Pekisko is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

southern Alberta Southern Alberta is a region located in the Canadian province of Alberta. In 2004, the region's population was approximately 272,017.Foothills County, east of the junction of Cowboy Trail and Highway 540, south of

High River High River is a town within the Calgary Metropolitan Region of Alberta, Canada. It is approximately south of Calgary, at the junction of Alberta Highways 2 and 23. High River had a population of 14,324 in 2021. History The community takes ...

and south of Longview. It lies in the

Canadian Rockies The Canadian Rockies (french: Rocheuses canadiennes) or Canadian Rocky Mountains, comprising both the Alberta Rockies and the British Columbian Rockies, is the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountains. It is the easternmost part ...

foothills, north of the

Highwood River The Highwood River is a tributary of the Bow River in southwestern Alberta, Canada. Course The Highwood originates in the Canadian Rockies in Peter Lougheed Provincial Park, in the Highwood Pass below Mount Arethusa. It flows south and is par ...

, at an elevation of , and is the centre of the Pekisko

Rangeland Rangelands are grasslands, shrublands, woodlands, wetlands, and deserts that are grazed by domestic livestock or wild animals. Types of rangelands include tallgrass and shortgrass prairies, desert grasslands and shrublands, woodlands, sava ...

, an area of livestock grazing and agriculture. Oil and gas is an increasing part of the economy. The name Pekisko originates from the

Blackfoot language The Blackfoot language, also called Siksiká (its denomination in ISO 639-3, ; Siksiká ik͡siká syllabics ), often anglicised as ', is an Algonquian language spoken by the Blackfoot or ''Niitsitapi'' people, who currently live in the nor ...

, meaning ''rolling foothills''. The Pekisko Formation ( Mississippian

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms w ...

) of the Rundle Group was named after this community. A hybrid of ''Pisum sativum'' (pea) was also named Pekisko after this area.

Pekisko area ranches

EP Ranch Prince of Wales George Lane Archie McLean NB-H-16-406

Pekisko is ranching country and two famous ranches operated there for decades: the Bar-U Ranch, owned by Calgary Stampede founder George Lane, and the EP Ranch (formerly the Bedingfeld Ranch). After touring Canada in 1919, the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rule ...

bought the Bedingfeld cattle ranch, which had been founded in 1886 by Mrs. Bedingfeld, a widow of a British army officer who died in India. The ranch became known as the Prince of Wales Ranch or the E.P. Ranch. The E.P. brand used on the ranch stood for "Edward Prince". The prince briefly became King of the United Kingdom and

King of Canada The monarchy of Canada is Canada's form of government embodied by the Canadian sovereign and head of state. It is at the core of Canada's constitutional Canadian federalism, federal structure and Westminster system, Westminster-style Parliamentar ...

in 1936. In 1925, cowboy movie star Hoot Gibson was filmed in scenes at the E.P. Ranch as part of the Hollywood movie ''The Calgary Stampede''.

Climate

References

External links

Pekisko Group
(Rangeland Conservation) Localities in Foothills County {{SouthernAlberta-geo-stub