Bonnie Doon in the 1950s – Community Map
Explore how Bonnie Doon grew and developed from farm land to its current status as an urban, mature city neighbourhood….
Featured Collection
Jane’s Walk 2021: Neighbourhood Histories
History isn’t something that exists somewhere else or “over there” or only in the middle of the city. You can find history in the places you pass by every day! Grab your bike, car or walking shoes and discover some history in your own neighbourhood!
Queen Elizabeth II Planetarium: The Crown Jewel in Coronation Park
Royal Beginnings Coronation Park is a 35-hectare park in west central Edmonton. It was named to honour Queen Elizabeth II’s 1953…
The Starlite Drive-In Theatre in Jasper Place
The concept of a drive-in theatre was first experimented in 1933 in New Jersey, though it soon spread to Canada…
Walking Back in Time: A Stroll Through My 1960s Jasper Place
This past year, while staying close to home during the COVID-19 pandemic and enjoying more neighborhood walks, my thoughts have…
Forest Heights: A Hidden Pocket of History
I grew up in Forest Heights, a neighbourhood in southeast Edmonton, overlooking the North Saskatchewan River. The neighbourhood is known…
History of West Ritchie
At the center of West Ritchie is 81st Avenue (between 102nd and 100th Street), a commercial street that feels far removed from the…
The Last Edmonton Coal Mine: Whitemud Creek
Rambling up the steep paths of the Whitemud Creek cutbank, a view of Rainbow Valley Park appears along with the…
From Parking Lots to Palm Trees (And Back Again): A Look Back at Heritage Mall
Brenda Hall was just 18 years old when she stepped off the bus in the community of Kaskitayo on a…
Candy Cane Lane
Before Esther and Ron Matcham moved to Edmonton, the stretch of 148th Street between 92nd and 100th Avenue wasn’t much…
The Curious Case of the 1908 Enoch Surrender
At the time of Treaty No. 6, much change and settlement was taking place in the West, with displacement and…
McKernan’s Lost Lake
Although the lake is no longer visible, its “ghost” is discernable on early maps and in the form of flooding…
Big Island: A Window into the Past
Big Island, a 70-acre island located 16 miles upstream from the city of Edmonton, is a lesser-known piece of Edmonton’s…
The Weather Woman of the West: Eda Owen and the Highlands Dominion Meteorological Station
Edmonton’s history is full of remarkable women. From Beatrice Carmichael to Thelma Chalifoux, from Betty Stanhope-Cole to Felicia Graham, from…
The Prins Family and the Dutch in Beverly
Jacob and Aafje Prins helped more than 800 Dutch newcomers settle in Canada and the hospitality of their big white…
Garneau: A Neighbourhood of Nations
As we go about our daily lives, driving the kids to school or walking the dog, we often forget that…
A Kingdom in North Edmonton: Castle Downs, 1969-1979
When I moved to Castle Downs nearly ten years ago, I saw a typical 1970s development: parks, schools, stores, churches,…
The Spruce of Mill Creek School
Since time immemorial, Indigenous peoples have lived with the land upon which Mill Woods is built. Words like Sakaw, Meyokumin…
Donnan Family and Queen Alexandra Dairy 1911- 1932
John Donnan was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland in 1892 and immigrated to Canada in March 1902 as a young…
100 Years of Calder
Calder’s story began in the early years of the 20th century when GTPR decided to locate its roundhouse, repair shop…
Silver Heights Peony Garden
Photo credit: Dr. James Brander and children, Silver Heights Peony Garden. Provincial Archives of Alberta #B6794. Photographer: Ernest Brown Prominent Edmonton physician James…