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Calgary — The Wild West or a Modern Metropolis?FROM "COWTOWN" TO ECONOMIC, TECHNOLOGICAL AND CULTURAL HUB Calgary's "cowboy" image from days gone by, is never discouraged, but today it surely isn't representative of all that this modern metropolis has to offer. Although the world renowned Calgary Stampede, dubbed "The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth", is still an annual event celebrated by 1.5 million local residents and visitors with much pride and enthusiasm, and the cattle industry is still important in Alberta, there is so much more to this vibrant cosmopolitan city than just a "Cowtown", as it was once called. HISTORY The area near Calgary was originally home to the Blackfoot Indians. However, in the 18th century, the Stoney and the Sarcee bands arrived in the region. Fort Calgary came into existence as a North West Mounted Police settlement in 1875. The police were dispatched to the area to deal with the lawlessness and unrest among the Indian tribes and the white settlers. Colonel James Macleod named Calgary for a Gaelic word thought to mean "Clear Running Water", likely referrring to the meeting of the Bow and Elbow Rivers where the fort was established. However, during the 1975 centennial celebration, historians discovered the city's namesake actually means "Cove Garden". It's perhaps a more fitting moniker, as Calgary is adorned with numerous beautiful parks, green lands, and man-made lakes. The Canadian Pacific Railway arrived in 1883. Settlement was encouraged by the offer of free land and by 1891 the population of Calgary was well over 4000. At the end of the 1800’s there was a lot of immigration north by settlers from the United States, attracted by the fine grazing country Southern Alberta had to offer. Soon Calgary and region became "Cowboy Country", and with the closeness of the railway, Calgary became a transportation and meat-packing hub. Predominantly a cattle ranching and agricultural city, the first signs of dramatic change appeared in 1905 when natural gas was discovered. In the same year, Alberta became an officially recognized province and the BOOM began. By 1914, oil had been found near Turner Valley and Calgary began building its industry around oil and gas. Apart from the Calgary Stampede and the proud cultural heritage of the cowboy, cattle and ranching are also still very important in the region. ECONOMY Nestled on the foothills, with the Rocky Mountains peaks as its backdrop, Calgary boasts a lively city life and a mountain playground less than an hour's drive away. Today Calgary's modern skyline rises dramatically at the western edge of almost one thousand miles of prairie. This dynamic sight is fitting for a growing city that is second in Canada only to Toronto, in the number of corporate head offices. According to the City of Calgary April 2005 civic census, Calgary's total population was 956,078. It continues to expand to the north, south, and east and it's surely over a million by now. Once an "oil only" city that took hard hits whenever the economy changed, Calgary now boasts of diverse interests — some say, "the best of all worlds" and "an economy that's bullet-proof". From Agriculture to High-Tech Industries, from world-class Education to booming Real Estate, Fine dining, dozens of golf courses, art, music, and cultural events, theatres and museums galore, all combine to make Calgary an economic and cultural centre. People come from all over the world to start their new lifestyles and invest in their futures because the future is indeed bright in this city! Perhaps the most important contributor to Calgary's prosperity and culture is the oil and gas industry. Oil and gas is what has made Calgary grow from a fairly non-descript regional town into a major city with beautiful parks, rapidly expanding suburbs and facilities that make the average Calgarian's quality of life one of the best in North America. Although oil was discovered in Alberta as early as 1914, the oil and gas industry really took off in the late 1960’s when large deposits were discovered. In the 1970’s with the energy crisis, the price of oil soared and Calgary boomed, as it has again over the last few years. Growth and development of the city has taken place at a phenomenal pace. In the early 1980’s oil prices plummeted, and Calgary and Alberta experienced a major recession. In hindsight though, this was not all bad; Calgary was able to broaden its economic base so that it would never be so totally dependent on oil and gas again. In the early 90's oil and gas prices started to rise again, and while oil and gas is definitely still king, the high-tech, motion-picture, and service industries, and light manufacturing began to make significant inroads into the local economic base. During the recession of the early and mid-eighties, Calgary used the time wisely to develop some much needed cultural and leisure facilities. This culminated in 1988 when Calgary hosted what is widely acknowledged as one of the most successful Winter Olympic Games ever. This event seemed to mark Calgary's coming of age and entry onto the world stage, and it hasn't looked back since! Did you know that —
Today, it is one of Canada’s largest urban centers, an economic and cultural hub not only for the western provinces, but of the nation. CLIMATE There's a saying around Calgary — "If you don't like the weather, wait ten minutes and it will change". Of course, it's an exaggeration Calgarians love to play with but it's true to say we can have rain in the morning at 10 C, and 30 C. in the afternoon with totally sunny clear skies, and then frost overnight. It's not at all uncommon in June or July to suddenly out of nowhere get a surprise thunderstorm with hail, only to be be followed by a perfectly clear sky 30 minutes later. Calgary's weather can truly be full of surprises.
Summers are generally warm and sunny especially during July and August. May, June and early July are very pleasant though there can be more rain during these months. Calgary is at a fairly high altitude so evenings are always relatively cool. Oftentimes, there's a nice light breeze blowing during the day. Autumns are usually clear and crisp and beautiful Indian summers occur frequently. In winter it can get very cold but this does not happen very often, nor for very long. Just like the Great Lakes moderate the climate of nearby urban centers, so do the mountains have a tremendous variance effect on Calgary. What does occur from time to time is a "Chinook". This is when warm winds blow east off the Rockies and has a dramatic effect on the temperature in the Calgary region. Within a few hours the temperature can go up by 20 to 30 degrees Celsius, and the snow on the ground melts. This can happen in the middle of winter. By March, the spring slowly starts to arrive. It can snow in the spring as well, but it seldom lasts for very long. Everything turns green in this beautifully treed city, and this is always a very pleasant time to visit. TRANSPORTATION Calgary is easy to reach from anywhere. The Trans-Canada Highway passes through the city, linking Calgary easily to the rest of Canada. There is also good highway access north to Edmonton, and south to the United States. Long-distance bus services serve Calgary with good connections from all over North America. Calgary also has a major international airport with service from all major Canadian and US cities, Europe and overseas. There are connector flights to Calgary from many of the smaller regional airports in Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan. Calgary — The Wild West or a Modern Metropolis? Places To See & Things To Do Places to Shop Back to TOP |
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