![]() They named it from the First Nations legends. In 1883, when the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) reached Medicine Hat and crossed the river, European Canadians established a town site. The upper layer had artifacts from the Old Women's Phase, but the lower layers were found to be much older, containing Pelican Lake Phase remains that were dated to between 10 BC. Radiocarbon dates indicate the Saamis Site was initially occupied about AD 1500 and again around AD 1750", well before most European contact.Īlso in this area, further to the west, other MHC students and faculty were part of an excavation in 2000 at what became known as the Hillside Campsite, where two layers of finds were made. of living floors and nearly 80 features including hearths and stone boiling pits. ![]() They "excavated and mapped over 3,200 sq. Additional excavations were conducted in 19, and a field school for college students was based there. Most of the bones were identified as bison. ![]() They found "quantities of stone tools, fire cracked rock, butchered bone and pottery", marking this as an important spot. These revealed numerous artifacts associated with bands of First Nations ancestors, known as the Old Women's Phase to archeologists. Before Europeans arrived, the historic Blackfoot, Cree and Assiniboine nations used the area for hundreds of years, and were preceded for thousands of years by previous indigenous cultures.īeginning in 1971, archeological excavations supervised by scholars from Medicine Hat College (MHC) were conducted at what became known as Saamis Archeological Site along Seven Persons Creek, near a historic Blackfoot buffalo jump. The gently sloping valley with its converging waterways and hardy native cottonwood trees attracted both the migratory bison herds which passed through the area, and humans who used the waterways and hunted the bison. Another legend tells of a battle long ago between the Blackfoot and the Cree in which a retreating Cree "Medicine Man" lost his headdress in the South Saskatchewan River.Ī number of natural factors have always made Medicine Hat a gathering place. Several legends are associated with the name of a mythical mer-man river serpent named Soy-yee-daa-bee – the Creator – who appeared to a hunter and instructed him to sacrifice his wife to get mystical powers which were manifested in a special hat. The name "Medicine Hat" is an English interpretation of Saamis (SA-MUS) – the Blackfoot word for the eagle tail feather headdress worn by medicine men. They were able to achieve this due to their adoption of a Housing First policy to combat homelessness beginning in 2009. 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. Because of these reserves, the city is known as "The Gas 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". The Cypress Hills (including Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park) is a relatively short distance (by car) to the southeast of the city. 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. ![]() 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). It is also the sunniest place in Canada according to Environment and Climate Change Canada, averaging 2,544 hours of sunshine a year. Medicine Hat was the sixth-largest city in Alberta in 2016 with a population of 63,230. This city and the adjacent Town of Redcliff to the northwest are within Cypress County. It is approximately 169 km (105 mi) east of Lethbridge and 295 km (183 mi) southeast of Calgary. It is located along the South Saskatchewan River. Medicine Hat is a city in southeast Alberta, Canada. South Saskatchewan River, Seven Persons Creek, Ross Creek ![]()
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