How to Tour Historic Calgary

Library Resources > Local History > Virtual Tours > Introduction

Welcome to our virtual tours of Calgary Buildings.

If you think Calgary is a dynamic city today, wait until you catch its past.

The historic buildings which make up our city reflect the people, values and society which created the place we call home. Bring history alive by joining us on a virtual tour of some of Calgary’s famous, near famous and infamous buildings.

Explore the popular Cornerstones columns written for the Calgary Herald, read some Building Trivia or take a stroll down Stephen Avenue from the comfort of your computer. Jump right into the virtual tour by clicking on Churches, Public Buildings or Commercial Buildings. Browse the Master Index for that particular building you've been curious about, or go where ever the wind blows by clicking on the weathervane:
Afterwards you can test your knowledge with our Quiz.

Selecting a building photo anywhere in the tour will either give you a CornerStones Column or a building profile.

Our work to preserve the history of Calgary buildings is ongoing. The Local History area of the Calgary Public Library is always looking for more information and photographs.

Enjoy the tour!

	Watch for the weathervane. Click on it to go to the next photo in the tour. The location of the star on the weathervane and the page's background color will remind you which quadrant of the city you are visiting.
	NE Calgary buildings have a star in the north east corner of the weather vane and a yellow background.
	NW Calgary buildings have a star in the north west corner of the weather vane and a pink background.
	SW Calgary buildings have a star in the south west corner of the weather vane and a pale orange background.
	SE Calgary buildings have a star in the south east corner of the weather vane and a light green background.
Alison Jackson Photo Collection	Alison Jackson worked at Calgary Public Library for many years and her family donated her extensive collection of building photos to the Local History Department.
Complete photo credits.	Many organizations gave permission to use their photos. Take a look !

Cornerstone Columns	Jennifer Bobrovitz, former Local History Librarian at Calgary Public Library, has written these columns which have appeared in the Calgary Herald.
Stephen Avenue Walking Tour	Calgary's downtown mall has a long history. Stroll down the avenue and match up the buildings.
*Trivia*	Fascinating facts Jennifer Bobrovitz, former Local History Librarian, has unearthed about buildings in Calgary. These have appeared on CBC TV and CBC Radio. Reload the page with your browser for a new trivia fact or scroll through the non-java version.
*Quiz*	Try the Building Quiz. Can you guess which building the photos feature?
Churches	Buildings of religious significance.
Public Buildings	Public buildings includes schools and hospitals.
Commercial Buildings	Commercial buildings includes stores and banks.
Master Index	An alphabetical list of all the places in the tour.
Stephen Avenue Walking Tour	Calgary's downtown mall has a long history. Match the location number on the map to the building link.

Churches	Public Buildings	Commercial Buildings
CornerStones Columns		Master Index