The Canadian prairie town known as the City of 100 Hellos

Countries & Cities · Published 15 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: In the semi-arid grasslands of Alberta, a community thrives through deep multiculturalism. Formerly used by Crow and Blackfoot peoples to hunt bison, this town transformed into a varied centre for refugees, migrants, and seasonal labourers, gaining a special moniker denoting its international identity.

Located in the Palliser's Triangle, Brooks sits within a dry, mixed grass prairie landscape. The climate is semi-arid, characterized by low humidity and significant temperature swings. While winters are cold and dry—with January averaging −9.5 °C—the arrival of Chinook winds can temporarily moderate the chill. Most precipitation arrives during summer thunderstorms, contributing to a low annual average of 299.5 mm. The landscape is defined by the Grassland Natural Region, where the driest month is February, seeing only about 6.7 mm of rain. In contrast, June is typically the wettest month, with averages reaching 75.6 mm.

The town's history is rooted in the expansion of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Before 1904, the area lacked a formal name, but a contest held by the Postmaster General eventually named it after Noel Edgell Brooks, a railway engineer from Calgary. Following the 1877 Treaty 7, homesteaders used the Dominion Lands Act to establish farms, leading to the area's incorporation as a village in 1910 and a town in 1911. The city's infrastructure includes the Brooks Aqueduct, which spans a 3.2 km valley to move irrigation water. The local newspaper, the Brooks Bulletin, has documented this region's evolution since 1910.

Today, the economy is anchored by agriculture and energy, specifically oil and gas. The city hosts Canada’s second-largest beef-processing facility, operated by JBS Canada, which employs over 2,000 people. Alongside its economic significance, the town possesses a lively social life, boasting the nation's largest percentage of Black Canadians within a single census subdivision. This diversity is captured in the 2010 documentary 'Brooks – The City of 100 Hellos,' which profiled the significant populations of refugees and temporary foreign workers residing in the region. The local sports scene is anchored by the Brooks Bandits, a junior hockey team that has secured multiple national championships. Beyond industry, the area is surrounded by notable sites like Dinosaur Provincial Park, a recognized World Heritage Site.

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