Turner Valley

Turner Valley is a town in the Calgary Region of Alberta, Canada within the Municipal District of Foothills No. 31. It is located on Highway 22 (Cowboy Trail),  west of Black Diamond and approximately  southwest of Calgary. It was named after Robert and John Turner who settled in the area in 1886.

The town was once the centre of an oil and natural gas boom. For 30 years, the Turner Valley oilfields were a major supplier of oil and gas and the largest producer in the British Empire.

Demographics 
In the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Town of Turner Valley recorded a population of 2,559 living in 1,019 of its 1,066 total private dwellings, a change of  from its 2011 population of 2,167. With a land area of , it had a population density of  in 2016.

The population of the Town of Turner Valley according to its 2015 municipal census is 2,511, a change of  from its 2008 municipal census population of 2,022.

In the 2011 Census, the Town of Turner Valley had a population of 2,167 living in 888 of its 934 total dwellings, a change of 13.6% from its 2006 population of 1,908. With a land area of , it had a population density of  in 2011.

Attractions 
Kananaskis Country, approximately  to the west, offers camping, hiking, cross-country skiing, horseback riding, fishing and bird watching.

Recreation venues include the 18-hole semi-private Turner Valley Golf and Country Club, outdoor Dr. Lander Memorial Pool, an outdoor rink and skateboard park, and Friendship Trail,  paved link to nearby Black Diamond.

History 
W. Stewart Herron, a rancher from nearby Okotoks, gathered investors from local luminaries such as Senator James Lougheed, R.B. Bennett and A.E. Cross. Herron himself lacked the technical expertise to drill Turner Valley's  fossil-fuel that was some 800 meters underground. Herron recruited drilling expert Archibald Dingman, a 19th-century American veteran from Pennsylvania.

On May 14, 1914, A.W. Dingman struck wet natural gas - which produced gasoline. However, in 1920, the main buildings burned to the ground. Herron's group could not afford to rebuild and operate the site.  Imperial Oil bought Calgary Petroleum Products, created a subsidiary - Royalite Oil Co. - and rebuilt the plant.

The plant ceased operations in 1985 and with the encouragement of a local group, the Turner Valley Oilfield Society, and the most recent owner of the gas plant, the Alberta provincial government accepted the site as part of its group of historic sites.  Since that time the Culture department of the Alberta government has been at work on the Turner Valley Gas Plant, primarily stabilizing the facility and removing or mitigating the contaminants on the site. In 2014 Alberta Culture held a celebration on May 14, 2014, on the day of the centennial of the discovery of oil on the site. More than 2000 people attended this full day of events.
 It is estimated that, along with the $20 million spent on restoring the site, an additional $20 million will be needed to help get the site operational.

Education 
Students in kindergarten through grade 6 attend Turner Valley Elementary School. Junior and senior high school students attend Oilfields High School in Black Diamond.

Notable people 
Laureen Harper, wife of former Prime Minister Stephen Harper
Dwight Lodeweges, former professional soccer player
Stanley A. Milner, Canadian businessman and former politician.

See also 
List of communities in Alberta
List of towns in Alberta

Images

References

External links 

Category:1930 establishments in Alberta
Category:Calgary Region
Category:Towns in Alberta