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Wetaskiwin ( ) is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. The city is south of the provincial capital of Edmonton. The city name comes from the Cree word , meaning "the hills where peace was made".
Wetaskiwin is home to the Reynolds-Alberta Museum, a museum dedicated to celebrating "the spirit of the machine" as well as the Wetaskiwin and District Heritage Museum, which documents the pioneer arrival and lifestyle in Wetaskiwin's early years. Southeast of Wetaskiwin, the Alberta Central Railway Museum acknowledges the impact that the railway had on Central Alberta.
The city is well known in Western Canada for the slogan and jingle "Cars cost less in Wetaskiwin", from the Wetaskiwin Auto Dealers Association. Both have been in print, radio, and television advertisements since the mid-1970s.
History
The future location of Wetaskiwin was once the site of a battle between the Cree and the Blackfoot, known as Wee-Tas-Ki-Win-Spatinow for "the place where peace was made". In 1890, when the Calgary and Edmonton Railway was built, it became a whistle-stop, and was known as Siding 16. In 1892, when the area was surveyed, it was named Wetaskiwin to commemorate the battle.
By 1908, Wetaskiwin had a town hall and several churches. The town's courthouse was built in 1909,
After World War II, Wetaskiwin airport was founded; it later became the site of the Reynolds-Alberta Museum.
Geography
Wetaskiwin sits on what was formerly the coast of the large sea that covered much of Alberta millions of years ago. The northwest end of Wetaskiwin is characterized by hills with sandy soil (formerly sand dunes), while the southeast end of the city is very flat with more silty soil.
The city lies at an elevation of . Coal Lake, a reservoir developed on the Battle River is immediately east of the city, and other nearby waterways include Pipestone Creek, Bigstone Creek, Bittern Lake and Bearhills Lake.
Wetaskiwin is at the junction of Highway 2A, Highway 13 and the Canadian Pacific Kansas City railway. It was a stagecoach stop between Calgary and Edmonton.
Climate
Wetaskiwin has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfb) with warm summers that retain cool nights, and
cold winters. It falls into zone 3b under Plant hardiness zones.