1. Gord Downey of the Tragically Hip refers to Saskatoon as the “Paris of the Prairies” in the opening line of the Tragically Hip song “Wheat Kings:”
“Sundown on the Paris of the Prairies . . .”
2. The name Saskatoon comes from the Cree inanimate noun “misâskwatômina”, which refers to the sweet, violet-coloured berry that grows in the area.
3. Sutherland was an independent town until 1956, when it was incorporated into the City of Saskatoon.
4. The world’s largest uranium company Cameco and the world’s largest potash company Potash Corp have their corporate headquarters in Saskatoon.
5. Shannon Tweed, partner of Gene Simmons of KISS, is from Saskatoon.
6. At one point in the 2007 movie Hannibal Rising, a prequel to The Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal is said to be looking for someone in a small town south of Saskatoon.
7. Rock band Wide Mouth Mason, who hail from Saskatoon, have a song titled “Unfolding” that contains the lyric,
“It's a lazy afternoon on the eastside of Saskatoon.”
8. Canadian rock super-group The Guess Who recorded a song called “Running Back to Saskatoon.”
9. Johnny Cash co-wrote and recorded a song called “Girl in Saskatoon.”
10. The University of Saskatchewan campus is home to the Canadian Light Source, which is the largest scientific project completed in Canada in over 50 years. The 179 million dollar project resulted in a national synchrotron radiation facility that is used for a wide range of world-class scientific research.
11. Saskatoon has 145 parks that cover over 931 hectares (2300 acres) of land throughout the city.
12. University of Saskatchewan is comprised of 13 colleges and registers nearly 20,000 students every year. It is also the only university in Canada to have all six life sciences colleges and a teaching hospital on the same campus.
13. The average South Saskatchewan River Flow through the city of Saskatoon is 12,100,000 m3/day.
14. 1909 was Saskatoon’s first recorded earthquake, lasting between 30 seconds and one minute and the tremors were felt from Winnipeg to Lethbridge.
15. Emma Woikin, originally from Blaine Lake, went to Ottawa in the dirty thirties. As she was of Russian descent, a Russian diplomat seduced her into passing them (supposedly secret) documents she had decoded, thus precipitating the Igor Gouzenko affair, which helped launch the Cold War. After serving her prison term in Kingston penitentiary, she came to Saskatoon and quietly went about her work as a top-notch legal secretary at a prestigious law firm.
16. In 1899 a bar was licensed for the first time in Saskatoon, the city established by the Temperance Colonization Society. A struggle between the forces of temperance and those against resulted in the cancellation of the license the following year.
17. On March 4, 1912, twelve people were injured when the CNR sleeping car “Kipling” crashed through the old CNR Bridge and fell 50 feet to the frozen bed of the Saskatchewan River below.
18. Captain Horatio Hamilton Ross lost his $28,000 investment in the steamboat, City of Medicine Hat, when it smashed against a pier of the steel Victoria Bridge and capsized on June 7, 1908. The crew all scrambled onto the bridge, except for the engineer, who swam to safety.
19. In 2006, while performing training dives, Saskatoon Fire and Protective Services found the ship’s anchor. In June 2008, the Meewasin Valley Authority unveiled the anchor now on display at River Landing.
20. In 1901 Saskatoon was smaller than Battleford, Moose Jaw, Prince Albert, Regina, and Rosthern.
21. Saskatoon once had two different newspapers, the Daily Phoenix and the Saskatoon Daily Star until 1928 when they were combined to make the Star Phoenix.
22. The Circle Drive Bridge is the only bridge in Saskatoon that isn’t straight.
23. The Marr Residence on 11th Street East is oldest building in Saskatoon that continues to occupy its original site, but the oldest structure in Saskatoon is the Trounce House now located on 10th Street East.
24. The eight-story Canada Building on 1st Avenue and 21st Street was built in 1912 and is considered to be as Saskatoon’s first skyscraper.
