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Brooks is a city in southeast Alberta, Canada that is surrounded by the
County of Newell The County of Newell is a municipal district in southern Alberta, Canada. Located in Census Division No. 2, its municipal office is located south of the City of Brooks. History It was incorporated as the ''County of Newell No. 4'' on Janu ...
. It is located on
Highway 1 The following highways are numbered 1. For roads numbered A1, see list of A1 roads. For roads numbered B1, see list of B1 roads. For roads numbered M1, see List of M1 roads. For roads numbered N1, see list of N1 roads. For roads numbered S ...
( Trans-Canada Highway) and the
Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...
, approximately southeast of Calgary, and northwest of Medicine Hat. The city has an elevation of .


History

The area that is now Brooks was used as a
bison Bison are large bovines in the genus ''Bison'' (Greek: "wild ox" (bison)) within the tribe Bovini. Two extant taxon, extant and numerous extinction, extinct species are recognised. Of the two surviving species, the American bison, ''B. bison'' ...
-hunting ground for the
Blackfoot The Blackfoot Confederacy, ''Niitsitapi'' or ''Siksikaitsitapi'' (ᖹᐟᒧᐧᒣᑯ, meaning "the people" or " Blackfoot-speaking real people"), is a historic collective name for linguistically related groups that make up the Blackfoot or Bla ...
and
Crow A crow is a bird of the genus '' Corvus'', or more broadly a synonym for all of ''Corvus''. Crows are generally black in colour. The word "crow" is used as part of the common name of many species. The related term "raven" is not pinned scientific ...
. After
Treaty 7 Treaty 7 is an agreement between the Crown and several, mainly Blackfoot, First Nation band governments in what is today the southern portion of Alberta. The idea of developing treaties for Blackfoot lands was brought to Blackfoot chief Crowf ...
was signed in 1877, homesteaders moved into the area to begin
farming Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people ...
. Before 1904, the area still did not have a name. Through a contest sponsored by the Postmaster General, the area was named after Noel Edgell Brooks, a
Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...
Divisional Engineer from Calgary. Brooks was incorporated as a village on July 14, 1910, and then as a town on September 8, 1911. Its population in the 1911 Census of Canada was 486. In the 1996 Census, the population of Brooks reached 10,093 making it eligible for city status. Brooks incorporated as a city on September 1, 2005 when its official population was 11,604. In 2010, Brooks celebrated the centennial of its incorporation as a village in 1910.


Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the City of Brooks had a population of 14,924 living in 5,140 of its 5,489 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 14,451. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. In the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the City of Brooks had a population of 14,451 living in 5,046 of its 5,412 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2011 population of 13,676. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2016. The population of the City of Brooks according to its 2015 municipal census is 14,185, a change of from its 2007 municipal census population of 13,581. A
multicultural The term multiculturalism has a range of meanings within the contexts of sociology, political philosophy, and colloquial use. In sociology and in everyday usage, it is a synonym for " ethnic pluralism", with the two terms often used interchang ...
community, Brooks has been referred to as "The City of 100 Hellos" as a result of a documentary by Brandy Yanchyk profiling the community's significant immigrant, refugee and temporary
foreign worker Foreign workers or guest workers are people who work in a country other than one of which they are a citizen. Some foreign workers use a guest worker program in a country with more preferred job prospects than in their home country. Guest worker ...
populations. The documentary was called '' Brooks – The City of 100 Hellos'' and was created in 2010 for
Omni Television Omni Television (stylized as OMNI Television) is a Canadian television system and specialty channel owned by Rogers Sports & Media, a subsidiary of Rogers Communications. It currently consists of all six of Canada's conventional multicultur ...
. The community's multicultural character was also the subject of a 2007
National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary f ...
documentary, ''24 Days in Brooks'', directed by Dana Inkster.


Geography

Brooks is located in the Grassland Natural Region of Alberta. The area surrounding Brooks is dry mixed grass/ shortgrass prairie.


Climate

Located in the steppe region known as the
Palliser's Triangle Palliser's Triangle, or the Palliser Triangle, is a semi-arid steppe occupying a substantial portion of the Western Canadian Prairie Provinces, Saskatchewan, Alberta and Manitoba, within the Great Plains region. While initially determined to be uns ...
, Brooks has a semi-arid climate ( Köppen climate classification '' ''BSk''''). Winters are quite dry and cold, with little snowfall compared to the rest of Canada.
Chinook wind Chinook winds, or simply Chinooks, are two types of prevailing warm, generally westerly winds in western North America: Coastal Chinooks and interior Chinooks. The coastal Chinooks are persistent seasonal, wet, southwesterly winds blowing in from ...
s, though less common than in areas west and especially southwest of Brooks, are not uncommon, and ameliorate the cold winter temperatures temporarily when they pass over. Wide diurnal temperature ranges are regular, due to the aridity and moderately high elevation. Low humidity is prevalent throughout the year. Most of the relatively scant annual precipitation occurs in late spring and summer, often in the form of thunderstorms. On average, the coldest month is January, with a mean temperature of , while the warmest is July, with a mean temperature of . The driest month is February, with an average monthly precipitation of , while the wettest month is June, with an average of . Annual precipitation is low, with an average of .


