WETASKIWIN, ALBERTA

'Wetaskiwin' is a small city in the province of Alberta, Canada (pronounced ). The city is located south of the provincial capital of Edmonton. The city name comes from the Cree word ''wītaskīwin-ispatinaw'' (ᐑᑕᐢᑮᐏᐣ ᐃᐢᐸᑎᓇᐤ), meaning "the hills where peace was made".^[2]
Wetaskiwin is home to the Reynolds-Alberta Museum, a very large museum dedicated to celebrating "the spirit of the machine". Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame is also located a short walk away from the museum.

Contents

Geography

Demographics

Economy

Politics

References

External links

Geography

Wetaskiwin sits on what was formerly the coast of the large sea that covered much of Alberta millions of years ago. The northwest end of Wetaskiwin is characterized by hills with sandy soil (formerly sand dunes), while the southeast end of the city is very flat with more silty soil.
The city lies at an altitude of . ''Coal Lake'', a reservoir developed on the Battle River is located immediately east of the city, and other nearby waterways include Pipestone Creek, Bigstone Creek, Bittner Lake and Bearhills Lake.
Wetaskiwin is located at the junction of Highway 2A, Highway 13 and the Canadian Pacific railroad.

Demographics

The city had a population 11,154 in 2005.^[3]
In 2006, Wetaskiwin had a population of 11,673 living in 4,956 dwellings, a 4.7% increase from 2001. The city has a land area of and a population density of .

Economy

;Auto Mile
Wetaskiwin has the distinction of having the highest level of car sales per capita in Canada, thanks in a large part to city specific advertising produced through co-operation of all of the auto dealers lining the "Auto Mile". Though the slogan "Cars Cost Less in Wetaskiwin" tends to embarrass many of the residents of Wetaskiwin, the advertising campaign has clearly had an impact and is quite successful. In many cases, that slogan is all that the people in nearby towns know about Wetaskiwin.

Politics

Wetaskiwin, like much of rural Alberta, tends to vote very conservatively. In the 2006 federal election the Conservative candidate received almost 74% of the vote, enormously ahead of the local Liberal candidate who polled just under 12%.

References

1.
2. Alberta Municipal Affairs. Wetaskiwin, Alberta - downloaded 19 January, 2007. Website cites Cree origin as "wetaskiwin spatinow", spelling adjusted to modern standards.
3. Statistics Canada (2002). Wetaskiwin Community Profile - 2001 Community Profiles. Released June 27, 2002. Last modified: 2005-11-30. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 93F0053XIE.

External links

★ City of Wetaskiwin

★ Wetaskiwin Times - Wetaskiwin's local paper