On this date in 1905 Alberta entered the Confederation as a province of Canada. 10 things you might not know about Alberta.
Alberta is one of only two landlocked provinces in Canada, along with Saskatchewan (which, incidentally, entered the union on the same day). Alberta is bounded by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Territories to the north, and the U.S. state of Montana to the south. It’s the fourth-largest province in Canada, covering an area of 661,000 square kilometres (255,000 square miles), which, for context, is about the same size as the American state of Texas and more than twice the size of Italy. Alberta’s forests alone cover roughly 35 million hectares, about the size of Germany.
Alberta is home to 4.3 million people, and an even larger number of cattle. Alberta has the largest population of wild horses in Canada, but one creature you won’t find there is a Rat. Alberta is reportedly the largest rat-free inhabited land area in the world. It’s even illegal to have one as a pet. Beavers also live here. The longest beaver dam in the world is here, in Wood Buffalo National Park, allegedly visible from space.
A few million years ago, you’d find Dinosaurs here, too. Though the world’s largest dinosaur is still here in a town called Drumheller. Made of fibreglass, I might add! It’s a T Rex, 26 metres high, which back in the day would have been one of the largest living dinosaurs in the area, weighing up to 10 tonnes and measuring 12m long; but there was an even bigger one called the Edmontosaurus (after Alberta’s capital) which weighed up to 14 tonnes and was 14m long. The oldest dinosaur fossil found in Alberta is estimated to be over 110 million years old. There’s another dinosaur named after the state itself, the Albertosaurus.
Alberta was named after Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria, who in turn was named after Prince Albert. She was married to the Marquis of Lorne, Canada’s Governor General from 1878-1883. Lake Louise was also named after her.
The highest point in Alberta is Mount Columbia at 3,747 meters tall, while the highest settlement is the aforementioned Lake Louise. There are 600 lakes and 245 rivers; the longest river is The longest river is the Athabasca which flows 1,538 kilometers from the Columbia Icefield to Lake Athabasca; but the largest river by water flow is the Peace River.
Edmonton is the capital, but the largest city is Calgary. Other notable towns include Vegreville, home to the world’s largest pysanka (Ukrainian Easter Egg); Mundare, home to the world’s largest kubasa (Ukrainian sausage); Beaverlodge, where there is a 1,500lb beaver; and Vulcan, which although it existed long before Star Trek, nevertheless has embraced the inevitable and is home to a 31-foot Starship Enterprise replica with a plaque in English, Vulcan and Klingon.
The oldest national park in Canada is located in Alberta. Banff National Park was established in the year 1885 as Canada’s first National Park. There are also 6 UNESCO world heritage sites in the province. One of these is Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump, where Indigenous peoples drove buffalo over a cliff in order to kill them for food.
Symbols of Alberta include: an official tartan (green for the forests, gold for the wheat fields, blue for the sky and lakes, pink for the wild roses which are Alberta’s official flower, and black for petroleum); the Great Horned Owl is the provincial bird; rough fescue, the official grass of Alberta; the lodgepole pine is the official tree; the Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep is the official mammal; the bullhorn trout the official fish; the official gemstone is ammolite, which is only found here; and the official stone is petrified wood. Since 2005, there’s an official song, Alberta, written for the centennial of the province in 2005.
Another symbol is a white cowboy hat, which has become associated with hospitality in Calgary. It started as a symbol of the Stampede rodeo; a Jewish immigrant called Morris Shumiatcher was the first to make pure white hats for participants in the rodeo to wear. in due course became an item that was presented to visiting dignitaries by means of a “white hatting” ceremony. An eclectic bunch of celebrities have been presented with white hats including: the Dalai Lama, Pope John Paul II, Ozzy Osbourne, Queen Elizabeth II, William and Catherine, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Tony Blair, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Pavarotti, Oprah Winfrey and Mickey Mouse. Even Vladimir Putin has one. Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh had three, and got a bit grumpy when presented with the third. "Not another one," he grumbled. "You must give out dozens of these things. I can always use it for carrying water around or to put flowers in when I get home". You don’t have to be royalty or famous to get a white hat, though. Any tourist or group can now book a white hatting ceremony for when they arrive at the airport. They are expected to provide their own white hats, though, and recite: "I/we, havin' pleasured ourselves in the only genuine cowtown in Canada, namely Calgary, Alberta and havin' been duly exposed to exceptional amounts of heart warmin', hand shakin', foot stompin', down home, country style Western Spirit, do promise to share this here brand of Western Hospitality with all folks and critters who cross our path". The one leading the oath adds, "On the count of three, raise your hat and shout a big ole' Calgary 'YAHOO!!!'"
Famous people from Alberta include: actors Nathan Fillion, Evangeline Lilly and Michael J Fox; and James Gosling, creator of the Java programming language.
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