Medicine Hat

Medicine Hat
City
Downtown Medicine Hat overlooking the City Hall
Flag
Coat of arms
Logo
Nicknames: 
"The Hat", "The Gas City", "Saamis"[1]
Motto(s): 
Animo et Fide  (Latin)
"By Courage and Faith"
City boundaries
Medicine Hat
Location in Alberta
Medicine Hat
Location in Canada
Medicine Hat
Location in Cypress County
Coordinates: 50°02′27″N 110°40′36″W / 50.04083°N 110.67667°W / 50.04083; -110.67667[2]
CountryCanada
ProvinceAlberta
Planning regionSouth Saskatchewan
Municipal districtCypress County
Founded1883
Incorporated[3] 
 • VillageMay 31, 1894
 • TownNovember 1, 1898
 • CityMay 9, 1906
Government
[4]
 • MayorLinnsie Clark
 • Governing body
Medicine Hat City Council
  • Robert Dumanowski
  • Darren Hirsch
  • Karen Ramona Robins
  • Allison Knodel
  • Alison Van Dyke
  • Cassi Hider
  • Shila Sharps
  • Andy McGrogan
 • CAOAnn Mitchell
 • MPGlen Motz
–(Cons – Medicine Hat—Cardston—Warner)
 • MLAsJustin Wright
–(UCP – Cypress-Medicine Hat)
Danielle Smith
–(UCP – Brooks-Medicine Hat)
Area
 (2021)[5]
 • Total
125.01 km2 (48.27 sq mi)
 • Land111.97 km2 (43.23 sq mi)
Elevation
[6]
690 m (2,260 ft)
Population
 (2021)[5]
 • Total
63,271
 • Density565.1/km2 (1,464/sq mi)
 • Municipal census (2015)
63,018[7]
 • Estimate (2020)
65,527[8]
DemonymHatter[9]
Time zoneUTC−07:00 (MST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−06:00 (MDT)
Forward sortation areas
T1A - T1C
Area codes368, 403, 587, 825
Highways1, 3, 41A
WaterwaysSouth Saskatchewan River, Seven Persons Creek, Ross Creek
RailwaysCanadian Pacific Kansas City
Websitemedicinehat.ca

Medicine Hat is a city in southeast Alberta, Canada. It is located along the South Saskatchewan River. It is approximately 169 km (105 mi) east of Lethbridge and 295 km (183 mi) southeast of Calgary. This city and the adjacent Town of Redcliff to the northwest are within Cypress County. Medicine Hat was the eighth-largest city in Alberta in 2021 with a population of 63,271. It is also the sunniest place in Canada according to Environment and Climate Change Canada,[10] averaging 2,544 hours of sunshine a year.

Started as a railway town, today Medicine Hat is served by the Trans-Canada Highway (Highway 1) and the eastern terminus of the Crowsnest Highway (Highway 3). Nearby communities considered part of the Medicine Hat area include the Town of Redcliff (abutting the city's northwest boundary) and the hamlets of Desert Blume, Dunmore, Irvine, Seven Persons, and Veinerville. The Cypress Hills (including Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park) is a relatively short distance (by car) to the southeast of the city.

Historically, Medicine Hat has been known for its large natural gas fields, being immortalized by Rudyard Kipling as having "all hell for a basement".[11] Because of these reserves, the city is known as "The Gas City".[12]

In 2021, Medicine Hat became the first city in Canada to achieve "functional zero" chronic homelessness, defined as three consecutive months where three or fewer individuals experienced chronic homelessness. They were able to achieve this due to their adoption of a Housing First policy to combat homelessness beginning in 2009.[13]

  1. ^ Peggy Revell (February 8, 2012). "Deputy premier tours Hat's projects". Medicine Hat News. Alberta Newspaper Group Limited Partnership. Archived from the original on January 29, 2013. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
  2. ^ "Medicine Hat". Geographical Names Data Base. Natural Resources Canada.
  3. ^ "Location and History Profile: City of Medicine Hat" (PDF). Alberta Municipal Affairs. June 17, 2016. p. 92. Retrieved June 18, 2016.
  4. ^ "Municipal Officials Search". Alberta Municipal Affairs. May 9, 2019. Retrieved October 1, 2021.
  5. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference 2021census was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Alberta Private Sewage Systems 2009 Standard of Practice Handbook: Appendix A.3 Alberta Design Data (A.3.A. Alberta Climate Design Data by Town)" (PDF) (PDF). Safety Codes Council. January 2012. pp. 212–215 (PDF pages 226–229). Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference 2015MAPL was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ "Census Subdivision (Municipal) Population Estimates, July 1, 2016 to 2020, Alberta". Alberta Municipal Affairs. March 23, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  9. ^ About Medicine Hat: Quality of Life City of Medicine Hat. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  10. ^ McMillan, Dexter (December 29, 2021). "Why the Prairies get more sun then the rest of Canada". CBC NEWS.
  11. ^ Brennan, Brian (2003), Boondoggles, Bonanzas, and Other Alberta Stories, Fifth House, p. 43, ISBN 1-894004-94-9, This part of the country seems to have all hell for a basement, and the only trap door appears to be in Medicine Hat. And don't you ever think of changing the name of your town. It's all your own and the only hat of its kind on earth.
  12. ^ Smith, Craig S. (February 15, 2017). "A Canadian City Thrives on Gas, Like a 'Wealthy Little Country'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  13. ^ Gregersen, Leif. "How A Small Canadian City Took On Chronic Homelessness". Next City. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
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