Tag Archive | edworthy park

Shaganappi Point and Edworthy Park – A New History

Posted by Bob Lefebvre

Many Calgary birders are familiar with the book Treasures Of The Trail, a beautifully illustrated nature guide to Edworthy Park, Lawry Gardens, and the Douglas Fir Trail. It was published in 2002 by the Edworthy Park Heritage Society. Now the society is planning to publish a new history of the area with much previously unpublished information. You can pre-order a copy, and once enough people have ordered it, publication will go ahead and you will then be contacted for payment. It is $30 for the new book and a copy of Treasures Of The Trail will be also be included! A great value, especially for those of you who do not have a copy of the older book.

Here is the information about this from the society:

Shaganappi Point and Edworthy Park: A New History by the Edworthy Park Heritage Society.

Edworthy Park
C.P.R. Quarry  outcrops along the Douglas Fir Trail. Photo courtesy of Anna Sanders © Anna Sanders, Edworthy Park Heritage Society

The Society has written an extensive history of the park area with much previously unpublished information gathered from historic newspapers, diaries, and archives across Canada.

Part I discusses Indigenous and Métis culture and history of the area, including the three Blackfoot names for this ancient territory, plus whether there was a Métis settlement at Shaganappi. Was there an indigenous trail in the area? And much more…

Part II discusses settlement, colonization history including unpublished information about the Government of Canada quarries at Shaganappi Point (Quarry Road Trail), and the C.P.R. quarries (next to the Douglas Fir Trail), the Thomas Edworthy quarries and the four brick plants of the park, the struggle between William Pearce vs. John Lawrey, the “old lime kiln”. It has many fine black and white photos and  a few hand-tinted vintage postcard photos.

Very few copies of the book will be published and we expect to almost sell out through pre-orders. In order to raise the money to print it, we are taking pre-orders.  The book is only available in a package with the Society’s nature guide, Treasures of the Trail,  included as a bonus, free of charge. It is $30 per copy plus postage where applicable. To pre-order, please send us an email at: eparkhs[at]gmail.com We will acknowledge your pre-order. If we have enough funds to print it, we will then contact you for payment. (P.S. The book will not be put on the internet).  Please support the Society and its new book!

Treasures Of The Trail
Treasures Of The Trail

Sunday Showcase: Northern Saw-Whet Owl

Posted by Dan Arndt

Earlier this year, we were informed of what appeared to be a female Northern Saw-whet Owl sitting on a nest in a Edworthy Park. To make sure the owl successfully nested and fledged its young, we kept the location pretty quiet, and both Bob Lefebvre and myself visited the nest a few times just to check in on her and make sure she was still there. The area where the nest was located was a fairly low-traffic area, so we suspected chances were very good that she would successfully fledge a full nest of owlets. As the weeks progressed, things seemed to be going quite well, until one day she was simply gone. Here are a few photos of her checking me out as I checked her out:

female Northern Saw-whet Owl giving me the evil eye May 2013

female Northern Saw-whet Owl giving me the evil eye
May 2013

female Northern Saw-whet Owl checking me out from inside the nest May 2013

female Northern Saw-whet Owl checking me out from inside the nest
May 2013

Nobody's home. Go away. May 2013

Nobody’s home. Go away.
May 2013

I see you seeing me! May 2013

I see you seeing me!
May 2013