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Capital: Edmonton
Entered Confederation: 1905
Alberta is situated between the Rocky Mountains and the plains
of Saskatchewan. The province has prospered from its abundance
of natural resources. Soft wood forests in the northern half of
the province and large clay deposits in the south make wood and
red brick common building materials for many residential, religious,
and commercial structures throughout Alberta.
The earliest non-native settlement to the area came with the establishment
of fur trading posts by companies based in eastern Canada. French
missionaries and religious orders such as the Soeurs Grises de
Montréal established many of the earliest hospitals, schools,
and churches in the area. The discovery of gold in the Yukon in
the late 1800s lead to what was to be the first of many building
booms experienced by the province. With the discovery of oil in
the Turner Valley in the mid-1900s another period of economic
prosperity growth was underway. The architecture of the province
reflects the boom periods experienced by the area.
