Alberta Business Directory
Alberta (IPA: /ælˈbɝtə/) is one of Canada's prairie provinces. It became a province on September 1, 1905.
Alberta is located in western Canada, bounded by the provinces of British Columbia to the west and Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Territories to the north, and the U.S. state of Montana to the south. Alberta is one of three Canadian provinces and territories to border only a single U.S. state (the others being New Brunswick and Yukon). It is also one of only two Canadian provinces that are landlocked (the other being Saskatchewan).
The capital city of Alberta is Edmonton, located just south of the centre of the province. Roughly 300 km south of the capital is Calgary, Alberta's largest city and a major distribution and transportation hub as well as one of Canada's major commerce centers. Edmonton is the primary supply and service hub for Canada's oil sands and other northern resource industries. According to recent population estimates, these two metropolitan areas have now both exceeded 1 million people. Other municipalities in the province include Red Deer, Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, Fort McMurray, Grande Prairie, Camrose, Lloydminster, Brooks, Wetaskiwin, Banff, Cold Lake, and Jasper.
Since December 14, 2006, the Premier of the province is Hon. Ed Stelmach, Progressive Conservative.
Alberta is named after Princess Louise Caroline Alberta (1848–1939), the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria and her husband, Prince Albert. Princess Louise was the wife of the Marquess of Lorne, Governor General of Canada from 1878 to 1883. Lake Louise, the village of Caroline, and Mount Alberta were also named in honour of Princess Louise.
Major Centres Alberta Dining Guide
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Paradise Valley
Peace River
Peerless Lake
Peers
Penhold
Picture Butte
Pincher Creek
Plamondon
Ponoka
Provost
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Radway
Rainbow Lake
Ralston
Raymond
Redcliff
Redwater
Rimbey
Robb
Rochester
Rocky Mountain House
Rockyford Rolling Hills
Rosalind
Rosebud
Rumsey
Rycroft
Ryley
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Sangudo
Saskatchewan River Crossing
Schuler
Seba Beach
Sedgewick
Seven Persons
Sexsmith
Sherwood Park
Sibbald
Silver Valley
Slave Lake
Smith
Smoky Lake
Spirit River
Spruce Grove
Spruce View
St. Albert
St. Michael
St. Paul
Stand Off
Standard
Stavely
Stettler
Stirling
Strathmore
Strome
Sundre
Swan Hills
Sylvan Lake
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Taber
Thorhild
Thorsby
Three Hills
Tilley
Tofield
Tomahawk
Torrington
Trochu
Trout Lake
Turner Valley Two Hills
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Valleyview
Vauxhall
Vegreville
Vermilion
Veteran
VikingVilna
Vulcan
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Wabamun
Wainwright
Walsh
Wandering River
Wanham
Warburg
Warner
Warspite
Waskatenau
Wembley
Westlock
Wetaskiwin
Whitecourt
Whitelaw
Widewater
Wildwood
Willingdon
Winfield
Woking
Worsley
Wrentham
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Alberta is located in western Canada and covers an area of 661,848 square kilometres (255,541 sq mi), an area about 5% smaller than Texas or 20% larger than France. This makes it the fourth largest province after Quebec, Ontario, and British Columbia. To the south, the province borders on the 49th parallel north, separating it from the U.S. state of Montana, while on the north the 60th parallel north divides it from the Northwest Territories. To the east the 110th meridian west separates it from the province of Saskatchewan, while on the west its boundary with British Columbia follows the 120th meridian west south from the Northwest Territories at 60°N until it reaches the Continental Divide at the Rocky Mountains, and from that point follows the line of peaks marking the Continental Divide in a generally southeasterly direction until it reaches the Montana border at 49°N.
The province extends 1,223 kilometres (760 mi) north to south and 660 kilometres (410 mi) east to west at its maximum width. Its highest point is 3,747 metres (12,290 ft) at the summit of Mount Columbia in the Rocky Mountains along the southwest border, while its lowest point is 152 metres (500 ft) on the Slave River in Wood Buffalo National Park in the northeast.
With the exception of the southeastern section, the province has adequate water resources. Alberta contains numerous rivers and lakes used for swimming, water skiing, fishing and a full range of other water sports. There are three large lakes and a multitude of smaller lakes less than 260 km² each. Part of Lake Athabasca (&0000000000007898.0000007,898 km²) lies in the province of Saskatchewan. Lake Claire (&0000000000001436.0000001,436 km²) lies just west of Lake Athabasca in Wood Buffalo National Park. Lesser Slave Lake (&0000000000001168.0000001,168 km²) is northwest of Edmonton. The longest river in Alberta is the Athabasca River which travels 1,538 kilometres (956 mi) from the Columbia Icefield in the Rocky Mountains to Lake Athabasca.
Moraine Lake in Banff National Park Alberta's capital city, Edmonton, is located approximately in the geographic centre of the province, with most of western Canada's oil refinery capacity located nearby, in close proximity to most of Canada's largest oil fields. Edmonton is the most northerly major city in Canada, and serves as a gateway and hub for resource development in northern Canada. Alberta's other major city, Calgary, is located approximately 280 kilometres (170 mi) south of Edmonton and 240 kilometres (150 mi) north of Montana, surrounded by extensive ranching country. Almost 75% of the province's population lives in the Calgary-Edmonton Corridor, in and between the two major cities.
Most of the northern half of the province is boreal forest, while the Rocky Mountains along the southwestern boundary are largely forested. The southern quarter of the province is prairie, ranging from shortgrass prairie in the southeastern corner to mixed grass prairie in an arc to the west and north of it. The central aspen parkland region extending in a broad arc between the prairies and the forests, from Calgary, north to Edmonton, and then east to Lloydminster, contains the most fertile soil in the province and most of the population. Much of the unforested part of Alberta is given over either to grain or to dairy farming, with mixed farming more common in the north and centre, while ranching and irrigated agriculture predominate in the south.
The Alberta badlands are located in southeastern Alberta, where the Red Deer River crosses the flat prairie and farmland, and features deep gorges and striking landforms. Dinosaur Provincial Park, near Brooks, Alberta, showcases the badlands terrain, desert flora, and remnants from Alberta's past when dinosaurs roamed the then lush landscape.
Alberta is one of only two Canadian provinces to have no maritime coast (the other being the neighbouring province of Saskatchewan).
