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Edmonton (113.54W 53.57N) was an important rail junction in western Canada. It has a climate typical of the northern Great Plains, with a warm summer and frigid winter. Precipitation peaks in the summer, and moderate temperatures reduce evaporation, so the seemingly meager annual rainfall is in fact sufficient to support wheat crops. The area was first settled by Europeans in 1808 and the railroad arrived in 1891. The city itself was incorporated in 1904.
There are significant oil fields in the immediate area.
The airfield
here was the second stop on the air bridge from Great Falls to Alaska, which also was the air
route for Lend-Lease to Siberia. Work on improving the
runways along the route was already in progress in the summer of
1941, and by the time war broke out, radio navigational beacons
were installed at 200-mile intervals. Although the U.S. had a
strong interest in and was willing to support construction of
improved facilities, the Canadian
government insisted that only Canadian contractors be employed at
Edmonton. However, since U.S. help was considered acceptable at
other airfields along the route, enough Canadian labor was
released to ensure work at Edmonton was completed on schedule.
Improvements included a satellite field at Namao, seven miles to
the north. By 1944, the Canadian government was insisting that all
work on permanent facilities be done by Canadian workers using
Canadian funds.
East Coast
Climate Information:
Elevation 2199'
Temperatures: Jan 15/-4, Apr 52/28, Jul 74/49, Oct 52/30 Record 99/-57
Rainfall: Jan 12/0.9, Apr 8/0.9, Jul 14/3.3, Oct 9/0.7 == 17.3" per annum
References
Dzuiban (1959; accessed 2019-1-18)
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