31-595: Drumheller / d r ʌ m ˈ h ɛ l ər / is a town on the Red Deer River in the badlands of east-central Alberta , Canada. It is located 110 kilometres (68 mi) northeast of Calgary and 97 kilometres (60 mi) south of Stettler . The Drumheller portion of the Red Deer River valley, often referred to as Dinosaur Valley, has an approximate width of 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) and an approximate length of 28 kilometres (17 mi). Drumheller
62-465: A change of -0.9% from its 2016 population of 7,982. With a land area of 107.56 km (41.53 sq mi), it had a population density of 73.5/km (190.4/sq mi) in 2021. In the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Town of Drumheller recorded a population of 7,982 living in 3,164 of its 3,471 total private dwellings, a -0.6% change from its 2011 population of 8,029. With
93-533: A city on April 3, 1930. Over a 15-year period, Drumheller's population increased 857% from 312 in 1916 to 2,987 in 1931 shortly after becoming a city. Drumheller boomed until the end of the Second World War when coal lost most of its value. The City of Drumheller amalgamated with the Municipal District of Badlands No. 7 on January 1, 1998, to form the current Town of Drumheller. Some of
124-735: A land area of 108.03 km (41.71 sq mi), it had a population density of 73.9/km (191.4/sq mi) in 2016. Drumheller was once the largest coal producing city in Western Canada, with the Atlas Coal Mine . Now, coal mining has been replaced by natural gas and oil. Drumheller has Alberta's second largest natural gas field, the West Drumheller Field. However, Drumheller is planning to transition away from fossil fuels and emphasize renewable energy sources, such as wind power, in its economy. Currently, tourism
155-1155: A south-east direction, and while it flows through Dinosaur Provincial Park it turns east and flows to the Alberta/Saskatchewan border, which it crosses at Empress . It flows for 16 km (9.9 mi) through Saskatchewan before it merges into the South Saskatchewan River . The waters of Ewing Lake, Little Fish Lake also flow into the Red Deer River. Sport fish include: walleye , northern pike , sauger , lake whitefish , yellow perch , burbot , lake sturgeon , mountain whitefish , goldeye , brown trout , bull trout , rainbow trout , brook trout , and cutthroat trout . Other fish include: emerald shiner , river shiner , spottail shiner , flathead chub , longnose dace , quillback (quillback carpsucker), longnose sucker , white sucker , shorthead redhorse , silver redhorse , perch , spoonhead sculpin , lake chub , northern pearl dace , northern redbelly dace , finescale dace , fathead minnow and brook stickleback . The Red Deer River
186-601: Is Drumheller's main industry. A federal prison and regional medical complex also contribute to the economy. Agriculture is also quite important. South of the traffic bridge over the Red Deer river on Highway 9 is the World's Largest Dinosaur , a 26.2-metre (86 ft) high fiberglass Tyrannosaurus rex that can be entered for a view of the Badlands, including the adjacent 23 metre (75 ft) water fountain, again one of
217-536: Is February, with an average of 8.6 mm (0.34 in) of precipitation, while the wettest is June, with an average of 68.9 mm (2.71 in). Atlas Coal Mine The Atlas Coal Mine National Historic Site is an inactive coal mine in Alberta , Canada that operated from 1936 to 1979. Located in East Coulee near Drumheller , it is considered to be Canada's most complete historic coal mine and
248-420: Is a river in Alberta and a small portion of Saskatchewan , Canada. It is a major tributary of the South Saskatchewan River and is part of the larger Saskatchewan / Nelson system that empties into Hudson Bay . The river has a total length of 724 km (450 mi) and a drainage area of 45,100 km (17,400 sq mi). Its mean discharge is 70 m /s (2,500 cu ft/s). The river
279-530: Is home to the country's last standing wooden coal tipple , and the largest still standing in North America. It was designated an Alberta Provincial Historic Resource in 1989 and a National Historic Site of Canada in 2002. The sub-bituminous coal from the Drumheller mining district was mainly used for home heating, cooking and electrical generation. It was also used to power the steam locomotives of
310-463: Is named for the translation of a native term for the river, wâwâskêsiw sîpiy, which means "elk river" in the Cree language . "Red deer" was an alternative name for elk , referring to a closely related Eurasian species . Communities located along the Red Deer River include Sundre , Red Deer , Drumheller , and Empress , The city of Brooks , as well as Dinosaur Provincial Park , are also located in
