell is home to the award-winning cheese producer, Bothwell Cheese. Established in 1936, Bothwell Cheese was originally a co-operative owned by the local dairy producers. Over the years, Bothwell Cheese has earned a solid reputation as a world-class cheese maker, producing over 25 varieties of cheese, and made the community known for its cheese.
