To access Drumheller on Street View, to go maps.google.ca, enter Drumheller in “Search Maps”, zoom in to the area then drag and drop the orange figure found above the zoom bar on the left hand side of the map section.

  “Really cool technology and will provide a unique opportunity to showcase Drumheller!” said Heather Bitz, general manager at the Chamber of Commerce when inSide Drumheller announced to her Drumheller is now featured in Google Street View.
    Really cool technology indeed: Street View is an addition to Google Maps or Google Earth which enables a 360° horizontal and 290° vertical panoramic street level view of an area. People can now access Drumheller from a computer or a mobile device in Google Maps and navigate through the area as if they are walking or driving.
    To do this, they need to  find the street they want to see from Google Maps, zoom in on the street as close as they want, drag and drop a little orange man, (Google called him Pegman), on the area, and it’s like they are there, right in front of their house (this IS the first place people think to look up!).
    The photos Google took of Drumheller were taken at the end of spring 2009 when the landscape was lush and green.
    At that time, construction on the Gordon Taylor Bridge was in progress so were the road and sidewalk repairs in the east part of downtown.    
    Street View users can easily lose hours navigating through the streets of Drumheller, especially when they realize they might be able to go to places they have wanted to see - the house they grew up in maybe?
    So how did Google do it? Well, they used one of their “Street View" cars, Wikipedia lists the makes/model in each country, and sometimes Google Trikes (tricycles) or a snowmobile are used.
    The vehicle drives around each street taking pictures every 10 or 20 metres, with a nine directional camera which gives 360° views.
    Weeks and sometimes months are spent putting the photos together to give 360° horizontal and 290° vertical panoramic street level views within Google Maps. They also apply face blurring technology, so people can’t be identified and license plates are blurred.
    Google has mapped from the west end of Newcastle Trail, and the Drumheller Heath Centre on North Dinosaur Trail, east to Deer Valley Implements on Highway 10. A small section in Rosedale has also been mapped.
    South to north, Highway 9 South to Highway 9 North.
      If people want their area to be covered, they can let Google know and submit a request, they do warn they are dealing with a lot of requests so it may take time.
    On the other hand, if people are not happy with any pictures that show their property, vehicle, or their family, they can ask for them to be removed. To do this, they need to get to the photo they have concerns with, click on “Report a problem” located at the bottom-left of the image window, complete a form and click submit.
    Since starting the Street View project in 2007, Google has covered many countries and here are some of their ideas on how this can be used:
Explore parts of the world they’ve always wanted to visit - see famous sights such as the Big Ben, Sydney Opera House, Times Square, Eiffel Tower, Colosseum, and much more.
When people are on the go, they can use their mobile device to see what  their transit stop looks like. If they look up directions, they can also see Street View images for every step along the way.
Check parking availability. Are there lots nearby? Check in advance if a building provides easy access and wheelchair ramps for disabled persons.
Preview vacation accommodation.
    Google tells of various ways this tool can be used for business purposes:
Real estate agents and brokers can show prospective buyers or tenants available properties. Better yet, embed Street View images easily in their site with the Maps API.
Journalists can embed Street View images on their websites to show the location of news events. For example, The New York Times embedded a Street View image to show the location of an earthquake in Italy.
Promote a business by showing them the building facade, nearby amenities, landmarks and lesser-known attractions.
Conduct virtual field trips. Schools can incorporate Street View on both Google Maps and Google Earth into geography and history lessons.
    On closer investigation of the shots, there are clues that the Street View vehicle went around Drumheller during the last week in June and some might have seen it. We ask readers to let us know if they can estimate when the Street View vehicle came through Drumheller.

  The make-up of Drumheller was very different 70 years ago, and The Mail was able to catch a fleeting glimpse of that through the mind’s eye of someone who was there.
    Ernie Henderson of High River turned 105 on January 11 of this year. He holds the distinction of being the oldest man in Canada to wear the Red Serge, and it was not long into his career he was stationed in Drumheller.
    Henderson became an RCMP officer in 1933 and came to work in the valley the late 30’s.
    “In fact, I was there when the war broke out,” Henderson told The Mail, as if it were yesterday. “I was there for two years, and a half.”
     According to Henderson, this was not long after police service in Drumheller was turned over to the RCMP. Before he came to Drumheller, he was stationed in British Columbia for four years.
    The 1930’s were tough all over, and in Drumheller it was no different.  Henderson says already mines were closing in the 1930’s before the war effort created a boom.
    “There were 700 hundred families on welfare at the time in the valley, right on both sides of Drumheller,” he said. “At that time there were no paved roads there either, and that heavy mud was really bad.”
    It was still a young man’s town with all the pitfalls it entails, including services that have both become frowned upon, and legendary.   
    “It was tough in a way,” says Henderson. “There were two houses of ill repute.”
    The iconic duo of Madames Mary Roper and Fanny Ramsley set up their shops around 1918 and were doing a roaring business at the time Henderson was stationed in Drumheller, and he remembers them by name.
    They were both on the outside of the city limits,” said Henderson. “We never could get anything on Mary, but we were tough on Fanny.”
    They also had learned of the reputation of the young officer.
    “When I was transferred, from there the day before I left, there was a taxi that drove into the yard. Our office was in the old courthouse building at that time,” he recalls. “It was Fanny Ramsley, and she said, ‘Is Mr. Henderson here?’ They gave me a call and when I came out, she said, ‘I hear you are leaving.’”
    “I said ‘you’d be happy about that,’ and she said, ‘No, I am really not. You were tough, but you were always fair.’ You can’t get a better recommendation for a policeman than that.” 
    Henderson moved on in 1941 to the Hanna Detachment, and was married in Hanna. He eventually retired from the force in 1948 and went back to his first love -- ranching.
    “I left after 15 years, I was a corporal then and I was stationed in Cardston, but I was always a farmer at heart, particularly with livestock. I judged draught horses from Vancouver to Toronto in some of the biggest shows in the country,” he said.
    He says he has not been through Drumheller for six or seven years as he does not have a driver's licence anymore. He says his eyes are still good, but his hearing is starting to fade. His stories still hold strong at his regular Thursday coffee klatch at the Dairy Queen in High River where he holds court with a number of retired police officers. In fact, this year it was the site of his 105th birthday celebration and it even attracted RCMP K-Division Commanding Officer Rod Knecht.