Suffield, Alberta
Encyclopedia
Suffield is a hamlet
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
in southern Alberta
Southern Alberta
Southern Alberta is a region located in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of the year 2004, the region's population was approximately 272,017. The primary cities are Lethbridge and Medicine Hat...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
within Cypress County
Cypress County, Alberta
Cypress County is a municipal district located in southeastern Alberta, Canada. The County completely surrounds the City of Medicine Hat and the Town of Redcliff.The municipality is part of Census Division 1, Alberta.- Geography :...
. It is located on the Trans-Canada Highway
Trans-Canada Highway
The Trans-Canada Highway is a federal-provincial highway system that joins the ten provinces of Canada. It is, along with the Trans-Siberian Highway and Australia's Highway 1, one of the world's longest national highways, with the main route spanning 8,030 km...
(Highway 1) approximately 32 km (19.9 mi) northwest of Medicine Hat
Medicine Hat, Alberta
Medicine Hat, known to locals as "The Hat", is a city of 61,097 people located in the southeastern part of the province of Alberta, Canada. It is enclaved within Cypress County along with the nearby Town of Redcliff, although neither is part of the county....
.
History
Established by the Canadian Pacific RailwayCanadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
(CPR) in 1884, Suffield was named after Charles Harbord, 5th Baron Suffield
Charles Harbord, 5th Baron Suffield
Charles Harbord, 5th Baron Suffield GCVO, KCB, PC, JP, DL , was a British peer, courtier and Liberal politician. A close friend of Edward VII, he served as a Lord of the Bedchamber and Lord-in-Waiting to the King...
who married in 1854, Cecilia Annetta, the sister of Edward Baring, 1st Baron Revelstoke
Edward Baring, 1st Baron Revelstoke
Edward Charles Baring, 1st Baron Revelstoke , was a British banker.-Biography:A member of the famous Baring banking family, "Ned" Baring was the second son of Henry Baring from his second marriage, to Cecilia Anne . Sir Francis Baring, 1st Baronet, was his grandfather and Evelyn Baring, 1st Earl of...
, who assisted in financing the railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
.
Near the beginning of the 20th Century, Suffield experienced rapid growth arising from the construction of the CPR
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
. One of the larger building in the area at the time, the 32 room Alamo Hotel was constructed in 1910 by W.R. Martin, superintendent of CPR
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
oil and gas exploration, A.M. Grace, chief engineer of the Southern Alberta Land Company, and A.P. Phillips at a cost of $30,000. A reporter from the Medicine Hat News
Medicine Hat News
The Medicine Hat News is a daily newspaper published in Medicine Hat, Alberta. It features a city news section, a national news section, a world news section, a sports section, a comics section, and a classifieds section. The paper is owned by Southern Alberta Newspapers and has been published...
wrote on Oct 20, 1910, "The most beautiful hotel alongside the CPR from Winnipeg to Calgary, stands on the prairie within a stone's throw of one of the biggest gas wells in the Medicine Hat district in what promises to be, in the near future, the city of Suffield". The hotel hosted a 40 foot stand-up bar and was reported to be one of the finest in the country. Hard times hit with the First World War and with the introduction of Prohibition
Prohibition in Canada
The temperance movement reached its height in Canada in the 1920s, when outside imports were cut off by provincial referendums. As legislation prohibiting consumption of alcohol was repealed, it was typically replaced with regulation restricting the sale of alcohol to minors and imposing excise...
in 1915. In 1926, the hotel was sold to the Calgary Brewing and Malting Company and moved to Sylvan Lake
Sylvan Lake, Alberta
Sylvan Lake is a town in central Alberta, Canada. It is located west of the City of Red Deer along Highway 11 or Highway 11A. It is situated on the southeast edge of Sylvan Lake, a long freshwater lake, in Red Deer County....
in 1927 to replace a hotel that burnt down.
Railway
In 1913, a branch line of the CPR was constructed between Suffield and RetlawRetlaw, Alberta
Retlaw is an unincorporated community located in the Municipal District of Taber, Alberta, Canada. It is located 2 km west of Highway 864 6 km west of Vauxhall and 42 km northwest of Taber and 75 km southwest of Brooks.- History :In 1910, the original post-office in the...
. In 1914, the Suffield-Retlaw was extended to Lomond, completing the 84 mile branch. The Suffield-Lomond line was extended to Arrowwood in 1925. In 1930, the line was extended to Eltham on the Kipp-Aldersyde line near Blackie
Blackie, Alberta
Blackie is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within the Municipal District of Foothills No. 31. It is located approximately southeast of Calgary on Highway 799.- History :...
. The stops on the line were Suffield, Agatha, Hlingworth, Ronolane, Cecil, Armelgra, Scope, Grantham, Vauxhall
Vauxhall, Alberta
Vauxhall is a town in southern Alberta, Canada. It is located in the Municipal District of Taber, in the prairie land between Bow River and Oldman River....
, Retlaw
Retlaw, Alberta
Retlaw is an unincorporated community located in the Municipal District of Taber, Alberta, Canada. It is located 2 km west of Highway 864 6 km west of Vauxhall and 42 km northwest of Taber and 75 km southwest of Brooks.- History :In 1910, the original post-office in the...
, Enchant
Enchant, Alberta
Enchant is a hamlet in southern Alberta, Canada within the Municipal District of Taber. It is located on Highway 526 and the Canadian Pacific Railway, between Vauxhall and Lomond. It has an elevation of .The hamlet is located in census division No...
, Travers, Lomond, Armada, Pageant, Milo, Qeenstown, Shouldice and Arrowwood. The coach fare in 1948 was $3.75. The line has since been abandoned and the rails removed.
Climate
Suffield experiences a semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classificationKöppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by Crimea German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen himself, notably in 1918 and 1936...
BSk) with long, cold, dry winters and short but very warm summers. Precipitation is low, with an annual average of 318 mm, and is concentrated in the warmer months.
See also
- List of communities in Alberta
- List of hamlets in Alberta
- Canadian Forces Base SuffieldCFB SuffieldCanadian Forces Base Suffield , is the largest Canadian Forces Base and the largest Commonwealth military training base in the world...
- British Army Training Unit SuffieldBritish Army Training Unit SuffieldThe British Army Training Unit Suffield is a British Army unit located at the vast training area of Canadian Forces Base Suffield in Alberta, Canada...