population of 8,350, Edmonton became the capital of Alberta when the province was formed a year later, on September 1, 1905. In November 1905, the Canadian Northern Railway (CNR) arrived in Edmonton, accelerating growth.
During the early 1900s, Edmonton grew very rapidly, causing speculation in real estate. In 1912, Edmonton amalgamated with the City of Strathcona, south of the North Saskatchewan River; as a result, the city extended south of the North Saskatchewan River for the first time.
Just prior to World War I, the boom ended, and the city's population declined sharply from more than 72,000 in 1914 to less than 54,000 only two years later. Many impoverished families moved to subsistence farms outside the city and others fled to greener pastures in other provinces. Recruitment to the Canadian army during the war also contributed to the drop in population. Afterwards, the city slowly recovered in population and economy during the 1920s and 1930s and took off again during and afterWorld War II.
Many Canadian bi-plane pilots who survived the war became bush pilots. Edmonton, in its role as Gateway to the North established one of the earliest airfields in Canada. It became the first licensed airfield in Canada, Blatchford Field (now Edmonton City Centre (Blatchford Field) Airport), in 1929. Pioneering aviators such as Wilfrid R. "Wop" May and Max Ward used Blatchford Field as a major base for the distribution of mail, food, and medicine to Northern Canada; hence Edmonton's role as the "Gateway to the North" was strengthened. World War II saw Edmonton becoming a major base for the construction of the Alaska Highway and the Northwest Staging Route
