Calgary was incorporated as a town in 1884 and as a city 10 years later, prior to the creation of the province of Alberta (1905). In 1884 it had only a few hundred settlers, but by the 1891 census its population had grown to 3,876. In 1891, after a number of false starts by other companies, the Calgary and Railway Company completed a rail connection between the two towns and leased the line to the CPR. The CPR was a major landowner and developer within Calgary as well as a promoter of the vast blocks of agricultural land it owned in the surrounding region. The company was also among a number of private investors in the irrigation of farmland in the early 20th century, which greatly lessened the risk of drought and brought in thousands of farmers, thus leading to the expansion of Calgary’s role as a service centre. With its farming community and railway connections in place, it was not long before Calgary became the main shipping centre for the cattle industry, with stockyards (some of them owned by the CPR), slaughterhouses, tanneries, and meat-processing plants. These early commercial and industrial ventures gained Calgary a lasting reputation as a “cow town.” By the early 1900s other rail lines radiated from Calgary, including a connection to the , solidifying its position as a provincial transportation centre. The discovery of at nearby Turner Valley (1914) spurred a new wave of growth, centred on petroleum, particularly after Alberta’s first refinery opened in 1923. Three years after the discovery of in those fields (1936), a second refinery was built. These early investments and the location there of head offices of petroleum companies and related industries—such as those dealing with surveying, drill rigs and equipment, transportation, and pipelines—cemented Calgary’s role as the business centre of the petroleum industry. The discovery of the well-known Leduc fields near Edmonton (1947) greatly stimulated the city’s economic expansion as well, although, over time, Edmonton would become the headquarters for oil refining, equipment supply, and the servicing of oil fields. The contemporary city CalgaryThe Bow River at Calgary, Alberta, Canada.(more)Calgary is located at the confluence of the and Elbow rivers, plus several smaller streams. The downtown core of Calgary, located primarily on the south bank of the Bow and west of the Elbow, is marked by its cluster of high-rise office towers., Calgary (/ ˈkælɡəri / [11]) is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in Canada. [12], Explore the great outdoors this spring in and around Calgary. Discover authentic, traditional Indigenous artwork, jewellery, clothing, history, outdoor experiences, and more. Calgary's culinary scene is constantly evolving – use this list to keep up with the hottest spots to eat in the city..