The Alberta
Legislature
An adventure through our provincial
government
By Carter
The History of The
Legislature
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The first official legislature was at
McKay Avenue school. This is a
picture of the people involved with
the first legislative assembly.
McKay Avenue school was named
after Dr. William Morrison MacKay.
The reason the School is not
spelled the same way as his last
name is because when they wrote
it they made a mistake. You can’t
change it because it’s etched in
stone.
The beginning of the legislature
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Alberta's legislature was finished in 1912. It
was made of marble, sandstone and
concrete. some features include solid red
mahogany. The grounds are made up of
paths and have various plants and water
features. under the grounds there is a
pedway.
Our first premier, Alexander Rutherford,
was part of the liberal party. The fact that
one out of 10 adults who qualified to vote
could not read or write was a big problem
for the voting system. So they had to come
up with something fast. They came up with
a colour coded system
The house in session
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The chamber is the most important room in
the legislature. This is where a bill is
proposed and denied or it is passed.
The rules of the chamber were based on
British tradition. For example, when a new
speaker was voted in the premier and the
leader of the opposition would drag the
speaker into the chair. This is because in
old Britain if the king did not like a bill that
was passed he would kill the speaker. So if
you could die doing this job you wouldn’t
want that job and you would run away.
The original mace was made of plumbing
parts because of a rush to get a symbol of
power. It was used for about 50 years . The
new mace was made because it was time
for a new one.
The People involved with the
legislature
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The speaker’s job is to keep order in
the chamber. When the speaker stands
all must be silent. The speaker also
addresses the person whose turn it is
to speak.
The sergeant at arms’ role is to keep
order in the gallery and enforce the
speaker’s ruling in the chamber.
The government members’ job is to
back up the bill that they wish to be
passed.
The opposition members’ job is to
state reasons against the bill that they
do not want passed.
The Leftenant governor’s job is to
carry the word of the queen to the
house.
Fun things
Even though the legislature is a
serious place there are also fun things
like looking at the Lego legislature,
marvel at the water features and, in
the summer, swim and wade in the
pool.
An interesting fact about the main
fountain is that an anemometer like
thing on top of the annex building
controls the height of the fountain .
You can also take a free tour. The tour
guides will show you the structure and
features of the legislature. There is
also the magic spot. Here you can
hear the fountain raining on your head.
The magic spot was discovered by the
light above it.
There is a time capsule that lies in
front of a bronze statue. It is to be
opened in 2091.
The voting system
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The Voting system is vital to the
legislature. Without voting the first
premier, Alexander Rutherford, would
not have been elected. Our System
of voting requires secrecy so no one
would be swayed by other people. The
picture on the top left is Mr.Westwater
of the head electoral office. He is great
at explaining the electoral process.
The coat of arms
Check out the coat of arms. It is
one of the symbols of Alberta.
The beaver [ As seen on the
top] is one of the national
emblems of Canada. The lion
represents the British Power.
The antelope [as seen on the
right] is another symbol of a
fast growing nation. The
flower is the Alberta wild rose.
This is Alberta's official flower.
Finally the Writing at the
bottom is Latin for strong and
free.
The end
 Come
check out the legislature.
And see what is going on.
 Make sure to go on the internet
for more information.