Summer flowers in bloom on Memorial Drive.
Tag: yyc (Page 11 of 12)
“I just saw a guy try to kill himself from jumping off the balcony from that building there. The shit you see sometimes at ground level…
Oh well. It is what it is, I suppose. Take care of yourself brother.”
“It’s nice to see Calgary embracing hand-made crafts and artwork – it’s something special.” – Pam Morales, CraftedTruck.ca
“Who wants Riley Park!?”
“When farmer-politician Ezra H. Riley subdivided Hillhurst in 1904, he chose British street names such as Kensington Avenue, Gladstone Road, Preston Street and Beverly Street. The city annexed Hillhurst in 1907 and before long, most of the street names were changed to numbers. Kensington Avenue became Centre Avenue, and served as the dividing point between northwest and southwest Calgary. When the quadrant boundary shifted south to the Bow River in 1926, Kensington Road acquired its present name.”
“They’re going to tear it down and turn it into affordable housing for 25 people who have managed to get off the streets.The afgans and yarn bombing is a way to show thanks to what this house was and what it’s going to become – a home.” – Linda Hawke, President of the Board of This is My City Art Society (TMC)
Find out more about this project at: The Calgary Homeless Foundation.
“His name is ‘Mr. Puffkin.’ He’s special because he’s a survivor of Parvo. One time a coyote came up to him and sniffed his butt – other than that he’s not so special.”
Calgary’s McHugh Bluff
Felix McHugh was a homesteader who moved to (what is now) Calgary from Ontario in the late 1800’s. He settled the land and, with his brothers John and Thomas, started work in the cattle industry, supplying meat to the nearby First Nation reservations. Among McHugh’s farmhands was Harry Longabaugh, A.K.A Harry Place, A.K.A. Frank Boyd, A.K.A. The Sundance Kid – who would later become a renowned outlaw (portrayed by Robert Redford in fila few decades later).
Eventually, Ezra Riley purchased the land from the McHughs and sold it to the City of Calgary in 1906. It was subdivided into the communities of Hillhurst, West Hillhurst and Hounsfield Heights in 1910. In that same year, he donated the property of Riley Park to the City of Calgary. Hillhurst and Sunnyside were established as communities in 1914.
Felix McHugh died on May 4th, 1912 at the age of 61. The site of his home is now a playground that sits on the corner where 5th Avenue and 7th Street NW meet.
Today is the launch of #Sunnyside365! I’m Simultaneously excited and terrified!
I chose this day to launch this project for two reasons:
- First, it’s the Summer Solstice. I figured it would be a great milestone to measure this project by the equinox and solstices throughout the journey.
- Secondly, I wanted to profile some history of the Sunnyside/Hillhurst area of Calgary. However, the more I looked into the history of this community, the more I learned about the First Nations communities who used to call this place home. I thought that coinciding the launch of #Sunnyside365 with National Aboriginal Day was the best way I could honour the Treaty 7 Nations who relinquished claim to this area.
History has not been kind to Canada’s indigenous people. As a first generation Canadian of Armenian descent, I’m frequently reminded of the unhealing wound our people felt in the massacres, genocide and annexation of our homelands, of the Armenian Diaspora who were separated from their homes by war and politics. I can hardly imagine what it must be like to the Tsuu T’ina, Stoney/Nakoda, Kainai, Piikani, Siksika people who became lower than secondary citizens when the Homesteaders arrived.
I’d like to dedicate this project to Canada’s Aboriginal people.
If I feel nervous, it’s because I am! Just shy of one week to go before the launch of Sunnyside365!
The days are getting longer, the skies are getting a bit clearer. It won’t be long until the solstice is here!
