Alberta Legislature Building
The Alberta Legislature Building at night
General information
Architectural style	Beaux-Arts
Address	10800 97 Avenue NW
Town or city	Edmonton, Alberta
Country	Canada
Coordinates	53°32′1.3″N 113°30′23.8″W / 53.533694°N 113.506611°W / 53.533694; -113.506611
Construction started	1907
Completed	1913
Cost	CA$2 million
Client	Government of Alberta
Owner	Government of Alberta
Height	57 m (187.0 ft)
Design and construction
Architect(s)	Allan Merrick Jeffers and Richard Blakey
Other information
Public transit access	Grandin station Government Centre Transit Centre

Built between 1907 and 1913, the Alberta Legislature Building is located in Edmonton and is the meeting place of the Legislative Assembly and the Executive Council. It received Provincial Historic Resource designation in 2012 ^[1]. It has occasionally been shortened to "the Ledge". ^{[2] [3] [4]}

The Alberta Legislature Building is located at 10801 97 Avenue NW. The building is also connected via underground walkway to the Grandin LRT Station and Government Centre Transit Centre. Free tours of the facility are offered throughout the week, and virtual video tours are accessible anytime. ^[5]

Contents

• 1Location
• 2History and Architecture
  • 2.1Materials
• 3Statues and memorials
• 4The Chamber
• 5Renovations and Additions
• 4External links

Location[edit]

View from the north. A large plaza and greenspace is situated to the north of the legislative grounds.

The building is located on a promontory overlooking the scenic North Saskatchewan River valley near the location of Fort Edmonton, Mark V (1830–1915), a Hudson's Bay Company fur-trading post, a long-established economic and administrative centre of the western Prairies known as Pehonan, which means gathering place. ^{[5] [6]} It is just up the hill from the archaeological finds at Rossdale Flats to the east, remnants of a long-standing First Nations campsite and location of an earlier Fort Edmonton. The Legislature's location was selected shortly after Edmonton was confirmed as the provincial capital by the first session of the Legislature in 1906. The legislature building was located along 97 Avenue. That road was routed through a tunnel during the 1970s renovations to the grounds, allowing a large plaza to connect the legislature to a greenspace to the north.

To the west of the building, the grounds are bounded by 109 Street and the railway right-of-way coming north from the High Level Bridge, now used by the High Level Bridge Streetcar. Nearby is a walking path, connecting to the Victoria Park and Golf Course and the Grandin neighbourhood. To the north lies the "Government Centre" district within downtown Edmonton, south of Jasper Avenue, Edmonton's main street. Here are found several provincial government office buildings including the Federal Building. A short section of 108 Street, called "Capital Boulevard", is anchored by two terminating vistas, the legislature and MacEwan University's City Centre Campus.

Nearby to the northeast is the Legislature Annex Building and the Government Centre transit centre, and nearby is also the Rossdale neighbourhood and Edmonton Ballpark. The security of the Legislature building and surrounding grounds are the responsibility of the Alberta Sheriffs Branch.

History and Architecture [edit]

View of the building in 1914, shortly after it was opened.

The Alberta Legislature Building was built between 1907 and 1913 in the Beaux Arts style at the same time as the much larger Saskatchewan and Manitoba legislative buildings by architects Allan Merrick Jeffers and Richard Blakey. Montreal architect Percy Nobbs helped with the final revisions. ^[7] Allan Merrick Jeffers served as the Alberta Provincial Architect from September 1907 to 1910, in which time he helped design the Legislature building ^[8]. Blakely continued the project when he replaced Jeffers as Provincial Architect in 1910. The construction of the building was contracted out by the Department of Public works to The Provincial Archives of Alberta holds drawings for virtually all provincial buildings executed under his supervision. ^[9]

Construction first began in August 1907, however the project experienced delays which meant it was not completed by its initial 1912 deadline. Shortly after the foundations were laid, it was discovered that they were sitting on quicksand, and required reinforcement. ^[10] This was corrected and construction continued, however material shortages, marble hauling, and completing terracotta tiles also slowed down the process. The cornerstone was laid by the Governor General of Canada, Albert Grey, 4th Earl Grey, on October 1, 1909. On November 30, 1911, the first session was held in the building, despite construction being incomplete. The building was officially opened by Lord Grey's successor, Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn, on September 3, 1912 ^[11].

