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The vast stretch of land between British Columbia and Ontario听comprises听an area known as the Canadian Prairies, a 2,000 km valley of plains, forests, and farmland. Divided into three provinces 鈥� Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan 鈥� the resource-rich region has long served as the country鈥檚 breadbasket and a crucial lynchpin in the national economy.

While the Prairies are now home to some of Canada’s听biggest cities, rural life听remains an important part听of the region鈥檚 identity. At a time when more and more Canadians live exclusively in downtown apartments and earn a living sitting in front of computers, the Prairies are听a听place where farming, mining, and oil still generate a livelihood for many, and traditional-minded folk live in small, pioneer-founded communities separated by vast fields and open skies.

Geography of the Prairies

The Prairies begin where the Rocky Mountains end, which is to say, Alberta鈥檚 western border with British Columbia. As you move east from the Rockies, the landscape gets very flat very quickly, as B.C.’s tall forests give way to plains, lowlands, and grassy fields. The soil of this region is the best in Canada, and together the three Prairie provinces house nearly 90 per cent of the country鈥檚 arable farmland. Vast fields of wheat, barley and other crops remain among the region鈥檚 most iconic sights. Flatness is by far the defining adjective of the region, though the Prairies鈥� lesser-known and mostly underpopulated northern region is far more forested and hilly.

Weather-wise, the prairies alternate between warm, dry, sunny days and cold nights, which get particularly fierce in the winter. Warm Chinook winds and thunderstorms have helped contribute to the romantic idea of the Prairies as a land with sharp, moody seasons.

Owing to the region鈥檚 history of aggressive settlement and farming, the population of the Prairies is more evenly distributed than any other region听in Canada, with towns and cities spread all over the interior of the three provinces rather than huddled along the U.S. border, as is common in the rest of the country.

History of the听Prairies

A lasting monument to the Victorian-era colonization plans of the Canadian federal government, the three Prairie provinces all trace their histories back to 19th century settlement programs. Following Ottawa鈥檚 acquisition of the massive Rupert鈥檚 Land territory from the fur-trading Hudson鈥檚 Bay Company in 1870, and subsequent creation听of the sea-to-sea Canadian Pacific Railroad, Ottawa promoted 鈥�homesteading鈥� 鈥� where large swaths of government-owned land were sold听to settlers at very low cost 鈥� as a way to ensure the speedy occupation and development of the new territory. It worked, 补苍诲听the late 19th and early 20th centuries saw large waves of immigrant farmers, particularly from Germany, Scandinavia, Russia 补苍诲听Ukraine, help transform the previously underpopulated area into a thriving base of Canadian agriculture. Though these white settlements largely displaced the indigenous communities who were already living there, the Great Plains Indians of the Blackfoot, Cree, Ojibwa, and Sioux nations have proven resilient, and today aboriginal people and culture remain more present on the Prairies than anywhere else in Canada, outside the North.

Canada鈥檚 farming boom came to an abrupt end during the 1920s and thirties, when the so-called Dust Bowl era of storms, droughts and crop failures further devastated a region already hard hit by the Great Depression (1929-1939). Born from economic unease, the Prairies quickly became a hotbed of political radicalism; socialism, communism and fascism all rose in popularity, as did the uniquely Canadian movements of farmer progressivism and Social Credit monetary theory. All the Prairie provinces retain distinctive political parties to this day.

After the economic boom that followed听World War II (1939-1945), the Prairie economies stabilized, and were further buoyed by new discoveries of oil, minerals,听and natural gas. Steady economic growth has helped the听provinces听of the region diversify their economies in recent decades, moving away from farming and natural resources in favour of more service-oriented, “white collar” forms of employment as more residents begin to abandon rural life for an urban lifestyle听similar听to that of听the larger provinces.

Alberta

The country鈥檚 energy powerhouse, Alberta has exploited its great natural resources to become the richest per-capita province in Canada 鈥� with a generous self-image to boot. Today, Alberta is known for being a sort of 鈥淐anadian Texas,鈥� due to its vast oil fields, cowboy culture and long tradition of political conservatism.

Owing to the region鈥檚 comparatively dry, grassy landscape, Alberta鈥檚 early homesteaders found their land better suited for cattle ranching than farming and founded thriving Albertan beef industry that continues to this day. Its听poor farmland scaring settlers听to the lusher terrains of neighbouring Saskatchewan and Manitoba,听Alberta languished in听its first few听decades of provincehood, but then in 1947 oil was discovered in the city of Leduc听and the place听was never quite the same.

