Vulcan County

Welcome

Vulcan County extends an open invitation to anyone looking for a holiday destination point, a location to call home, or a site to establish a business, to come and join us in a region of opportunity and experience Vulcan County!

photos taken by J. Semeschuk

Area Overview

Vulcan County is conveniently located close to Calgary and Lethbridge in the Alberta's southwest.

The County landscape provides a variety of visual experiences as one travels from one end to the other... flatland to rolling hills, Lake McGregor [a 22-mile long man-made reservoir], to historic attractions and prairie bunchgrass, to refreshing valleys of mature trees and lush green grass.

Vulcan County covers an approximate area of 545,000 hectares and encompasses the Town of Vulcan, the Villages of Carmangay, Champion, Lomond, Milo and Arrowwood, and the Hamlets of Brant, Ensign, Herronton, Kirkcaldy, Mossleigh, Queenstown, Shouldice, and Travers. The population of the County (including the town and villages) is approximately 6,600 people.

To learn more about Vulcan County as a municipality please click here

To learn more about Vulcan County as a region please click here

For a history of the administrative and municipal side of Vulcan County please visit the please click here

Location

Vulcan County is located in south-central Alberta, southeast of the City of Calgary. The Town of Vulcan is 120 km south of Calgary and 100 km north of Lethbridge.

Vulcan County shares borders to the north with Wheatland County and the Blackfoot Indian Reserve, to the west with the MD of Foothills and the MD of Willow Creek, to the south with the County of Lethbridge and MD of Taber and to the east with the County of Newell.

Economic Base

Much of the economy of Vulcan County is based on agriculture, both in dryland and in irrigation production. Geophysical drilling and pipeline activity have become increasingly important to the County, and many oil & gas deposits have been found and put into production.

In addition, the County also has the capability of supporting new recreational and industrial development, and is focusing on developing its tourism industry.

Economic Facts

The largest industry in Vulcan County is agriculture, encompassing approximately 444,000 hectares of land. The County is a member of the Foothills Little Bow Association and is part of the Bow River Irrigation District.

There are 3 operational grain elevators in Vulcan County; 2 just south of the town of Vulcan, and 1 in the town of Vulcan.

Financial Institutions

Vulcan
Alberta Treasury Branch
**satellite branches in Carmangay, Champion, & Lomond
CIBC
Macleod Savings & Credit Union

Arrowwood
Scotiabank

Lomond
Chinook Credit Union

Milo
Scotiabank

Utilities

For more information on who provides electric, gas, water, telephone, and waste management within Vulcan County please visit the business directory located on this site at www.albertafirst.com/directory

Taxation

Taxation in Vulcan County is conducted by the Tax Roll Department.

Tax and Assessment Notices are sent June 30th of each year with payment due by September 30th. There are different methods for paying taxes including a monthly payment plan. Please visit the county website at www.vulcancounty.ab.ca for more information.

2004 Mill Rates
Residential - Public and/or Separate - 0.1520
Non-Residential - Public and/or Separate - 0.1665

Transportation

Air Services

The Town of Vulcan has a municipal airport with a 3,000 foot paved, lighted runway operated by the town and county jointly. The nearest commercial and air freight services are at Lethbridge, while the nearest international airport facility is the Calgary International Airport.

Rail Services

The County is served by Canadian Pacific Railways. Spur trackage is available to industrial developers.

Highways

Highways that run through the County include Highway 23, leading west to Highway 2 and south to Highway 3, and Highway 24, leading north to Highway 1. The County is also served by a network of secondary roads, thereby ensuring easy access to all points within and around the County.

Trucking Firms

Trucking companies that serve the County include Vulcan Transport, Vulcan Express, Milo Transport, Turin Transport, Vaile Trucking, Huffs Trucking, Mensinger Contracting, Cage Transportation LP, Eastway Express and Derksen Transport.

Bus Services

Greyhound Bus Line provides regularly scheduled inter-community service to the County.

Community Lifestyle

Recreation

There are several recreation areas in the County, including the Travers Dam, Lake McGregor, Williams Lake and Badger Lake. Provincial Parks include the Little Bow Provincial Park, Little Bow Reservoir Provincial Recreation Area, McGregor Reservoir Provincial Recreation Area, Travers Reservoir Provincial Recreation area, and the Wyndham-Carseland Provincial Park.

The communities have a wide range of recreational facilities, including playgrounds, baseball diamonds, community centres, tennis courts, golf courses, curling rinks, ice arenas, swimming pools, rodeo arenas, recreation centres, and senior citizens drop-in centres.

Religious Services

Most religious denominations are represented in the County.

Special Attractions

Vulcan County is home to many different attractions sure to satisfy every tourist's need.

Historical attractions such as the Carmangay Tipi Rings and Majorville Medicine Wheel focus on the First Nations heritage while the Royal Canadian Air Force Monument at the Kirkcaldy Industrial Airport celebrate Canada's acheivements during World War Two.

Water attractions include 4 reservoirs in the County (Badger Lake, Lake McGregor, Little Bow and Travers) with recreation areas and provincial parks providing summer escapes for locals and tourists.

