A History of Street Names

A History of Street Names Jon Weller In a plebiscite held on April 6, 1914, Edmonton became a city of numbers. The debate had been consuming the city since the beginning of the year with long winded arguments on either side vying for council’s time. Prior to 1914, Edmonton was a confused city. The majority of roads in Edmonton, including…

If you build it they will come: the development of parks in Alberta Avenue

If you build it they will come: the development of parks in Alberta Avenue Jon Weller The grass is starting to show itself again, small spots of green amidst a sea of brown melt are a refreshing sight after another long winter. Soon it will be time to enjoy the warm spring days and the parks will start to fill up with people playing, walking and sitting idly to…

Fighting for the Sanctity of our Homes: A Story of Ill-Fame

Fighting for the Sanctity of our Homes: A Story of Ill-Fame Jon Weller It was a cool spring evening in 1908, but tempers in Council’s chambers were high. Mr. L. Norman, a printer for the Edmonton Bulletin, was speaking on behalf of the Norwood Vigilance Committee, “We are fighting for the sanctity of house homes and if council will depute the power to us we will…

Burns Meat Packing Plant

Burns Meat Packing Plant BY EDMONTON JOURNAL, EDMONTON JOURNAL http://www.edmontonjournal.com/Sept+1911+Burns+starts+work+packing+plant/7298244/story.html When work began on the $1-million P. Burns & Co. (later Burns Foods) packing plant at 76th Street and 120th Avenue, it was considered one of the most significant industrial events in the city’s history. For several decades, Edmonton was the hub of the meat-processing industry in Western Canada.…

Myhre’s Music

Myhre’s Music Myhre’s Music began on April 1st, 1967 as ‘House of Banjo’, a small business located on 95th street and 102nd avenue. In 1969, House of Banjo moved to the Woodcroft area just north of the Westmount Shopping Center. After two more moves it found itself at its present location of 8735-118 Avenue. It began when…

“They came out by coming together” A history of the businesses along 118th Avenue

Written by: Jon Weller In the collective memory, Alberta Avenue is a place with a golden past, one where community was strong, businesses thrived and children were free to run. That changed though, the families left, the pawnbrokers moved in and things went wrong. Today, a place like the Cromdale stands as a testament to…

Parkdale Coal Mine

Between 1881 and 1970 more than 100 mines operated along the Edmonton River Valley The Parkdale Coal Mine operated from 1906 to 1909. It was Mine no. 0109 on River Lot no. 24 in the Edmonton Settlement. The underground mine produced 40 tons per day of subbituminous coal. On Saturday, January 3, 1907 there was…

The Night and the Music: Skating Rinks

By Alex Mair Alberta Avenue plays a special role in the memories of anyone who grew up in the neighbourhood. The memories are rich, because on winter nights, the air was filled with the sound of music. Hard as it may be to believe in 1995, there was a period in the life of the…

Alberta Avenue Community League

League Founded:  1922 First President:  H. Clarke In 1894, a two block area on what is now 118th Avenue, between 90th and 92nd Streets, was cleared of bush and subdivided.  The area was called Fairview and was a part of North Edmonton Village until 1912 when it was amalgamated with Edmonton. H.A. Gray School was…

Norwood Foundry

91 Street and 111 Avenue Norwood Foundry  was established in 1922 by Squire Hearn and many of his colleagues who came from the recently closed-down Western Foundry. Five years later, Hearn sold the operation to Ernest Buker, who ran Norwood for 50 years. In the early years most of the work was oriented toward agricultural…