Edworthy Park
Edworthy Park is a city park located in the Northwest section of Calgary along the south shore of the Bow River. The Canadian Pacific Railway crosses the length of the park. It was named after Thomas Edworthy, who emigrated to the Calgary area in 1883 from Devon, England.[1]
Edworthy Park | |
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Bow River seen from Edworthy Park | |
Location of Edworthy Park in Calgary | |
Type | Urban park |
Location | Calgary, Alberta |
Coordinates | 51°03′41″N 114°09′23″W |
Area | 1.27 square kilometres (0.49 sq mi) |
Created | ca. 1962 |
Operated by | City of Calgary |
Open | Year round |
The park has a surface of 1.27 square kilometres (0.49 sq mi), and contains over 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) of hiking and biking trails, part of the Bow River pathway.
Nature
The trees that can be found in Edworthy Park include riparian woodland with aspen, willow and balsam poplar. There is also some grassland and mixed shrubland, and an escarpment where white spruce dominates. With the spruce is an isolated population of Douglas-fir, some more than 400 years old.
History
Edworthy Park is built on the former site of a sandstone quarry. The land was purchased by the City of Calgary in 1962 for the development of the park.[2][3]
Prior to the mid-1990s, the City of Calgary intended to eventually replace Edworthy Park with an extension of the Shaganappi Trail freeway. The extension would have linked Shaganappi Trail, Sarcee Trail, and Bow Trail at a major interchange that would take up most of the southwest part of Edworthy Park. During development of the Calgary Transportation Plan (also known as "The Go Plan") in 1995, public opposition to the roadway led to it being removed from future consideration.[4]
Gallery
- Harry Boothman Bridge from Edworthy Park to Shaganappi
References
- The Edworthy Park Heritage Society (1994). Early Days in Edworthy Park and the Neighboring areas of Brickburn and Lowery Gardens. Calgary. p. 9.
- "Edworthy Park". The City of Calgary. The City of Calgary. Retrieved 16 July 2018.
The land was purchased by The City in 1962 for the development of a park.
- "City of Calgary Parks, Recreation and Cemeteries Department Annual Report — 1962/63" (PDF). The City of Calgary. The City of Calgary. Retrieved 16 July 2018.
The most notable acquisition being the 191 acres involved in the Shaganappi Ranch purchase, for the development of Edworthy Park along the south bank of the Bow River, west of the City.
- "Crossing the Elbow River – 1990 to 1995". The History of a Road. Retrieved 16 July 2018.
All of the study’s recommendations taken together was enough to ensure that new river crossings would not be recommended in the City’s near future.