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Town of Taber
Town of Taber
	— Town —
	Motto: Land of the Long Sun
	Location of Taber in Alberta
	Coordinates: 49°47′05″N 112°09′03″W / 49.78472°N 112.15083°W
Country	Canada
Province	Alberta
Region	Southern Alberta
Census division	2
Municipal District	Taber
	Government
- Mayor	Ray Bryant
- Governing body	Taber Town Council
- MLA	Paul Hinman (AA)
	Area
- Total	15.09 km2 (5.8 sq mi)
Elevation	815 m (2,674 ft)
	Population (2006)
- Total	7,591
- Density	503.2/km2 (1,303.3/sq mi)
Time zone	MST (UTC-7)
Postal code span	T1G
Highways	Highway 3; Highway 36
Waterway	Oldman River
Website	Town of Taber

Taber is a town in southern Alberta, Canada in Municipal District of Taber. Taber was established in the late 1890s by European settlers on the banks of the lower Oldman River. It is an agricultural town of 7,591 (2006) famous for its corn due to the large amounts of sunshine the town and area receive. It has thus taken on the title Corn Capital of Canada, and has an annual "Cornfest" held in the last week of August.

Taber and Notogawa, Japan are sister towns.

[edit] History

Originally, Taber was known as "Tank No. 77," and was used by the railway to fill up on water. In 1903, it is said that the first Mormon settlers from the U.S.A. were the ones to establish a hamlet at the Tank. After the town's post office was built in 1907, the CPR decided to call the town "Tabor," probably after Mount Tabor in Palestine. However, various letters and station heads came out printed "Taber," so the CPR changed the name to make it match the records.

An alternate version of the towns name origin is that the first part of the word tabernacle was used by Mormon settlers in the vicinity, and the next Canadian Pacific Railway station was named Elcan (nacle spelled backwards).

After time, Taber became a successful coal mining town. Coal mining declined in the late 1920s, but picked up in the 1930s after extensive irrigation in the area.

Irrigation helped not only the coal-miners, it also brought with it the production of sugar beets. In 1950, a sugar beet processing plant (Roger's Sugar) was built, which has become a vital part of the town's economy.

On April 28, 1999, Taber gained notoriety due to the W. R. Myers High School shooting^[2] in which a 14-year-old entered W.R. Myers High School and shot two students with a .22 caliber sawn-off rifle killing Jason Lang and wounding another.

San Jose Sharks forward Devin Setoguchi is from Taber, Alberta.

[edit] Demographics

In 2006, Taber had a population of 7,591 living in 3,034 dwellings, a -1.0% increase from 2001. The town has a land area of 15.09 km² (5.8 sq mi) and a population density of 503.2 /km² (1,303.3/sq mi).^[1]

[edit] Economy

Taber town centre

Taber's economy is largely based on agriculture. Local produce includes hogs, beef, sheep, poultry, sugar beets, potatoes, peas, carrots, wheat, sand/gravel, flax, barley, corn, beans, oats, onions, canola and mustard. Taber's sugar beet processing plant (Roger's Sugar) plays a vital role in the economy. There are also several food processing companies based in the town, including a Frito-Lay factory, which produces various snack products for much of Western Canada. To a smaller extent, there is also a significant oil and gas component to the economy.

[edit] Education

Grades Kindergarten through 12 are administered in Taber by the Horizon School Division and Holy Spirit Roman Catholic Division. Taber has a Christian School for grades 1 through 9. Other education systems include Community Adult Learning Council, ACE Place Learning Center and a Career Resource Center.^[3]

[edit] Cornfest

Cornfest is an annual summer festival held in late August, and it includes a midway (rides, booths, and tests of skill) and a stage with performers.^[4] There are also corn-based activities, such as corn tasting and stuffing. Large-scale, local corn producers enter their best varieties in the 'Best Corn of the Year' award.

Corn stuffing involves two people, one wearing an over-sized coverall. One of the contestants attempts to stuff as much corn as possible into the other's coverall. Whichever team can put the most corn in the coveralls in the allotted time wins.

[edit] References

^ ^a ^b Statistics Canada (Census 2006). "Taber - Community Profile". http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census06/data/profiles/community/Details/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CSD&Code1=4802022&Geo2=PR&Code2=48&Data=Count&SearchText=Taber&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=All&GeoLevel=&GeoCode=4802022. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
^ CBC News. Taber school shooting information
^ "Taber School List". http://www.taber.ca/life_TABER/schools.asp. Retrieved 2007-05-25.
^ Taber Chamber of Commerce. Cornfest 2004 website

[edit] External links

Town of Taber
Destination Taber [1]

[statcan2006-0] Statistics Canada (Census 2006). "Taber - Community Profile". http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census06/data/profiles/community/Details/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CSD&Code1=4802022&Geo2=PR&Code2=48&Data=Count&SearchText=Taber&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=All&GeoLevel=&GeoCode=4802022. Retrieved 2007-06-13.

[1] CBC News. Taber school shooting information

[2] "Taber School List". http://www.taber.ca/life_TABER/schools.asp. Retrieved 2007-05-25.

[3] Taber Chamber of Commerce. Cornfest 2004 website

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