Jeffers may have been influenced by the State House of Rhode Island, where he had been a student. The style was associated originally with the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and was fashionable in North America between 1895 and 1920. The specific structure may have been inspired by Jeffer’s partiality to the legislatures of Minnesota and Wisconsin.

The use of neoclassical columns inspired by Greek, Roman, and Egyptian architectural influences was considered appropriate for a public building, as they suggested power, permanence, and tradition. Beaux-Arts buildings are characterized by a large central dome above a spacious rotunda, a symmetrical T-shaped plan, doors and windows decorated with arches or lintels, and a portico supported by massive columns. The building is about 57 metres (187 ft) ^[12] in overall height; the project cost over $2 million at the time ^[13].

Materials

The dome has terracotta made by Gibbs and Canning of Tamworth, Staffordshire, England.

The building is supported on concrete piles and constructed around a steel skeleton, obtained from Montreal and Winsor based companies. The first floor is faced with British Columbian granodiorite from a Jervis Inlet Quarry, supplied by a contract with Kelly and Murray ^[14]. Upper floors feature Paskapoo sandstone from the provincially owned-Glenbow Quarry to the Northwest of Calgary, near Cochrane, courtesy of Quinlan Carter Co. of Edmonton ^[15]. The exterior features a non-structural Indiana limestone façade in a light brown shade.

The interior contains over 2000 tonnes of marble from Phillipsburg, Quebec, also used in constructing Canada’s Federal Parliament buildings. The colours ranging from greys to green accentuate the structural shape of the rotunda. Other fittings include, mahogany, oak, and brass.

Statues and memorials[edit]

Several memorials and statues are situated within the Legislative Buildings, or the grounds surrounding it. The fountain inside the Legislature Building was installed during 1959 to commemorate the first visit of Queen Elizabeth II to the building. ^[16] For the province's centennial, the Queen unveiled in the same structure a series of stained glass windows made by Paul and Andre Winter that highlight the role of the monarchy in Alberta over the previous century. The centre window, at the front entrance of the building, focuses on the reign of Elizabeth II, including her royal cypher surmounted by St. Edward's Crown and flanked by wild roses, while the other windows commemorate the reign of George VI, Edward VIII, George V, and Edward VII, along with provincial emblems such as the coat of arms and the wild rose. ^[17]

Other items of significance on the Alberta Legislative grounds include the Lois Hole Memorial Garden and centennial flame

Alcoves in the rotunda are home to statues of Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, Duchess of Argyll, and Chief Crowfoot, Siksika Chief. Princess Louise The statue of Chief Crowfoot features a pipe bag and a treaty medal, symbolizing his signature of Treaty 7, which covers parts of Alberta.

The second and third floors feature portraits of past Premiers, Speakers, and Lieutenant Governors of Alberta.

The Chamber

The Belize-imported mahogany door to the chamber features many provincial symbols including whet and the Saint George’s Cross. The chamber itself features a vaulted ceiling, and gallery seating looking down into the area where the Members sit. On the right side when entering is the Members gallery, and to the left is the public gallery. Above the Speaker’s dias is the media gallery, and above the main doors is the Speaker’s gallery where visiting dignitaries and other invited guests may sit. The chamber floor is lined with distinctive green carpeting, since green is a traditional symbol of the legislative branch in Westminster tradition ^[18]. Bordering the chamber is a thin band of an egg and arrow design, representing the cycle of life. The stained glass on the ceiling of the chamber features a maple leaf and axe design, and stained glass in the galleries features Princess Louise Caroline Alberta. The chamber is lit by over 600 lightbulbs which line the ceiling and require scaffolding to change.

The building is about 57 metres (187 ft) in overall height; the project cost over $2 million at the time.

For the centennial of the province of Alberta, stained glass windows with the royal monogram and the emblems of Alberta were installed above from the main entrance of the building. These stained glass windows were unveiled by Queen Elizabeth II on May 24, 2005. ^{[19] [20]}

Renovations & Additions

1959 - The fountain in the rotunda is added for Queen Elizabeth II’s royal visit

1967 - The carillon is added to the fifth floor

1975 - The exterior pools and fountains are added as part of a landscaping project

2015 - In-ground jets are added in the walkway outside the Federal Building leading to the Legislature ^[21]

2019 - Sunrise and Sunset artwork by Alex Janvier installed in the chamber ^[22]

External Links

• Alberta Legislature Virtual Visit
• Legislative Assembly of Alberta Visitors Information