Economy

The base of the economy of the City of Brooks is energy (oil and gas) and agriculture, with other sectors including metal manufacturing, food processing and construction. It is also a retail and service centre for the surrounding area. Canada’s second largest beef-processing facility, owned by JBS Canada, is located in Brooks and ships meat across the country and internationally. In 2012, while the plant was owned by
XL Foods XL Foods Inc. is a Canadian meat packing company. The company is a subsidiary of Nilsson Brothers Inc. based in Edmonton, Alberta. From 2009 until 2013, XL Foods' Lakeside Packers Division was located just west of Brooks, Alberta, in Newell County ...
, it released meat contaminated with '' E. coli'', and was shut down for a month. The plant has over 2000 employees.


Attractions

The JBS Leisure Centre is the area's main recreation centre. It includes one arena, a curling rink, an aquatic centre with a waterslide and wave pool, a gymnasium, a fitness centre, and multipurpose rooms. The complex was renovated in 2005 and again in 2016. Now the Brooks Public Library is within the JBS Leisure Centre. In 2010, the Duke of Sutherland Park was redeveloped. It features baseball diamonds, a soccer field, a playground and a waterpark with spray features for toddlers and a play structure for older children. Also in 2010, the Centennial Regional Arena was completed after nearly a decade of planning and 18 months of construction. The multi-purpose facility seats 1,704 people. It includes corporate boxes, a running track, concessions, and a surface. The arena is home to several user groups, including the
Brooks Bandits The Brooks Bandits are a junior A ice hockey team in the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL). They play in Brooks, Alberta, Canada, with home games at the Centennial Regional Arena. History The Brooks Bandits were awarded an expansion franchis ...
. The arena also hosted the 2019
National Junior A Championship The Centennial Cup is an annual ice hockey tournament organized by Hockey Canada and the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL), which determines the national champion of junior A ice hockey. It is a ten-team round robin featuring the winners of ...
. There are three provincial parks in the area:
Dinosaur Provincial Park Dinosaur Provincial Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site situated a two hour drive east of Calgary, Alberta, Canada; or , about a half-hour drive northeast of Brooks. The park is situated in the Red Deer River valley, which is noted for its strik ...
, a World Heritage Site, to the northeast, Tillebrook Provincial Park to the east and Kinbrook Island Provincial Park to the south. In addition, there are several other recreational sites in the area including the Rolling Hills Reservoir, Crawling Valley Reservoir, and Emerson Bridge. The Brooks Aqueduct southeast of Brooks was built to transport irrigation water across the Eastern Irrigation District. It spans across a valley, about above the ground.


Sports

Brooks is home to the
Brooks Bandits The Brooks Bandits are a junior A ice hockey team in the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL). They play in Brooks, Alberta, Canada, with home games at the Centennial Regional Arena. History The Brooks Bandits were awarded an expansion franchis ...
of the
Alberta Junior Hockey League The Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) is an Alberta-based Junior A ice hockey league that belongs to the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL). It was formed as a five-team league in 1964. There are currently 16 teams in the league. The re ...
. The ice hockey team was awarded to Brooks in 1998 and embarked on its first season in 2000. They have helped produce current NHL players such as
Cale Makar Cale Douglas Makar (born October 30, 1998) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected with the fourth overall pick by the Avalanche in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft ...
(
Colorado Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The Avalanche play the ...
) and
Chad Johnson Chad Ochocinco Johnson (born Chad Javon Johnson; January 9, 1978), known from 2008 to 2012 as Chad Ochocinco, is a former American football wide receiver. He played college football for Santa Monica College and Oregon State University, and pl ...
. The Bandits won the league championship in 2012, 2013, 2016, 2017 and 2019. They won their first National Championship (The Royal Bank Cup) in 2013 and repeated again by winning the
National Junior A Championship The Centennial Cup is an annual ice hockey tournament organized by Hockey Canada and the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL), which determines the national champion of junior A ice hockey. It is a ten-team round robin featuring the winners of ...
in 2019. They There are threefootball teams in Brooks: from the public schools the Roadrunners the Buffalos and the Crusaders from the catholic schools. The teams comprise players from the local junior and senior high schools respectively. The Buffalos represented Brooks at provincial championships in 1989, 1995, 1997, and 2009, winning in the title in its last three appearances. The Roadrunners appeared at provincial championships in 1995, 2004, 2007, 2014, and 2016 . The Crusaders have appeared in the provincial finals three times 2015,2016 and 2018 winning in 2018. Brooks is home to a
Western Canadian Baseball League The Western Canadian Baseball League (WCBL) is a collegiate summer baseball league based in Saskatchewan and Alberta that descends from leagues dating to 1931. History The league can trace its roots back to 1931, via its predecessors. The South ...
franchise named the Brooks Bombers. They play at Elks Field in the Quad Ball Diamond Complex.


