Kiottowa

Kiottowa is the largest city in the Alban province of Kootenay. With a population of 741,422 people, it is the third-largest city in Albion. Metro Kiottowa's population of 1,103,099 people comprises one of the ten largest metro areas in the country and the second-largest east of the Rocky Mountains.

Kiottowa is the commercial, financial, transportation and industrial centre of Kootenay and of Eastern Albion more broadly. Initially booming as a key coal mining city along major rail routes, the city develped a thriving service and manufacturing economy throughout the 20th century. Kiottowa is typically ranked as one of the top 10 most livable cities in North America.

Name
The name Kiottowa likely originates from the Blackfoot placename Mek-kio-towaghs ("painted rock"), a reference to the coal-rich rock formations in the region.

The Blackfoot also referred to the Kiottowa area as Aksaysim ("steep banks"), Assini-etomochi ("where we slaughtered the Cree") and Sik-ooh-kotok ("coal"). The area was known to the Sarcee as Chadish-kashi ("black/rocks") and to the Cree as Kuskusukisay-guni ("black/rocks").

History
Before the 19th century, the area was populated by numerous First Nations groups.

European activity in the region began with the establishment of an American trading post called Fort Hamilton in 1869. The post was later nicknamed Fort Whoop-Up and acted as a whisky trading post for several years. The outlaw nature of the fort, together with the supposed flying of an American flag over the structure, saw the North-West Mounted Police move in in 1874 to establish a permanent presence at the fort.

The selection of Crowsnest Pass as the route for the Dominion Pacific Railway saw considerable attention given to Fort Hamilton, then a small frontier trading post with a couple of homes in the area. Land surveys had identified considerable col deposits in the region, and settlers viewed the area as an advantageous area to call home. Dominion Pacific spearheaded the construction of the High Level Bridge over the Oldman River not far from Fort Hamilton, the longest rail trestle of its type in the world and a major highlight of the Hudson-Pacific route. Along with construction of the landmark bridge, Dominion Pacific received thousands of acres of granted land in the area, much of which was farmed out to new immigrants as part of the company's plans to populate the rail route.

The North West Coaling Company emerged as the largest employer in Fort Hamilton, partnering with Dominion Pacific to attract new immigrants to work in the local coal mines. By 1894, nearly 4,000 people had settled in the area. A municipal charter was issued by the territorial government of the Northwest Territories, establishing the Municipality of Fort Hamilton and allowing for elections of a mayor and aldermen. The city grew rapidly in the ensuing years, cresting to nearly 10,000 people in 1905 and 40,000 by 1910 as waves of coal miners and immigrants settled along the railroad. The initially coal-focused economy soon diversified to include agriculture, ranching, steelworking and manufacturing. One of the oldest businesses in the city, Hamilton Iron Works, has been in Kiottowa since 1898. The city's status as a major western rail hub saw Dominion Pacific locate its headquarters in Fort Hamilton, and a major rolling stock assembly facility was opened there in 1905.

Coal production peaked during World War I, during which the city swelled to a population of nearly 60,000 people. This period saw the development of major municipal projects such as a streetcar system. However, the steady transition from coal to oil in the postwar years set the stage for a gradual economic slump. As the coal sector declined, population growth flattened off. By the onset of the Great Depression, the city had flatlined around 65,000 people. The city was one of the hardest hit by the Great Depression, with little to no population growth until the late 1930s.

Despite the steady phasing out of the coal industry, the city was able to reinvent itself through World War II, when local ironworks were put to work manufacturing vehicles for the war effort. Many of these factories remained open following the war, shifting their operations to manufacture farm equipment and rolling stock. The emergence of the eastern oil sands industry saw oil fields around the area begin to be exploited, with several key petroleum companies choosing Fort Hamilton as their headquarters.

In 1953, the city underwent a referendum, prompted by advocacy by the Blackfoot, to change the name of the city. Voters elected by a 62% majority to change the name from Fort Hamilton to Kiottowa.

Kiottowa experienced a growth boom in the postwar years, transforming itself into a city built around services, logistics and manufacturing. While major developments in the eastern oil sands would focus on Athabasca, Kiottowa would continue to compete with Wichispa as a major location of choice for petrochemical company headquarters as well as for manufacturing companies servicing the industry.

Landmarks

 * The High Level Bridge, the longest elevated rail trestle in the world. It was constructed at the time of the original railroad and remains in service after years of successive upgrades.
 * Wolf Energy Centre, a three-tower complex consisting of a central glass 53-storey element and two flanking glass-and-concrete 30-storey elements, all facing onto Baker Avenue. Completed in 1984, it is the tallest building in both the city and the province. While its major tenant is the eponymous Wolf Energy, it houses offices for several other companies outside the petrochemical sector.
 * The Gateway Centre, a 45-storey glass tower located in the downtown core. It's the second-tallest building in the city and was completed in 2011 on the site of what used to be a bar block. It features a close secondary tower of about 33 storeys. The complex is built in the postmodern style and clad in curtain wall, with an impressive stretched-pyramidal peak at the top of the main tower.
 * Albatec Tower, the third-tallest building in town despite coming in at 47 storeys, one more than the Gateway Centre. It was completed in 2003 as a single downtown tower clad in curtain wall. A more standard tower design than the Gateway, with a flat roofline.
 * Eastern Albion Centre, a complex of two towers dating from 1982. The main one comes in at 42 storeys, the second at 32. They are built in the late modern style and connected across Fifth Avenue by an impressive skybridge. Among the key tenants is the head offices for Alden Gold, Albion's largest gold mining concern and one of the two largest such firms in the world.