Includes stories that illustrates the steadfast determination & courage of people in the face of misfortune & extreme distress. From the lesser-known weed outbreaks & tornadoes to the world-wide influenza outbreak in 1918 that devastated many Calgary families, this title focuses on the human side of these disasters.

Thomas Mawson's Plan for Calgary foundered in the depression that preceded World War I. Nonetheless, the dream of a university was sustained throughout three decades, until in 1947 the Leduc oil discovery flooded the province with revenues from its abundant natural resources. This book tells the story of those who built the university.