341-650: Is the water source for the City of Red Deer and the surrounding area. Pipelines cross under the river and there have been leaks disrupting access to potable water. Increased water flow of the Red Deer River system during heavy rainfall in June 2008 eroded supporting soil, freely exposing a section of Pembina Pipeline Corporation's Cremona crude oil pipeline to the Red Deer River currents. About 75 to 125 barrels (11,900 to 19,900 L; 2,600 to 4,400 imp gal; 3,200 to 5,200 US gal) of crude oil flowed upstream from
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#1732772801314372-578: The 4a plant hardiness zone . Summers are typically warm and rainy with cool nights. Winters are typically long, cold, and very dry. Empress is located in the steppe region known as Palliser's Triangle and experiences a semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification BSk ). Winters are long, cold and dry, while summers are short, but with average daytime highs that are warm to hot, though nighttime lows are cool. Spring and autumn are quite short, essentially transition periods between winter and summer. Wide diurnal temperature ranges are regular, due to
403-727: The Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Railways on the prairies. The flat-lying seams were easier to mine than those found in more mountainous areas, with lower levels of methane gas. The coal-mining era lasted from 1911 to 1984, when the Atlas No. 3 and 4 mines closed. The Atlas No. 3 Mine structures are preserved and form the basis of the National Historic Site, administered by the Atlas Mine Historical Society. The mine features
434-677: The Homestead Museum and the Little Church, which is capable of seating only six patrons. Next to the now closed Drumheller ski hill is the Canadian Badlands Passion Play site, where, for two weeks each July, performances are held. The Badlands Amphitheatre began hosting the Passion Play in 1991. Companies are composed of actors from all over Alberta. The site also offers small plays throughout
465-564: The Province of Alberta. As a result of the amalgamation, Drumheller became Alberta's largest town in terms of land area at 107.93 square kilometres (41.67 sq mi). The 1998 amalgamation resulted in Drumheller absorbing six hamlets that were previously under the jurisdiction of the Municipal District of Badlands No. 7— Cambria , East Coulee , Lehigh , Nacmine , Rosedale and Wayne . Drumheller also previously absorbed
496-486: The Red Deer River Basin. A glacial flood about 18,000 years ago eroded out a portion of this basin and apparently all or most of the scenic badlands bearing the dinosaur and other Cretaceous fossils. Joseph Tyrrell discovered a huge coal seam here in 1883, besides large dinosaur skeletons. In June 2013, Alberta, Canada, experienced heavy rainfall that triggered catastrophic flooding throughout much of
527-486: The Red Deer River. Red Deer has a humid continental climate ( Köppen Dfb ), with something of a semi-arid influence due to the city's location within Palliser's Triangle . The highest temperature ever recorded in Red Deer was 37.2 °C (99.0 °F) on 8 July 1906, 2 July 1924, and 28 & 29 June 1937. The lowest recorded temperature was −50.6 °C (−59.1 °F) on 17 December 1924. The city lies in
558-770: The Town of Drumheller, in Midland Provincial Park and is operated by the Government of Alberta under the Ministry of Arts, Culture and Status of Women. DrumhellerOnline.com is Drumheller's local news portal. Newspapers covering Drumheller include the weekly Drumheller Mail , which has been publishing every Wednesday since 1911 and has been owned by the Sheddy family since 1954. All stations are analogue relays of stations from Calgary. Drumheller/Ostergard's Airport and Drumheller Municipal Airport are in
589-418: The aridity and moderately high elevation. Low humidity is prevalent throughout the year. Annual precipitation is very low, with an average of 311.6 mm (12.27 in), and is heavily concentrated in the warmer months. On average, the coldest month is January, with a mean temperature of −12 °C (10 °F), while the warmest is July, with a mean temperature of 19.8 °C (67.6 °F). The driest month
620-750: The break point under a Red Deer River channel, leaving an oily sheen on Gleniffer Reservoir and 6,800 kg (15,000 lb) of oil-soaked debris. The remediation was not completed until 2011. Heavy rains in early June 2012 caused a similar but larger leak on a Plains Midstream Canada 46-year-old pipeline on a Red Deer River tributary, Jackson Creek , Alberta ( 51°52′19″N 114°36′23″W / 51.87194°N 114.60639°W / 51.87194; -114.60639 ( Jackson Creek ) ) near Gleniffer Lake and Dickson Dam , which spilled approximately 1,000 and 3,000 barrels (160,000 and 480,000 L; 35,000 and 105,000 imp gal; 42,000 and 126,000 US gal) of light sour crude oil into
