How Edmonton used cattle drives to promote western culture

One-hundred cattle are driven down Jasper Avenue in October 2004. (CTV News Edmonton)

Once upon a time in Edmonton cows and cowboys roamed the streets of downtown. In Edmonton’s modern history, cattle have been driven through downtown three times.

This story uses news coverage from those cattle drives and a current interview from two local ranchers to explain why events like these help promote learning and why that’s important.

2004

In 2004, Mark Zuckerberg launched Facebook, the popular TV show Friends ended and a wardrobe malfunction at Superbowl XXXVIII involving Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake may have stolen the show.

And while some may remember 2004 as the year the Boston Red Sox broke the curse of the Bambino, Edmontonians may also remember it as the year their city turned 100.

Oh, and 100 cattle were driven down Jasper avenue that year too.

We’re not running bulls

The idea of holding a cattle drive in downtown Edmonton was pitched by Mayor Bill Smith as a way to promote the River City Roundup, a festival aimed at boosting awareness for the CFR and Farm Fair, and to coincide with Edmonton’s 100th birthday.

As the 2004 CFR approached, City Council debated the pros and cons of the proposed event.

Coun. Michael Phair was skeptical that Edmontonians would be on board and questioned if the almost $75,000 it would cost was worth it.

On the other hand, Coun. Jane Batty found the proposal “exciting,” and coun. Stephen Mandel was most concerned with the “big time” clean-up associated with cattle.

“One head of cattle breaks loose and they put a horn in some kid,” Coun. Terry Cavanaugh said, speaking of safety concerns.

“It’s been come off like the running of the bulls. We’re not running bulls,” Ed Wedman, a rancher and a member of the River City Roundup committee, told reporter Deborah Shiry when she visited his ranch to ask about the proposed cattle drive.

Wedman was in charge of organizing both the cattle and the cowboys who would run them.

“They’re used to being handled with horses, they’re used to being moved,” he said, confident the safety risks were minimal.

In the end, council signed off agreeing to pay $35,000 to facilitate this cowboy tradition.

So on Oct. 14, 2004, professional cowboys ran 100 cattle down Jasper Avenue for eight blocks.

The clicking of running hooves ringing off the pavement replaced the usual traffic sounds and cowboys on horses fell in line to do their part. The column of cows, passing impark lots and under pedways, loped along Jasper Avenue, which was lined by onlookers. Horses neighed, the crowd cheered and cowboys yelled “yeehaw.”

They passed City Centre mall, then with Canada Place glinting in the background, the cattle rounded the corner and headed to their final destination.

2010

This year brought the launch of Apple’s iPad, the royal engagement of Will and Kate, and the end of Conan O’Brien’s hosting gig on The Tonight Show.

And in the same year that Canadians got to cheer for their winter Olympians on home snow, Edmontonians got to witness an old-fashioned cattle drive for the second time in six years.

Wedman was once again trail boss and Bob Steadward led the charge in reviving the River City Roundup.

On Nov. 2, 2010, steers herded by cowboys, once again hit Edmonton streets. They travelled from MacEwan University to Churchill Square offering a show of how professional cowboys do their work.

“A lot of people don’t realize that this way of life still exists,” Hugh McLennan said from horseback when he stopped to talk to reporters.

The parade of cows, a delight to the urban dwellers who came out to watch, kicked off farm fair that year. A western BBQ and square dance was also held at Churchill Square. Street sweepers ended the show, making sure there was no mess left behind.

Everybody deserves a trip to the big lights

Megan Greenwood is a third generation rancher at the Riverwood Ranch near Evansburgh, which she runs with her father Bruce.

Bruce’s dad bought the property where Riverwood sits in 1946 but his family has been farming in the area since 1909.

The Greenwoods say that things at the ranch have changed a lot over the years, from the types of animals they own to the services they provide. Other things haven’t changed as much, like the way they move cattle.

The cows at Riverwood come from other farmers who pay to have their herds graze there and cattle driving is how they’re moved between pastures.

Bruce told CTV News Edmonton they can run between 300 and 400 cattle at a time and they’ll travel from two miles up to 15. Driving them is easier on the cattle than loading them into trucks where they need to be separated and then re-sorted, Bruce said, and it’s also more cost efficient.

The Greenwoods consider themselves ambassadors for agriculture and say bringing events like cattle drives into the city is a good way to encourage people to learn about farming and promote understanding. It also offers more of an appreciation of the work that goes into producing the food that we eat, Megan said.

“I guess everybody deserves a trip to the big lights every now and then,” Bruce laughs when asked about the cattle running through downtown Edmonton.

But he thinks giving the public a chance to be around livestock is the best way to teach about ranch life and how caring for the animals is just as important as herding them. He uses calf roping as an example of a practice that is sometimes considered a “bad thing” because people don’t understand how it’s used in the real world.

“What is harder on a calf? Walking it five miles hurt to get treatment or me throwing a rope on it and treating it and being done in 10 minutes.”

2024

In 2024 the words “wokery” and “swear box” were added to the Oxford English Dictionary, Japan became the fifth country to land a spacecraft on the moon and Pat Sajak hosted his final episode of Wheel of Fortune. And while Taylor Swift finally cracked the Billionaire’s list, Edmonton celebrated the return of the CFR and held its third cattle drive in the city.

“I have driven a lot of cattle in a lot of places, but never through the downtown of any city,” said Kynan Vine, the leader of the 2024 cattle drive.

On Oct. 2, a Wednesday, the horned cattle started at Churchill Square and were driven through downtown, ending at Rogers Place. It was a smaller herd than previous years and the streets were quieter, missing the big crowds as the event was not advertised. Those who happened to be around were delightedly surprised, however.

Years earlier, in 2018, the CFR headed south to Red Deer after it was unable to secure a deal with the Oilers Entertainment Group.

Arlindo Gomes from Explore Edmonton expressed his pleasure at the CFR’s return to the river city for its 50th anniversary.

“The cows finally came home,” he said with a grin.

‘It’s not easy, but it’s well worth it’

Ranch life isn’t always easy but is worth the hard work, according to the Greenwoods. They don’t offer day tours at Riverwood anymore, but instead have a variety of horse riding and training programs intended to build horsemanship skills and clinics to get their students involved in the cattle drives.

Learning about ranching is a mandatory part of the training Megan offers. Bruce says it’s important to adapt to changing times, and even though the family farm is “dying,” he thinks education is the best way to fight for their lifestyle, and that food produced locally is still the “cheapest food you can buy.”

Will Edmontonians get another chance to see cattle run down city streets? That’s unclear, but that doesn’t mean urbanites are out of luck, with places like Riverwood available and willing to teach.

“If more people gave agriculture the chance they would find a lot of love in it,” Megan said.

If you do stop by, “The coffee is always on,” Bruce said.