Jasper Place is a community in what is now west Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. At one time, it was an independent municipality known as the Town of Jasper Place.
Following the Second World War, its population swelled rapidly. With virtually no industrial base of its own, an increasing demand for services by the growing population, and the annexation of the land east of the modern 149 Street by the City of Edmonton, the independent existence of the municipality was at risk. Deeply in debt, the town was amalgamated with Edmonton on August 17, 1964. "With amalgamation, the City of Edmonton assumed Jasper Place's bonded indebtedness of $8.177 million, the town's infrastructure and responsibility for all public services such as sewer, water and transportation."[1]
The town fell within an area bounded by 149 Street on the east, 170 Street on the west, the North Saskatchewan River on the south, and 118 Avenue on the north. At the time of its amalgamation, it was the largest town in Canada.
The coordinates at top of this Wiki page go to the former administrative municipal centre, marked by the town hall, fire station and Butler Memorial Park at Stony Plain Road and 157 street.
In the early days, Jasper Place was home to a few hundred homesteaders, who lived a meagre life raising a few animals and tending gardens. Houses lacked the amenities of modern life, including electricity, flush toilets, and running water. Water was trucked out to residents at a cost of $1.25 per 500 gallons.[2]
During the 1930s, the population grew as many Edmontonians moved out to Jasper Place to escape high taxes in the city. Many residents worked in Edmonton, and by the 1940s the trolley line extended to the modern 149 Street--close enough to Jasper Place to allow returning workers to walk the rest of the way home.
Following the discovery of oil near Leduc in 1947[3], the population of Edmonton swelled. Jasper Place absorbed some of the overflow population growth from Edmonton, and in 1948 the community incorporated as the Hamlet of West Jasper Place.
By the 1950s, the hamlet had grown large enough to become a village with a population of 9,000 people. Merchants in Jasper Place attempted to attract business from Edmonton shoppers in the 1950s by keeping stores open until 9 P.M. on weeknights--long after stores in Edmonton had closed.
In the early 1960s, to accommodate continuing growth, Jasper Place (now a town) expanded several schools, including Jasper Place Composite High School, began construction of a sports centre, and commenced planning the original Meadowlark Park Shopping Centre. But projects such as these placed the town deeply in debt and, with the province refusing to grant extra funds, the end was inevitable. In a plebiscite held on October 17, 1962, residents voted in favor of amalgamation with Edmonton. Amalgamation occurred on August 17, 1964. At amalgamation, the population of Jasper Place stood at 38,000 people.
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