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Calgary, Alberta

City of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
image:calgarycoa.PNG
Motto: Heart of the new west
Image:altacgy.PNG
Area: 701.79 sq. km.
Population

 - Total (2001)
 - Cdn. Mun. Rank:


 - Density

878,866
Ranked 3rd


1252.3/km²
Time zone Mountain: UTC-7

Latitude
Longitude

51°6' N
114°1' W

MPs
Diane Ablonczy, Rob Anders, Art Hanger, Stephen Harper, Jason Kenney, Deepak Obhrai, Jim Prentice, Lee Richardson
MLAs
Cindy Ady , Moe Amery , Wayne Cao , Harvey Cenaiko , Alana DeLong , Heather Forsyth , Yvonne Fritz , Marlene Graham , Denis Herard , Mark Hlady , Ralph Klein, Karen Kryczka , Jon Lord , Richard Magnus , Gary Mar , Greg Melchin , Pat Nelson , Hung Pham , Shiraz Shariff , Murray Smith, Ron Stevens ,
Mayor David Bronconnier
Governing body Calgary City Council
City of Calgary

Calgary is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. It is situated towards the south of the province, in a region of hills and high plains east of the Rocky Mountains and sits at an elevation of about 1000 metres above sea level. As of 2002, the metropolitan population was 993,200. By 2005 the population is expected to reach over 1.2 million. It is the largest city in Alberta and the third largest in Canada, serving as the hub of the fifth largest Census Metropolitan Area . Calgary is located in Division No. 6.

Calgary International Airport serves the city.

Calgary's economy is largely centred on the petroleum industry, with agriculture and high-tech industries contributing to the city's rapid economic growth. Calgary is Canada's wealthiest city, and Alberta is also the wealthiest province (based on per capita income).

Contents

First Settlement

Before Calgary was settled by white Europeans, it was the domain of the Blackfoot people, whose presence has been traced back 11,000 years. In 1787 cartographer David Thompson spent the winter with a band of Peigan Indians encamped along the Bow River in the Calgary area. He was the first recorded European to visit the area. By 1860 settlers began arriving to hunt buffalo and sell illegal whiskey.

The first recorded settler in Calgary was rancher Sam Livingston in the early 1870s, and in 1875 the site became a post of the North West Mounted Police (now the RCMP). Originally named Fort Brisbois, it was renamed to Fort Calgary in 1876. The detachment was assigned to protect the western plains from whiskey traders from the United States. Fort Calgary was named by Colonel James Macleod after Calgary Bay on the Isle of Mull, Scotland. When the Canadian Pacific Railway constructed a major rail station in the city, Calgary began to grow into an important commercial and agricultural centre. (The Canadian Pacific Railway headquarters are located in Calgary today.) Calgary was officially incorporated as a town in 1884 and elected its first mayor George Murdoch. In 1894, Calgary was elevated to a city.

Calgary in 1969, from Scotchman's Hill
Enlarge
Calgary in 1969, from Scotchman's Hill

The Oil Boom

With the discovery of oil in Alberta in the mid–20th century, Calgary became the centre of an accompanying oil boom. Calgary's economy grew when oil prices increased with the Arab Oil Embargo of 1973. The city's population grew from 325,000 in 1974 to 647,000 in 1987. During this time, Calgary skyscrapers were constructed at a pace seen by few cities anywhere. With the announcement of the National Energy Program in 1981 the oil boom started to subside. The NEP was cancelled in the mid-1980s by the Mulroney government, and Calgary has since largely recovered.

Calgary remains the oil capital of Canada and second only to Toronto for corporate head offices. The beef industry is also very important to Calgary, as it is a distribution centre for the outlying rural areas. Lakeside Packers and Cargill Limited near Calgary are some of the most modern, state-of-the-art beef processing facilities in North America.

North West Mounted Police post, 1875
Enlarge
North West Mounted Police post, 1875

The Stampede

left
Calgary is world famous for its Calgary Stampede, a large festival and rodeo in July of each year and has quite a history.

The Calgary Stampede was inaugurated (1912) by Guy Weadick, an American trick roper. Weadick wanted to put on a world-class rodeo event and Wild West show that would bring the best cowboys from across the continent. The first Stampede was the richest rodeo competition in North America with prize money totalling $20,000. It drew more than 100,000 spectators. For the year 2000, the attendance to the 10-day rodeo and exhibition totalled 1,218,851 people. During Stampede Week, the city's residents dress in western attire, and nearly all businesses decorate their stores and offices western style. The Calgary Stampede is often called "The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth."

Cultural Scene

Calgary in 2004, from Scotchman's Hill
Enlarge
Calgary in 2004, from Scotchman's Hill

Calgary's cultural scene has changed considerably over time. Today it has grown into a more cosmopolitan city despite its traditional culture of hotel saloons, hockey and western music.

