1500 Scotia One
10060 Jasper Avenue
Edmonton, Alberta T5J 4A2

Phone: (780) 421-0557
E-Mail: edufound@apegga.org

Charitable Registration Number
88589-6696 RR0001

History Projects

The History of the Engineering and Geoscience Professions in Alberta and The History of Bridges in Alberta Research Projects

The history of the Province of Alberta is in many ways the history
of engineering and geoscience in Alberta. With that in mind, the APEGGA Education Foundation is the patron of two exciting research projects that will tell the fascinating story of the engineering and the geoscience professions in Alberta in word and picture.

History of EGGs in Alberta

One project is a history of the professions in Alberta that make up the Association. These professions first developed in Europe and eastern North America. They were brought to Alberta by members of the Geological Survey of Canada, such as George Dawson, and engineers such as Peter Turner Bone. Their work helped chart and define the west, and create the CPR mainline in the 1880s.

The influence of engineers and geologists continued with the expansion of the railway network, the construction of irrigation systems and urban utilities, and the development of Alberta’s coal and petroleum resources.

All these activities contributed to Alberta’s first economic boom, before the First World War. APEGGA was first established in 1920 as The Association of Professional Engineers of Alberta, at the initiative of engineers who saw the need to ensure public safety and the efficient development of the Alberta economy. 

History of Alberta’s Bridges

The other project is a history of bridges, from the one built in the 1860s by the Oblate Missionaries to span the Sturgeon River at St. Albert to the steel and concrete structures that are part of the new Calgary and Edmonton ring roads.

Bridges are worthy of a separate book because of the wealth of information on their construction and the pervasive role they’ve played in Alberta’s history.

Virtually every rural and urban community has one or more bridge stories in its history. Bridges unite cities and the province itself because of their role in the Alberta railway and highway transportation system. The Centre Street bridge in Calgary served as a monument to Canada’s place in a united British Empire.    

How to Contribute

APEGGA Members can help make these projects successful in a number of ways:

• You can help fund the project, personally or through your firm or employer
• You can volunteer to serve on a subcommittee working on specialties within engineering and the geosciences
• You can share your experiences as an engineer, geologist or geophysicists, or let us know of members who should be interviewed for this purpose
• You can rifle through desks, homes and offices — wherever history might lurk — for documents relating to your careers, the development of individual companies, specific projects, and activities of APEGGA

Sponsorship Levels

GOLD                     $15,000+
SILVER                  $10,000 to $14,000
BRONZE                 $5,000 to $9,000
SUPPORTER           under $5,000

Project Staff

A steering committee directs the two projects. It’s chaired by Andy Gilliland, P.Eng., a Past-President of the Education Foundation. The work of researching and writing the books will be undertaken by an economic historian John Gilpin, PhD and bridge engineer Marcel Chichak, P.Eng.

Related Links

Click here to read more about Alberta Bridges in The PEGG.

Contacts

For further information on sponsorship opportunities or to
contribute to the research, please contact:

Dr. John Gilpin
403-245-0551
jgilpin@telusplanet.net

or

Philip Mulder, APR
Manager Communications
APEGGA
1-800-661-7020 or 780-426-3990
pmulder@apegga.org

History of EGGs in Alberta

History of Alberta's Bridges

How to Contribute

Sponsorship Levels

Project Staff

Related Links

Contacts

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