Medicine Hat Celebrates 115 Years as a City
Medicine Hat – Medicine Hat was incorporated as a city on Wednesday, May 9, 1906. Though no formal celebrations are planned due to the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic in the province and the accompanying restrictions, officials mark the 115 anniversary with reflection and reverence to the community’s past.
“As a frontier settlement where railway met river on top of a prolific natural gas field, Medicine Hat’s humble beginnings form the foundation of grit, perseverance, ingenuity and strength which has seen our community prosper for the last 115 years,” says City Manager Bob Nicolay.
Incorporation was key in order to draw investors, build sidewalks and develop waterworks.
“After Alberta became a province in 1905, incorporation as a city was more an administrative move than a celebratory one in order to gain easier access to infrastructure investment that would attract a strong industrial tax base,” said archivist Philip Pype. “There is very little evidence of any fanfare surrounding Medicine Hat’s incorporation at the time, but it is the progress and industriousness that came after that bears true celebration.”
Rich in natural resources including not only natural gas, but also coal, clay, and farmland, the city soon became industrialized and was touted in newspaper columns in Toronto and Chicago as “The New Denver” and the “Pittsburgh of the West.”
“There was, no doubt, a sense of optimism during the time of incorporation,” adds Pype. “Population had almost doubled from 1901 to 1906 to 3,020 people. There was talk of four major railroads converging through town (which never did happen). Ranchers and dryland farmers were enjoying good prices and good weather, and had new brick and stone churches to attend on Sunday. Hospitals and schools went up. Theatres, libraries, factories and stadiums were built. And of course, Medicine Hat was already famous for its abundance of gas, owned by the City, that would help pay for it all.”
A commemorative history in celebration of the city’s 115 anniversary is viewable online at https://www.medicinehat.ca/what-s-new/115th-anniversary.
“We are really good at paying tribute to our history in Medicine Hat. Aspects of our heritage are reflected today in places like Medalta, the Stampede, our historical downtown, and the Esplanade,” says Mayor Ted Clugston. “We have a duty to honour the foresight of those who came before us, but also a duty to innovate and propel us further forward. This weekend, I celebrate the last 115 years and look forward to what the future holds.”
For further information, please contact:
media@medicinehat.ca
“As a frontier settlement where railway met river on top of a prolific natural gas field, Medicine Hat’s humble beginnings form the foundation of grit, perseverance, ingenuity and strength which has seen our community prosper for the last 115 years,” says City Manager Bob Nicolay.
Incorporation was key in order to draw investors, build sidewalks and develop waterworks.
“After Alberta became a province in 1905, incorporation as a city was more an administrative move than a celebratory one in order to gain easier access to infrastructure investment that would attract a strong industrial tax base,” said archivist Philip Pype. “There is very little evidence of any fanfare surrounding Medicine Hat’s incorporation at the time, but it is the progress and industriousness that came after that bears true celebration.”
Rich in natural resources including not only natural gas, but also coal, clay, and farmland, the city soon became industrialized and was touted in newspaper columns in Toronto and Chicago as “The New Denver” and the “Pittsburgh of the West.”
“There was, no doubt, a sense of optimism during the time of incorporation,” adds Pype. “Population had almost doubled from 1901 to 1906 to 3,020 people. There was talk of four major railroads converging through town (which never did happen). Ranchers and dryland farmers were enjoying good prices and good weather, and had new brick and stone churches to attend on Sunday. Hospitals and schools went up. Theatres, libraries, factories and stadiums were built. And of course, Medicine Hat was already famous for its abundance of gas, owned by the City, that would help pay for it all.”
A commemorative history in celebration of the city’s 115 anniversary is viewable online at https://www.medicinehat.ca/what-s-new/115th-anniversary.
“We are really good at paying tribute to our history in Medicine Hat. Aspects of our heritage are reflected today in places like Medalta, the Stampede, our historical downtown, and the Esplanade,” says Mayor Ted Clugston. “We have a duty to honour the foresight of those who came before us, but also a duty to innovate and propel us further forward. This weekend, I celebrate the last 115 years and look forward to what the future holds.”
For further information, please contact:
media@medicinehat.ca
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