Reader Rock Garden

Exploring the garden

SS: I can learn the stories of our past and how that impacts the present; I can think about the personal legacy I'd like to leave behind; I can learn by primary and secondary sources

LA: I can summarize information in my own words

On Wednesday, we visited the Reader Rock Garden. It was developed by William Reader over a hundred years ago. He was really good at gardening and landscaping and he loved trying different plants to see if they would grow. He had around 4000 plant species in his original garden! Mr Reader was also responsible for developing city parks around Calgary. Originally, the Reader Rock Garden was his private home. Now, it's public gardens. The city has tried to keep the gardens looking as original as possible. 

While at the gardens, we learned about many famous Calgarians and how they made an impact on the city. Here are our summaries of each person and the legacies they left.

The Cross Family

"We are writing about the Cross family and how they affect us today. The Cross family's names are: AE Cross, Helen Cross, Sandy Cross, Mary Dover, and five other children, some of who tragically died. AE Cross came to Alberta in 1884 and was born in Montreal. He worked at one of the first major cattle ranches (Cochrane Ranch). Eventually AE Cross decided to make his own ranch in Nanton. He also had his own brewing company in Inglewood and he was one of the Big Four who was a part of founding the Stampede. Helen Cross was born in Fort MacLeod. Helen and AE were very active citizens they worked at the Calgary General Hospital on the board and they also helped many community organizations. Two of their children became famous: Sandy Cross and Mary Dover. Sandy Cross has a school named after her and Mary Dover worked in the army.

By: Hazel, Jane, Seb K, Leo

Thomas Edworthy

He arrived in Calgary in 1883 and started a vegetable crop. He built a ranch that is now Edworthy Park. The ranch's name was Shaganappi Ranch. He started a company called Bow Bank Quarries and he died in 1904 at the age of 48. His sandstone was used for many buildings, even city hall, and probably Ramsay School!

By: Suzi, Vance, Hudson, Maria

Colonel MacLeod

Colonel MacLeod was born in Scotland in 1873. He joined the North-West Mounted Police (NWMP, now called the RCMP). The Blackfoot leader Crowfoot trusted him and Colonel helped sign Treaty 7. Colonel MacLeod later became a judge. Sadly in 1897, he died with little money. 

By: Sadie, Lillian, Oscar, Tanya, Enzo, Iggy

William Pearce

William Pearce moved to Calgary in 1887. He was a farmer and grew his own vegetables. (He also started an irrigation system to help farmers produce more crops.) William Pearce created the first National Park (now called Banff National Park). He was a civil engineer.

By: Dillon, Toivo, Daniel, Liam

Louise Riley

Margaret Louise Riley was born in 1900 and grew up on the land her grandfather (Thomas Riley) gave her. In 1930, she started working for the Calgary Public Library and in 1949 she became an assistant librarian. Louise Riley made the children's section so kids could read books. She started to tell stories and then started writing them. In 1910, Louise's dad donated some land to Calgary and that soon turned into Riley Park.

By: Callie, Rochael, Seb C, James

We are now working on writing our own pledges for what we want Calgary to be, and thinking about the legacy we want to leave behind.

"I'm thinking of being a civil engineer like my dad and William Pearce. I hope to build more places to make the city better." ~ Dillon

"I want to be like William Reader and build a huge garden with a cafe and a quiet space so if people are having a stress day they can go there and sit." ~ Callie

"I'm hoping to be a construction worker to help build buildings for people." ~ Seb K

Our first attempt at doing our Calgarian presentations
(it was SUUUPER windy so we had to do them inside instead)

Sharing our learning of our famous Calgarians