Hours of Operation | Location

Grand Re-opening Labour Day Weekend For more information on the Frank Slide Interpretive Centre closure for exhibit renewal and artifact search please click here. (PDF)

On April 29, 1903, at 4:10 a.m., 82 million tonnes (30 million cubic metres) of limestone crashed from the summit of Turtle Mountain and buried a portion of the sleeping town of Frank. The dimensions of the rock mass that fell are 150 metres (500 feet) deep, 425 metres (1,400 feet) high and one kilometre (3,280 feet) wide.

The bustling town of Frank was home to approximately 600 people in 1903. Of these, roughly 100 individuals lived in the path of the slide. An estimated 70 people were killed.

The primary cause of the Frank Slide was the mountain's unstable structure. Underground coal mining, water action in summit cracks and severe weather conditions may have contributed to the disaster.

The mechanism of movement that enabled the rockslide-avalanche to spread over 3 square kilometres (1.2 square miles) of the valley in less than 100 seconds, has been the subject of considerable discussion and speculation. The debris may have remained in contact with the surface through most of its course, flowing down the side of the mountain and across the valley. Or, lubrication at the base of the slide, compressed air or steam, would permit sliding of a flexible sheet of debris.

The buried section of railway was rebuilt 3 weeks after the slide. A road was completed through the slide in 1906 and improved during the 1920s. Before it was completed, people had to travel over a rough road built beyond the rockslide debris. This temporary route passed through what is now the Frank Slide Interpretive Centre parking lot and the Frank Slide Trail follows the old road bed for some distance. Highway #3, as it is seen today, was constructed in the 1930s and improved in 1979.

The elevation of the north peak of Turtle Mountain is 2,109 metres (6,920 feet) and of the south peak, 2,200 metres (7,217 feet).

The coal seam that was mined under the mountain is 3 - 7 metres (8 - 23 feet) thick, pitching at approximately an 85 degree angle. Look for an outcrop of the seam on the south side of the slide, halfway up the mountain.

In the wake of the slide:

A brakeman for the Canadian Pacific Railway, Sid Choquette, races across the rocks to flag down an approaching passenger train. He stops the train before it collides with the slide. The house of Alexander Leitch is hit by the slide. His three young daughters miraculously survive. Temporarily trapped, 17 underground coal miners dig their way to freedom 14 hours after the slide. The Bansmer and Ennis families survive the destruction of their homes.

Hours of Operation

Open year-round
May 15 - September 14
9:00am - 6:00pm

September 15 - May 14
10:00am - 5:00pm

Closed: Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Years Day & Easter Sunday.

Location

Located 1.5 km off Highway #3 in the Municipality of Crowsnest Pass, Alberta.

Inquiries and Bookings

Alberta Culture and Community Spirit Frank Slide Interpretive Centre P.O. Box 959, Blairmore Crowsnest Pass, Alberta T0K 0E0 Phone: (403) 562-7388 Fax: (403) 562-8635 Within Alberta, call 310-0000 and ask to be connected toll free. Email: info@frankslide.com