From the 1950s to the 1970s, Alberta underwent a massive oil boom that helped Canada become one of the world鈥檚 leading petroleum-exporting countries, and Alberta the nation鈥檚 richest province. Cities like Calgary and Edmonton exploded with听growth as new jobs in the energy sector (and all the related industries around it) drew thousands of wealth-hungry residents, while a government rich on oil royalties was able to attract even more with promises of low taxes and cheap utilities.听Oil remains Alberta鈥檚 dominant industry to this day, 补苍诲听even听as traditional wells begin to dry up, extraction and drilling听continues thanks to the province鈥檚 recently developed oil sands in the north. Oil can be a risky investment, however, and during periods when the global price plummets听鈥� as it did most recently in 2014 鈥斕齮he province tends to enter a deep recession.

Albertan culture is known for being quite conservative and traditional, with a strong focus on family, Christianity, and community. Politically, the province is often portrayed as a right-wing outlier in an otherwise fairly liberal country, and thus in a permanent state of tension with the rest of Canada. During federal elections, it鈥檚 not uncommon for every one of Alberta’s parliamentary districts to elect a Conservative Party member, and the province has been governed continuously by the Conservatives (with only one four-year break) since 1971. Many of the country’s most famous conservative politicians, such as recent Tory prime minister Stephen Harper (b. 1959), originate听from the听province.

For information about things to see and do in Alberta, see the Alberta tourism chapter.

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Saskatchewan

The most stereotyped of the three Prairie provinces, many Canadians will consider Saskatchewan听synonymous with flat land, big farms, and dull people. Though the last point can certainly be debated, the other two are indisputable: Saskatchewan is entirely mountain-free, and its vast acres of farmland comprise nearly 50 per cent of the country鈥檚 total.

The preferred听destination of settlers during the homestead period, Saskatchewan quickly听rose to become听the third biggest province in Canada until World War II (1939-1945), greatly prospering from the Canadian agricultural boom of the early 20th century. Though the province was dubbed a 鈥渙ne crop economy鈥� for being so dependent on wheat farming, technological advancements after the war led to the discovery of new sources of wealth听under the ground, notably uranium, oil and potash, allowing for a more diversified economy. Fuelled by favourable听resource prices and growing trade with the United States, in recent years Saskatchewan has steadily risen to become one of the richest parts听of Canada.

These days, fewer听and fewer听Saskatchewaners work as farmers or miners as more residents take up careers in the vast 鈥�service sector鈥� of office jobs, bureaucracy and retail that have come to dominate the Canadian economy in general. Even so, the province鈥檚 one million residents remain fairly spread out, and Saskatchewan鈥檚 two biggest cities, Regina and Saskatoon,听house less than 40 per cent of the provincial population. The province鈥檚 famously easygoing, small-town culture of tractors, trailers and truck stops has been celebrated in everything from sitcoms to folk songs.

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Manitoba

Manitoba is a history-rich region of Canada that traces听its听roots back to the Red River Settlement of the early 19th century, a small听colony听in southern Rupert’s Land inhabited by听aboriginal women, French-Canadian fur traders, and their mixed-race offspring, known as the听惭茅迟颈蝉. The听惭茅迟颈蝉 people formed a distinctive hybrid culture of aboriginal and French traditions, and were largely independent and self-governing. This came to an end in 1869, when the Canadian federal government attempted to seize听the Red River lands to make way for the Canadian Pacific Railway, triggering a phase of armed conflict 听known as the Red River Rebellion. In 1870, Prime Minister John A. MacDonald (1815-1891) negotiated with the 惭茅迟颈蝉 leaders to found Manitoba as Canada鈥檚 fifth province, though 惭茅迟颈蝉听displeasure with the deal would eventually spawn a听second phase听of armed conflict, known as the North-West Rebellion, in 1885. After that, in turn, was put down,听Manitoba’s 惭茅迟颈蝉听culture largely was wiped out as听waves of white听settlers flooded in and displaced the locals. Today, the province is 90 per cent white, with most Manitobans tracing their roots to 19th century British, French, German, or Ukrainian immigrants. Only in recent years has Manitoba come to celebrate its 惭茅迟颈蝉 past as an important part of its identity.

Geographically, Manitoba is a mix of northern forests and southern grasslands, and contains three of the country鈥檚 biggest lakes 鈥� Lake Manitoba, Lake Winnipegosis and Lake Winnipeg. Though the vast majority of Manitobans live in or around the capital city of Winnipeg, the far-north city of Churchill on the coast of Hudson Bay remains equally famous for its history with the fur trade and tourist-friendly arctic animals.

Manitobans boast of being hearty survivors of some of the harshest weather in Canada (floods and tornadoes are not uncommon), but also take pride in the natural beauty and varied听wildlife of their region, which includes听beavers, bears,听caribou, wolves, and buffalo.听In contrast to Alberta and Saskatchewan, Manitoba lacks an easily caricatured identity, and has had far less cultural, political and economic impact on Canada at large. In many ways, the defining theme of Manitoba may simply be its mellow diversity 鈥� of land, nature, politics and people.

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