First Oil Well in Western Canada National Historic Site

First Oil Well in Western Canada National Historic Site, located in Waterton in the Southern Rockies, shares the story of Alberta’s early oil industry. Although many people associate Alberta oil with the oilsands in the north, the very first producing oil well was in Waterton. In 1901, businessman and politician John Lineham brought his oil company to the area and started drilling along the shores of Cameron Lake. Ten months later, he hit oil and the area became known as Oil City for its rigs, bunkhouse, dining hall and cabins. In the end, there was not as much oil as he had hoped, but in 1968 the site became Waterton’s first National Historic Site. Today, visitors can stand where this early chapter of Alberta’s energy story began and imagine the remote, rugged life of the workers who once called Oil City home.