Calgary is home to the internationally-renowned contemporary theatre company One Yellow Rabbit. The company shares the massive Calgary Centre for the Performing Arts with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra and two more established theatre companies, Theatre Calgary and Alberta Theatre Projects . Calgary was also the birthplace, in the 1970s, of the improvisational theatre games known as Theatresports.

Calgary is affectionately called the Nashville of the North, and took a large part in the country revival of the 1990s. Currently, some of the city's most popular bars trade on the image of cool country, playing contemporary country music to young twenty-somethings.

Political Scene

Calgary is traditionally seen as a conservative city, dominated by older small-c social conservatives and more modern fiscal conservatives. This is only aided by the fact that the city is a corporate power-centre, with a high percentage of the workforce employed in white-collar professions. During the 1990s the city's mainstream political culture was dominated by the right-wing Reform Party. However, as Calgary has grown, its politics have gained more diversity, particularly on the left. This growing alternative left-wing political culture got a lot of attention during the 2000 World Petroleum Congress and the J26 G8 Protests. The largest protests in the city's history erupted in early 2003, in response to the War on Iraq. The city has a chapters of various well-known organizations, as well as an Anti-Capitalist Convergence

As of September 2004, all eight of Calgary's federal MPs are members of the Conservative Party of Canada, and all 21 provincial MLAs are Progressive Conservatives. The city will gain two additional legislature seats when the 26th Alberta general election is called, probably before the end of 2004.

Education

Calgary is the site of four major tertiary educational institutions: the University of Calgary, The Alberta College of Art & Design, the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology, and Mount Royal College.

Sports

Calgary held the 1988 Winter Olympic Games. The remaining venues have become a training site for athletes around the world.

right
Professional sports teams in Calgary include the Calgary Flames of the National Hockey League and the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League. The city also has an A-League Soccer franchise, the Calgary Mustangs and the Calgary Roughnecks of the National Lacrosse League. Calgary's multipurpose arena, the Pengrowth Saddledome is shown at the right.

Military Presence

Calgary is still home to a sizable military presence, including HMCS Tecumseh, a unit of the Naval Reserve, the HMCS Tecumseh Band, and 746 Communications Squadron (Communications Reserve), as well as several units of the Army Reserve, including:

  • Headquarters, 41 Canadian Brigade Group
  • The King's Own Calgary Regiment (Royal Canadian Armoured Corps)
  • Regimental Band of The King's Own Calgary Regiment (RCAC)
  • 33 Field Engineer Squadron (Canadian Military Engineers)
  • The Calgary Highlanders
  • Regimental Pipes and Drums of The Calgary Highlanders
  • 14 Service Battalion
  • Calgary Detachment, 15 Medical Company (Canadian Forces Medical Service)
  • Militia Training Detachment Calgary

Additionally, there are several squadrons of the Royal Canadian Sea Cadets, Navy League Cadets, Royal Canadian Army Cadets and Royal Canadian Air Cadets

Local Media

Daily Newspapers

  • Calgary Herald - Biggest paper in Calgary
  • Calgary Sun - Tabloid-sized paper, big on sports (and famous for Sunshine Girl)
  • Globe and Mail - Canada's "National Newspaper", good business coverage
  • National Post - Daily national news by Southam

Radio Stations

AM

  • 580 - CKUA - Info/Educational
  • 660 - CFR - Classic Gold/Oldies
  • 770 - QR77 - Talk Radio
  • 910 - QR91 - Country/Drumheller
  • 960 - CFAC - "The Fan" all-sports
  • 1010 - CBR - CBC
  • 1060 - CKMX - Golden Oldies (pre-70's)
  • 1140 - CFXL - Adult

FM

  • 88.9 - Shine-FM - Contemporary Christian
  • 90.9 - CJSW - University Radio
  • 91.1 - Q91 - Country/Drumheller
  • 92.1 - CJAY 92 - Classic Rock
  • 93.7 - CKUA-FM - Info/Educational
  • 95.9 - 96 CHFM "Lite 96" - Classic Hits/Adult
  • 96.9 - Jack FM - Variety
  • 98.5 - Vibe 98.5 - Top 40, Hip-Hop, R&B
  • 102.1 - CBR-FM - CBC-English
  • 103.1 - CIQX "The Breeze" - Easy listening/Jazz
  • 103.9 - CBRF-FM - CBC-French
  • 104.5 - Radio-Radio - Contemporary Rock
  • 105.1 - CKRY-FM "Country 105" - Country
  • 107.1 - CKIK "Q-107" - Classic Rock

Television Stations

  • 2 - CICT - Calgary Independent Television
  • 4 - CFCN CTV - (Canadian Television Network)
  • 8 - A-Channel - (Craig Broadcasting Corporation)
  • 9 - CBRT CBC - (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation)
  • 13 - Access - Alberta Educational Television Network

Related Topics

See also

 

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Last updated: 11-06-2004 20:58:03