The first use of the name "Clairmont" was in 1907 by the earliest surveyor of the township boundaries, J.B. Saint Cyr. Development of the townsite really got started once it was surveyed and after the arrival of the Edmonton, Dunvegan & British Columbia Railway in 1916. By the end of 1916, the townsite had a railway station, two or three grain elevators, an agent's house, the Buffalo Lakes Lumber Yard, Clairmont Hotel, a Union Bank, a butcher shop, several stores, a Baptist church, and a handful of residences. On September 10, 1915 the Clairmont Lake School District was opened. In 1922, a large fire consumed many Clairmont businesses, while a train station was built in 1923.
The Post office opened on August 15, 1916.