Annual Events

Arrowwood

• Community Garage Sale
• Sports Day

Carmangay

• Sports Day

Champion

• Champion Horse Show
• Chrome On The Range

Milo

• Snake Valley Hoedown
• The Lake McGregor Fisherman

Lomond

• Badger Lake Fishing Derby
• Slo-pitch & Beach Volleyball Tournament

Vulcan

• Moonlight Madness
• Spock Days / Galaxyfest
• Show-N-Shine / Demolition Derby
• Tinman Triathlon
• Vulcan County Agricultural BBQ

Education

Public School Divisions

Palliser School Division No. 26
#101, 3305 - 18 Avenue
North Lethbridge, AB T1H 5S1
Tel: 403-328-4111
www.pallisersd.ab.ca

Horizon School Division No. 67
6302 56 Street
Taber, AB T1G 1Z9
Tel: 403-223-3547
www.horizon.ab.ca

Separate School Divisions

Christ the Redeemer Catholic Separate Regional Division No. 3
P.O. Bag #3
46 Elma Street
Okotoks, AB T1S 2A2
Tel: 403-938-2659
www.redeemer.ab.ca

Private Schools

Hope Christian School in Champion [1-12]
Brant Christian School in Brant [1-9]

Post-Secondary Education

Graduates within Vulcan County have a number of post-secondary institutions around Southern Alberta to choose to continue their education at.

University of Calgary
www.ucalgary.ca

University of Lethbridge
www.uleth.ca

Lethbridge Community College
www.lethbridgecollege.ab.ca

Medicine Hat College
www.mhc.ab.ca

Mount Royal College
www.mtroyal.ab.ca

Southern Alberta Institute of Technology
www.sait.ab.ca

Health Care

Vulcan County is part of the Calgary Health Region www.calgaryhealthregion.ca.

Vulcan General Hospital serves the hospital needs of the County, and is an 8-bed active facility with 15 long-term care beds, D-level radiology area, fully equipped modern lab, modern emergency area and a separate labour delivery room. In addition, the Little Bow Auxiliary Hospital is located at Carmangay.

Other medical services such as medical clinics, dental clinics, chiropractic and massage therapy, etc., are available in the town of Vulcan with some massage therapy available in the villages.

Emergency Services

Fire Protection

Vulcan County is served by 6 volunteer fire departments:
Carmangay, Champion, Lomond, Milo, Vulcan, and Northwest

Police Services

Vulcan County is served by 4 Royal Canadian Mounted Police [RCMP] detachments:
Gleichen, High River, Vulcan, and Taber/Vauxhall

Ambulance Services

Vulcan County is served by the Vulcan and District Emergency Medical Service located in the town of Vulcan

Community Services

Municipal

Vulcan County (including all hamlets and subdivisions)
Box 180
Vulcan, Alberta T0L 2B0
Tel: 403-485-2241

Town of Vulcan
Box 360
Vulcan, Alberta T0L 2B0
Tel: 403-485-2417

Village of Arrowwood
Box 36
Arrowwood, Alberta T0L 0B0
Tel: 403-534-3821

Village of Carmangay
Box 130
Carmangay, Alberta T0L 0N0
Tel: 403-643-3595

Village of Champion
Box 367
Champion, Alberta T0L 0R0
Tel: 403-897-3833

Village of Lomond
Box 268
Lomond, Alberta T0L 1G0
Tel: 403-792-3611

Village of Milo
Box 65
Milo, Alberta T0L 1L0
Tel: 403-599-3883

Community Organizations (to list a few)

• Chinook Arch Regional Library System
• Family & Community Support Services
• Rainbow Literacy Society
• Vulcan County Adult Learning Council
• Vulcan Regional Victim Services

Climate

Temperature	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Daily Mean(oC)	-9.5	-6.3	-1.3	5.3	10.5	14.5	17.2	16.7	12.0	6.1	-2.5	-7.6
Std. Dev.	5.1	5.4	3.1	2.1	1.4	1.2	1.6	1.8	2.2	1.5	3.6	4.9
Daily Maximum	-4.0	-0.5	4.7	12.2	17.4	21.4	24.7	24.4	19.3	12.9	3.2	-2.1
Daily Minimum	-15	-12	-7.2	-1.7	3.5	7.5	9.8	9.1	4.5	-0.7	-8.0	-13.1
Rainfall (mm)	0.0	0.1	0.7	12.4	59.2	69.6	54.2	52.3	39.0	7.3	0.7	0.3
Snowfall (cm)	14.9	13.3	21.6	13.8	7.3	0.0	0.0	0.5	3.6	9.4	16.9	18.3

Key Contacts

Municipal

Vulcan County
Box 180
102 Centre Street
Vulcan, Alberta T0L 2B0
Tel: 403-485-2241
Fax: 403-485-2920
Email: administration@vulcancounty.ab.ca

Derrick Annable
Reeve

Larry Baran
Chief Administrative Officer
countyadmin@vulcancounty.ab.ca

Provincial (Updated December 2004)

Barry McFarland
Member of the Legislative Assembly [MLA]
Little Bow Constituency
513 Legislature Building
10800 - 97 Avenue
Edmonton, Alberta T5K 2B6
Tel: 780-427-0879
Fax: 780-427-1835

Federal (Updated June 2004)

Ted Menzies
Member of Parliament [MP]
Macleod Constituency
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A6
Tel: 613-995-8471

Constituency Office:
126 Elizabeth Street
Okotoks, Alberta T0L 1T0
Tel: 403-938-5005 or 1-800-667-0478
Fax: 403-938-5604