# When Did Alberta Become a Province? September 1, 1905
Alberta became a province of Canada on September 1, 1905. The Alberta Act, passed by Parliament earlier that year, carved the new province out of the Northwest Territories — and Saskatchewan was created by a companion act on the very same day.
If you remember only one date for the test, it is that one. Here is the story behind it.
The road to 1905
Before 1905, the land that is now Alberta belonged to Rupert's Land — the vast Hudson's Bay Company territory that Canada purchased in 1870. For the next 35 years the area was governed as part of the Northwest Territories, administered from Regina.
Settlement accelerated after the Canadian Pacific Railway reached Calgary in 1883, and again during the Klondike-era immigration boom at the turn of the century. Ranchers, farmers, and waves of immigrants — many of them Ukrainian, German, and Scandinavian settlers recruited by Clifford Sifton's immigration campaign — transformed the prairie into farmland almost overnight.
The territorial leader Frederick Haultain spent years pushing Ottawa for provincial status. He wanted one huge prairie province called Buffalo, covering today's Alberta and Saskatchewan, run under a non-partisan government.
Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier disagreed. A single province that large would rival Ontario and Quebec in land area and, eventually, influence. Ottawa also wanted to keep control over natural resources — and it did: unlike the older provinces, Alberta did not control its own Crown lands and resources until the Natural Resources Transfer Agreement of 1930.
Why Edmonton is the capital
The Alberta Act named Edmonton as the capital, and the choice caused real bitterness. Calgary was the older, better-connected CPR town and expected to win; Edmonton's supporters had more influence with the territorial government, and the 1905 decision stuck. Calgary hoped for the university as consolation — the University of Alberta went to Edmonton too. The rivalry survives to this day.
Alberta's first premier was Alexander Rutherford, a Liberal who won the first provincial election in November 1905.
Alberta in one table
| Fact | Answer |
|---|---|
| Joined Confederation | September 1, 1905 |
| Entered as | 8th province (same day as Saskatchewan) |
| Created from | Northwest Territories (Rupert's Land) |
| Capital | Edmonton |
| Largest city | Calgary |
| First premier | Alexander Rutherford |
| Resources control | Only since 1930 |
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What changed Alberta's fortunes
Oil. In 1947 the Leduc No. 1 well struck oil just south of Edmonton, ending decades of dependence on wheat and cattle. Alberta became the energy heartland of Canada — today it produces the vast majority of the country's crude oil and natural gas, and Calgary is the corporate centre of that industry.
What the test actually asks about Alberta
The citizenship test will not ask you for the exact date. It does ask:
- Which province has Edmonton as its capital — Alberta
- Alberta is part of the Prairie provinces region (with Manitoba and Saskatchewan)
- Alberta's economy is built on oil, natural gas, cattle and wheat
Read next
- When did each province join Canada? Full list
- The Prairie provinces explained
- Alberta: essential facts for the test
Practice the actual citizenship test
Try our free practice test — it covers provinces and their capitals in the same format you will see on test day.
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Frequently Asked Questions
1Was Alberta one of the original provinces in 1867?
No. Alberta joined 38 years later, on September 1, 1905. The four original provinces of 1867 were Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.
2What was Alberta before it became a province?
The land that became Alberta was part of Rupert's Land, which Canada bought from the Hudson's Bay Company in 1870. From 1870 to 1905 the area was administered as part of the Northwest Territories, with the District of Alberta created in 1882.
3Why did Alberta and Saskatchewan become provinces on the same day?
Both were created by companion Acts of Parliament (the Alberta Act and the Saskatchewan Act) that took effect on September 1, 1905. Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier decided to split the prairie territory into two provinces rather than create the single large province that territorial leader Frederick Haultain had proposed.
4What is the capital of Alberta?
Edmonton. It beat Calgary in the 1905 debate over which city would be capital. Calgary remains Alberta's largest city by population.