Government

Brooks City Council consists of one mayor and six councillors. The last election was held in October 2017. John Petrie has been mayor since 2021.


Education

Brooks has three high schools, three junior high schools, five elementary schools, three primary schools, and two alternative schools. The schools are operated by Grasslands Public Schools, Christ the Redeemer School Division (Catholic) and Francosud (Francophone). Brooks also has a satellite campus of
Medicine Hat College Medicine Hat College is a public, board governed, comprehensive college serving southeastern Alberta and southwestern Saskatchewan, Canada. The college is located in the city of Medicine Hat, Alberta, and was founded in 1965. Almost 2,500 studen ...
. The Brooks Public Library was established in 1951.


Health care

Acute medical care is provided at the Brooks Health Centre. The Brooks Health Centre is under the Alberta Health Services which provides health to most of
Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Terri ...


Media

Brooks is served by two radio stations,
CIBQ-FM CIBQ-FM (105.7 MHz, ''Real Country 105.7'') is a radio station in Brooks, Alberta. Owned by Stingray Group, it broadcasts a country format. History The station began broadcasting on April 15, 1973 as CKBR, until it changed to its current calls ...
(''105.7 Real Country''), and
CIXF-FM CIXF-FM is a Canadian radio station broadcasting at 101.1 FM in Brooks, Alberta. The station broadcasts a classic hits format branded as '' Boom 101.1'' and is owned by Stingray Group. History The station received CRTC approval on December 19 ...
(''Boom 101.1''). Both stations are owned by Stingray Group. Brooks has two distinct newspapers. The ''Brooks Bulletin'' is published every Tuesday, and has served Brooks and the County of Newell since 1910. It has a weekly circulation of 4,332 and is a paid subscription product. ''The Weekend Regional'' is a second paper the Bulletin established in 2004 and it is published on Fridays. As of January 2010, it became a total market coverage product with a weekly circulation of 11,235.


Notable people

* Sheri Forde, TSN Toronto reporter * Little Miss Higgins, folk and blues singer *
Ryan Peake Ryan Anthony Peake (born March 1, 1973) is a Canadian musician, singer and songwriter who is best known as the rhythm guitarist, keyboardist, and backing vocalist of the Canadian rock band Nickelback. He has been with the band since their incepti ...
, a member of rock band Nickelback *
Sherraine Schalm Sherraine Schalm, formerly Sherraine Schalm-MacKay (born June 21, 1975), is a former top-ranked Canadian Olympic épée fencer. She is a World Cup medal winner, elementary school teacher and author. She is a graduate of the University of Ottaw ...
, Olympic fencer *
Harnarayan Singh Harnarayan Singh is a Canadian sports announcer and journalist. He became known for announcing the Punjabi-language broadcasts of ''Hockey Night in Canada,'' and currently calls games in English for Sportsnet and ''Hockey Night in Canada''. ...
, NHL broadcaster *
Monte Solberg Monte Kenton Solberg, (born September 17, 1958) is a Canadian businessman and politician. Solberg is a former Member of Parliament, representing the riding of Medicine Hat in the House of Commons of Canada as a member of the Conservative Party o ...
, former federal cabinet minister, current political columnist for
Sun Media Sun Media Corporation was the owner of several tabloid and broadsheet newspapers in Canada and the 49 percent owner of the now defunct Sun News Network. It was a subsidiary of Quebecor Media. On October 6, 2014, Quebecor Media announced the ...
*
Barry Morishita Barry Morishita is a Canadian politician currently serving as the leader of the Alberta Party since 2021. He previously served on the city council of Brooks in 1998 and became the city's mayor in 2016. Background Morishita's father, born in ...
, former mayor of Brooks. *


See also

* List of cities in Alberta * List of communities in Alberta *
Canada's Stonehenge ''Canada's Stonehenge: Astounding Archaeological Discoveries in Canada, England, and Wales'' is a 2009 self-published book by retired chemistry professor Gordon Freeman, in which the author claims that the Majorville Cairn and Medicine Wheel si ...


References


External links

* {{Authority control 1910 establishments in Alberta Cities in Alberta Populated places established in 1910