Coleman, Alberta
Encyclopedia
Coleman is an urban community in the Rocky Mountains
within the Municipality of Crowsnest Pass
in southwest Alberta
, Canada
. It was formerly incorporated as a town prior to 1979 when it amalgamated with four other municipalities to form Crowsnest Pass.
Coleman is located in census division
No. 15
and in the riding of Macleod
. It is served by the Crowsnest Highway
and the Canadian Pacific Railway.
, to service a new coal mine operated by the International Coal and Coke Company. Initial names of Paulson’s Camp or McGillivray Hill were rejected by the post office, settling on Coleman (after Coleman Flumerfelt, the daughter of the mine owner A. C. Flumerfelt). A feature of the town was the mine’s 100 (later 216) coke ovens located at the edge of town, which operated from 1906 to 1952. The town grew rapidly, surpassing its neighbour Blairmore as the largest in the region. Coleman boasted a successful opera house from 1908 until it burned down in 1948.
Coleman persevered through strikes (1911 and 1932), floods (1923 and 1942) and fires (1948). As the coal mines in the region gradually closed, Coleman's commercial importance waned in favour of Blairmore. Coleman amalgamated with four other municipalities to form the Municipality of Crowsnest Pass
in 1979.
Coleman's coal mining heritage is evident in its several historic buildings, a regional museum, the ruins of its coal plant and coke ovens, several nearby abandoned mines and the "biggest piggy bank
in the world" made from a 36 inches (914.4 mm) gauge air driven thermos bottle mine locomotive
.
Industry Canada shows that Coleman's greater area had a total population of 1,989 living in 971 dwellings in 2001. With a land area of 89.99 km² (34.7 sq mi), its greater area has a population density
of 15 /km2.
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
within the Municipality of Crowsnest Pass
Crowsnest Pass, Alberta
The Municipality of Crowsnest Pass is a specialized municipality located in the Crowsnest Pass of the Rocky Mountains in southwest Alberta, Canada. The municipality formed as a result of the amalgamation of five municipalities – the Village of Bellevue, the Town of Blairmore, Town of Coleman, the...
in southwest Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
, 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...
. It was formerly incorporated as a town prior to 1979 when it amalgamated with four other municipalities to form Crowsnest Pass.
Coleman is located in census division
Census division
Census division is an official term in Canada and the United States. The census divisions of Canada are second-level census geographic unit, below provinces and territories, and above "census subdivisions" and "dissemination areas". In provinces where they exist, the census division may correspond...
No. 15
Division No. 15, Alberta
Division No. 15 is a census division in Alberta, Canada. The majority of the division is located in Alberta's Rockies, while the southernmost portion of the division is located within southern Alberta...
and in the riding of Macleod
Macleod (electoral district)
Macleod is a federal electoral district in Alberta, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1908 to 1968 and since 1988...
. It is served by the Crowsnest Highway
Crowsnest Highway
The Crowsnest Highway, also known as the Interprovincial or, in British Columbia, the Southern Trans-Provincial, is an east-west highway, in length, through the southern parts of British Columbia and Alberta, providing the shortest highway connection between British Columbia's Lower Mainland and...
and the Canadian Pacific Railway.
History
In 1903 a new townsite was laid out a few kilometres west of Blairmore, AlbertaBlairmore, Alberta
Blairmore is an urban community in the Rocky Mountains within the Municipality of Crowsnest Pass in southwest Alberta, Canada. It was formerly incorporated as a town prior to 1979 when it amalgamated with four other municipalities to form Crowsnest Pass...
, to service a new coal mine operated by the International Coal and Coke Company. Initial names of Paulson’s Camp or McGillivray Hill were rejected by the post office, settling on Coleman (after Coleman Flumerfelt, the daughter of the mine owner A. C. Flumerfelt). A feature of the town was the mine’s 100 (later 216) coke ovens located at the edge of town, which operated from 1906 to 1952. The town grew rapidly, surpassing its neighbour Blairmore as the largest in the region. Coleman boasted a successful opera house from 1908 until it burned down in 1948.
Coleman persevered through strikes (1911 and 1932), floods (1923 and 1942) and fires (1948). As the coal mines in the region gradually closed, Coleman's commercial importance waned in favour of Blairmore. Coleman amalgamated with four other municipalities to form the Municipality of Crowsnest Pass
Crowsnest Pass, Alberta
The Municipality of Crowsnest Pass is a specialized municipality located in the Crowsnest Pass of the Rocky Mountains in southwest Alberta, Canada. The municipality formed as a result of the amalgamation of five municipalities – the Village of Bellevue, the Town of Blairmore, Town of Coleman, the...
in 1979.
Coleman's coal mining heritage is evident in its several historic buildings, a regional museum, the ruins of its coal plant and coke ovens, several nearby abandoned mines and the "biggest piggy bank
Piggy bank
Piggy bank is the traditional name of a coin accumulation and storage receptacle; it is most often, but not exclusively, used by children. The piggy bank is known to collectors as a "still bank" as opposed to the "mechanical banks" popular in the early 20th century. These items are also often used...
in the world" made from a 36 inches (914.4 mm) gauge air driven thermos bottle mine locomotive
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
.
Demographics
According to the 2006 Census of Canada, the population of Coleman is 1,065, which represents 19% of the overall population of the Municipality of Crowsnest Pass (5,749).Industry Canada shows that Coleman's greater area had a total population of 1,989 living in 971 dwellings in 2001. With a land area of 89.99 km² (34.7 sq mi), its greater area has a population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
of 15 /km2.