Tag: Canada 150

Wilfrid ‘Wop’ May – Canadian Flying Ace and Alberta Aviation Pioneer

editor, RETROactive

This year, 2017, marks Canada’s sesquicentennial – 150 years since Canada became a country; there will be many celebrations across the country on July 1st and throughout the year to mark this milestone! Many people have shaped Canada into the country that we know today, and one of those people is Wilfrid “Wop” May. Enjoy and Happy Canada Day!

Captain W.R. May – Edmonton, 1919 (Courtesy Denny May).

To Wop[1] May who had grown up on the Canadian prairie, the English winter of 1917 must have seemed dreary. With the arrival of spring, he was on his way to the Western Front, and perhaps it had been before leaving England, or at a train station in France, he chanced upon a sign advertising that the Royal Flying Corps were looking for pilots. The fact that more young men were killed in air training accidents than died in combat seemed not to be a deterrent – the lure of adventure in the skies won out – he applied, was accepted and began the process of learning how to fly a plane. Read more →

Ask an Expert and Happy New Year 2017

editor, RETROactive

Happy New Year to everyone! We are excited for the New Year and look forward to sharing more of Alberta’s history with our readers. As many of you know, 2017 marks Canada’s 150th anniversary. We hope to touch on this theme throughout the year and highlight the role that Alberta has played in the country’s history. Another goal we have for this year is to connect with our readers more. We want to know what you would like to learn about! So, we are launching a new initiative called Ask an Expert.

Ask an Expert

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The Historic Resources Management Branch of Alberta Culture and Tourism is responsible for the identification and conservation of historic resources in Alberta. Historic Resources include historic places and structures, archaeological sites and artifacts, and traditional use sites. We also deal with geographic place names in the province.

Do you have a question about any of the following topics (related to Alberta)?

  • Historic Places
  • Provincial Historic Resources
  • Heritage Conservation
  • Historic Structures
  • Geographic Place Names
  • Archaeology

If so, we’d love to hear from you! You can submit your question by commenting on any one of our blog posts (preferably related to the topic), or you can leave a comment on our Facebook page or tweet at us on Twitter.

Facebook: Alberta’s Historic Places

Twitter: @ABHistoricPlace

When we receive questions we will track down our resident experts to answer them for you. The answers will be in the form of blog posts or videos.

To get things started we will be giving away a one-time admission pass to one of Alberta’s historic sites or museums to the person whose question we choose for the first Ask An Expert feature! http://www.culture.alberta.ca/heritage-and-museums/museums-and-historic-sites/

Cheers to 2017! We look forward to your questions.