651-911: The eastern slopes of the Canadian Rockies , in the Sawback Range near the Skoki Valley inside Banff National Park , and then flows east through the mountains and foothills region. It turns north-east before Sundre and flows to an artificial reservoir named Gleniffer Lake , created in 1983 by the Dickson Dam and keeps this heading to the city of Red Deer , where it turns east, and then south before Stettler . It flows south with its valley protected by provincial and regional parks such as Tolman Badlands Heritage Rangeland , Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park , Dry Island Corridor and Midland Provincial Park . At Drumheller it has
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#1732772801314682-647: The hamlets of Bankview , Midlandvale (Midland) , Newcastle and North Drumheller during annexations while under city status. Bankview and Midland were annexed in 1964 and 1972 respectively, while Newcastle and North Drumheller were both annexed in 1967. Other localities within Drumheller, either absorbed through past annexations or its eventual amalgamation with Badlands No. 7, include Aerial , Eladesor , Kneehill , Rosedale Station , Western Monarch (Atlas) and Willow Creek . In total, Drumheller has absorbed at least 13 other communities in its history, some of which are now recognized as neighbourhoods or districts within
713-656: The largest in Canada. Tourist attractions also include the Star Mine Suspension Bridge , Atlas Coal Mine , Canadian Badlands Passion Play , Horseshoe Canyon , Rotary Spray Park, Aquaplex (with indoor and outdoor pools), Horse Thief Canyon, hoodoos , Midland Provincial Park , the Rosedeer Hotel in Wayne, 27 kilometres (17 mi) of constructed pathways, Bleriot Ferry , East Coulee School Museum,
744-523: The last wooden coal tipple in Canada . Built in 1937, the tipple is a coal loading and sorting machine. At over 7 storeys tall the tipple now serves as a reminder of the rich mining history of the Drumheller Valley. Old mining equipment, including a working pre-1936 battery powered locomotive and several buildings including the wash house, supply house, lamp house, and mine office still stand at
775-410: The reasons the two municipalities amalgamated included Badlands No. 7 having more in common with Drumheller than other surrounding rural municipalities and both were experiencing similar planning and development issues due to their locations within the Red Deer River valley. The amalgamated municipality opted for town status rather than city status so that highways within would remain the responsibility of
806-435: The site. The site preserves the stories and artifacts of the men who once mined the black. The Atlas is the last of 139 mines that once ruled the valley. Thirteen people died during the mine's operation. Four died on one day, June 24, 1941, when a gas explosion killed three, and a fourth died in a vain attempt to rescue them. The facilities are open to visitors from May to Thanksgiving weekend. Guided tours take visitors into
837-481: The southern half of the province along the Bow , Elbow , Highwood , Oldman , and Red Deer rivers and tributaries. Twenty-four municipalities declared local states of emergency as water levels rose and numerous communities were placed under evacuation orders. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police stated four people may have drowned near High River . Over 100,000 people in the region were displaced. The river originates on
868-493: The summer and an interpretive centre. Drumheller was also home to the Valley Doll Museum and Gifts, where it displayed over 700 dolls. The Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology is a museum that hosts Canada's largest collection of dinosaur fossils. It boasts 500,000 visitors a year, the largest of all provincial museum attractions. It opened on September 25, 1985. The museum is located in the northwest quadrant of
899-470: The town. Drumheller experiences a semi-arid climate ( BSk ) with very cold winters and hot summers. The highest temperature ever recorded in Drumheller was 40.6 °C (105 °F) on July 18, 1941. The coldest temperature ever recorded was −43.9 °C (−47 °F) on January 29, 1996. In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada , the Town of Drumheller had a population of 7,909 living in 3,198 of its 3,557 total private dwellings,
930-424: The vicinity of Drumheller. None have regular passenger flights. Passenger rail service ran from 1912 up until 1981 but freight continued on the through lines up until 2014. The railway was decommissioned and demolished in 2014. 51°27′49″N 112°43′10″W / 51.46361°N 112.71944°W / 51.46361; -112.71944 ( Drumheller ) Red Deer River The Red Deer River
961-401: Was named after Samuel Drumheller, who, after purchasing the homestead of Thomas Patrick Greentree, had it surveyed into the original Drumheller townsite and put lots on the market in 1911. Also in 1911, Samuel Drumheller started coal mining operations near the townsite. Drumheller got a railway station in 1912. It was then incorporated as a village on May 15, 1913, a town on March 2, 1916, and