25. Saskatoon’s first industrial plant was a saw mill.
26. The Qu’Appelle, Long Lake, and Saskatchewan Railroads were the first railways to reach Saskatoon.
27. Saskatoon’s oldest bridge that crosses the Saskatchewan River is the Traffic Bridge.
28. In 1985 Saskatoon became Saskatchewan’s biggest city.
29. St. John's Anglican Cathedral has the tallest spire of all the churches in Saskatoon at 44 meters (145 feet).
30. The Delta Bessborough is the building in Saskatoon with the most gargoyles.
31. James Wilson was the first mayor of Saskatoon in 1903.
32. Saskatoon’s official motto is “Commerce Industry Education”.
33. Susan Jacks was a Saskatoon born singer who sang the 1969 hit song, “Which Way You Goin’ Billy?” which went on to become a # 1 hit in Canada and eventually sold 2.5 millions copies around the world.
34. Raised in Saskatoon, Joni Mitchell became the first Canadian woman to be inducted in the U.S. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997.
35. The first concrete sidewalk was constructed in 1908 along 21st Street between 2nd and 3rd Avenues.
36. The world’s first successful cancer treatment with a Colbalt-60 Unit occurred at the Saskatoon University Hospital in 1951.
37. The first electric trolley bus went into service in Saskatoon on November 22nd, 1948.
38. The coldest temperature in Saskatoon - minus 50 Celsius without the wind chill - was recorded in 1893.
39. Saskatoon normal year-round average temperature is 2.6 degrees.
40. The largest tree in Saskatoon, a cottonwood tree can be found at 271- 8th Street East. This cottonwood tree has a circumference of 481cm and a diameter of 153cm.
41. The arches on the university bridge were described to look “like a stone skipping over water.”
42. The main factor in deciding the location of the University of Saskatchewan campus was the quality of soil because the College of Agriculture located there required top quality land.
43. For the first three years after the University of Saskatchewan opened in 1907, only the College was Arts and Science was in operation. On 29 July, 1910, Prime Minister Wilfred Laurier laid the cornerstone for the College building, and additional construction took place. The College of Agriculture opened in 1912, but the official opening was held in May the following year.
44. The Hugh Cairns memorial in Kiwanis Park in Saskatoon is believed to be the only war memorial in the world dedicated to the players of football (soccer) who died in World War I.
45. Janet Wright is a Saskatoon born actress that played Emma on the Saskatchewan-based show Corner Gas.
46. Saskatoon’s hottest recorded temperature, 40.6 degrees Celsius, was recorded in Saskatoon on 5 June, 1988.
47. Saskatoon’s warmest winter was 1930-1931, with an average temperature of 6.2 degrees compared to the typical values of minus 12.5 degrees.
48. In a normal year Saskatoon gets 350.1 millimeters of precipitation.
49. Saskatoon doctor, Dr. Herbert Dulton Weaver was the first in Western Canada to use an X-ray machine. In 1906, Dr. Weaver brought this technology that was still in its infancy to Saskatoon. The harmful effects of the technology were unknown at the time, and Dr. Weaver received so much radiation that his index finger on his left hand needed to be amputated.
50. The 33rd Street and Warman Road/2nd Avenue intersection is also called the diamond intersection because the Canadian National and Pacific Railways cross near the south corner of the intersection, where their tracks cross it created a diamond shape.
51. Saskatoon is 348 km away from the US border.
52. Saskatoon is 346 km away from the Manitoba border.
53. The Saskatoon Forestry Farm Park was originally part of the Sutherland Forest Nursery Station, established to produce tree seedlings for shelterbelts on the prairies. During the life of the nursery there were 147 million trees distributed.
54. The weir on the South Saskatchewan and located near Spadina Crescent and 33rd Street was completed in 1940. The purpose of the weir is to provide an adequate water level for the water treatment plant making it easier to pump into the water works and power plant, as well as making the river better suited for boating, and the use of float planes. The weir, constructed in the 1930s, not only beautified this area of the Meewasin Valley, but as importantly this construction project provided jobs for unemployed workers.
55. Saskatoon’s altitude above sea level is 481 meters (1,580 feet).
56. Richard Keith Downey, born in Saskatoon, was known as the ‘Father of Canola’. He headed the plant breeding team at Saskatoon ’s Agriculture Canada research station where canola was developed from rapeseed. Canola has become the second largest field crop in Canada.
