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About Calgary
Calgary, once considered a cow town, now is a city of skyscrapers, light-rail transit, shopping complexes and contemporary houses. The city's economy began with--and still includes--ranching and the subsequent meatpacking industry, but the discovery of oil just south of the city in 1914 and just north in 1947 fueled a spurt of growth that turned an agricultural community into a metropolis.
Calgary today boasts a high concentration of head offices, the second largest in Canada. Energy, agriculture, tourism, manufacturing, research and development, and advanced technology comprise Calgary's industrial base.
The region's history of human habitation began almost 10,000 years before the first 19th-century fur and whiskey traders arrived. Indian tribes chose the confluence of the Bow and Elbow rivers as a campsite; emerging as the dominant tribe was the Blackfoot. Their acquisition of horses allowed them to hunt buffalo and fight almost every other prairie tribe with great success. As European settlement increased, so did the friction between the natives and the newcomers.
An 1877 treaty calmed the rough waters, and relative peace among all factions has existed since. Several reservations, including the Tsuu T'ina Reserve south of the city, are near Calgary. Native North Americans have sought to assimilate themselves into Canadian culture while retaining their native heritage.
Chinese were recruited abroad in the early 1900s to build the railroads; once the trains were running, however, Chinese immigration was restricted severely. Oil and money lured many American entrepreneurs who brought the technology and investment funds needed to get Calgary's petroleum industry started. But many of those who came for the money enjoyed the area and stayed, becoming Canadian citizens.
Calgary's modern sophistication is offset by a romantic perception of the past--a past in which the city was established as a North West Mounted Police fort in 1875. The Calgary Stampede, a 10-day Western wingding, is attended by more than a million residents and visitors who relive the days of chuck wagons and lassos. Those days existed more than a century ago, after the North West Mounted Police--the forerunner of today's Royal Canadian Mounted Police--and the railroad brought law, order and homesteaders to a region previously settled by trappers, buffalo hunters and whiskey traders.
Although Calgary's growth has been rapid, it has been practical. The bustling downtown district was designed to accommodate a large amount of activity, even during winter when below-freezing temperatures normally would inhibit commerce. Enclosed walkways called "plus-15s" (they are 15 feet above street level) connect almost half the downtown buildings, making it possible to eat, work, shop or visit neighbors without donning so much as a mitten.
The Stephen Avenue Walk, a pedestrian mall in the city center lined with trees, benches and fountains, is an urban refuge from traffic as well as a nice place to enjoy lunch or a stroll in warm weather.
All is not business in Calgary. Music, ballet, theater and plenty of outdoor recreation are readily available. In addition Calgary distinguished itself as host city of the 1988 Winter Olympic Games. Such educational institutions as Mount Royal College, Southern Alberta Institute of Technology and the University of Calgary prepare Canadians for the future. Natural resources and man-made technology continue to drive Calgary in the 21st century.
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