57. Saskatoon’s first commercial passenger flight was attempted on April 28, 1919, from an airfield on 22nd Street West near St. Paul 's Hospital. The flight was delayed when the plane hit a parked car and was destroyed. Fortunately there were no injuries. (COS Archives. “This Week in History” 28 April 2001.)
58. Saskatoon’s last streetcar made its final run on November 10, 1951. The street car bodies were sold at auction and put to use mostly as sheds and out-buildings. One of them was shipped to Wakaw Lake, where it continues to serve as a summer cabin. (COS Archives. “Significant Dates” – website.)
59. Four people are buried on the University of Saskatchewan grounds: John and Olive Diefenbaker, Sir Frederick Haultain (the last Premiere of the Northwest Territories before Saskatchewan and Alberta were formed in 1905), and Saskatoon plastic surgeon, Dr. Robert Henry Dale.
60. Saskatoon is located at Latitude 52.24 North Longitude 106.67 West Latitude.
61. Within the city limits there are seven bridges that cross the South Saskatchewan River.
62. Saskatoon covers an area of 176 square kilometres.
63. Saskatoon has been inhabited for over 6000 years and the first European settlers arrived in 1883.
64. Saskatoon was incorporated as a city on May 26, 1906.
65. Saskatoon is one of the sunniest cities in Canada, and records an average of 2381 hours of sunlight annually.
66. Saskatoon is home to Innovation Place, an 33 hectare (80 acre) science park staffing over 2000 employees. This area houses 130 organizations in the 18 buildings and contributes to approximately $240 million a year to the Saskatoon’s economy.
67. Saskatoon is home to the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO), which is a global leader in researching the diseases that afflict animal and human health.
68. Saskatoon is internationally recognized as a biotechnology leader with approximately 30% of the national agricultural biotechnology industry located in Saskatoon.
69. Saskatoon hosts 33.4% of the manufacturing employment of Saskatchewan.
70. Saskatoon is ranked #4 as North America’s most competitive city for Food Processing & Nutraceuticals.
71. Saskatoon ranks #1 for the most competitive city in Midwest North America in the Information Technology & Electronics industry.
72. Average wind speed in Saskatoon is 17 km/hr (10.6mph).
73. The average family income in Saskatoon is $72,791.
74. Saskatoon Police Service staffs over 375 officers, 50 special constables and 101 civilians who serve the City of Saskatoon.
75. Saskatoon Public Board of Education has 44 elementary schools and 9 high schools which serve approximately 20,000 students.
76. Saskatoon Catholic Board of Education has more than 15,000 students in 6 high schools and 33 elementary schools.
77. Saskatoon is the home to many cultural and ethnic festivals including Folkfest, the Sasktel Saskatchewan Jazz Festival, Saskatoon Fringe Theatre Festival, Saskatchewan Children’s Festival and Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan.
78. The average life expectancy in Saskatoon is 79.1 years.
79. The average unemployment rate in Saskatoon is 4.4%.
80. Seventy percent of the population in Saskatoon indicated that they hold a post-secondary education.
81. The recorded census metro area population of Saskatoon is 236,797 citizens.
82. Saskatoon has ten beautiful golf courses.
83. In 2006 the Vanier Cup was hosted by the University of Saskatchewan at the Griffiths Stadium in Saskatoon . This was the first time that the Vanier Cup had been played outside of Ontario.
84. Saskatoon is the only city to hold the World Junior Hockey Championships twice.
85. On April 1, 2007 the Juno Awards, hosted by Canadian singer Nelly Furtado, were held in Saskatoon at the Credit Union Centre.
86. John Diefenbaker, the thirteenth Prime Minister of Canada moved to Saskatoon in 1910, and received his BA, and MA in political science and economics at the University of Saskatchewan.
87. NHL coach Mike Babcock was raised in Saskatoon. His team the Detroit Red Wings won the Stanley Cup in 2008.
88. The Gem Café was the first licensed restaurant to open in Saskatoon. It opened its doors on December 23rd, 1959.
Information Sources:
-City of Saskatoon
-Saskatoon and Region Economic Development Authority (SREDA)
-Saskatoon Public Library
-Saskatoon Centennial
-Robin and Arlene Karpan
-Wikipedia
