Alcanó

Alcanó is a village in the province of Lleida and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain.

History

The municipality was first mentioned in a 1203 document which detailed the acquisition of a palace by Gombau of Camporrells, bishop of Lerida in exchange for the rights to the Alcanó Almunia. The Alcanó Almunia is of a Saracen origin.

In documents from 1267 it appeared under the name Alcanó de la Frontera. The lordship of the castle belonged to Hug de Tolosa and later to Pere de Sanahuja. In 1450 he became the Clergy of Lleida.

Symbols

The coat of arms of Alcanó is defined by the following blazon: "Losanjado Shield: Vert, a canyon of gold. For stamps a mural crown of the people."

It was approved on August 17, 1993. The canyon is a popular traditional signal symbolizing the name of the people.

Culture

Close to the Plaza Mayor there is a building which corresponds to the ancient castle of the town. The building was renovated but original features such as an arched shaped window or some of the interior walls are still visible.

Alcan

Alcan was a Canadian mining company and aluminium manufacturer. It was founded in 1902 as the Northern Aluminium Company, Limited, renamed Aluminium Company of Canada, Limited in 1925, and Alcan Aluminium Limited in 1966. It took the name Alcan Incorporated in 2001. During that time, it grew to become one of the world’s largest aluminium manufacturers.

Alcan was purchased by Australian/European multinational Rio Tinto for $38 billion in 2007, becoming Rio Tinto Alcan Inc. in 2008. It was headquartered in Montreal, Canada, in its Maison Alcan complex.

History

The Northern Aluminium Company Limited was founded in 1902, in Shawinigan, Quebec, Canada, as part of the Pittsburgh Reduction Company. In 1913, the company opened a kitchen utensil production plant and foundry in Toronto. It opened a rolling mill in the plant a few years later.

During the First World War (1914–18), aluminium production shot to 131,000 tonnes from 69,000.

In 1925, the company was renamed the Aluminium Company of Canada. The Aluminium Company of Canada was responsible for rapid development in Arvida, today a part of the city of Saguenay in Quebec, by contributing to the construction of major ports and railway facilities. It began production at its sheet rolling and extrusion facility in Ontario in 1940.

Alaska Highway

The Alaska Highway (also known as the Alaskan Highway, Alaska-Canadian Highway, or ALCAN Highway) was constructed during World War II for the purpose of connecting the contiguous United States to Alaska through Canada. It begins at the junction with several Canadian highways in Dawson Creek, British Columbia, and runs to Delta Junction, Alaska, via Whitehorse, Yukon. Completed in 1942 at a length of approximately 1,700 miles (2,700 km), as of 2012 it is 1,387 mi (2,232 km) long. The difference in distance is due to constant reconstruction of the highway, which has rerouted and straightened out numerous sections. The highway was opened to the public in 1948. Legendary over many decades for being a rough, challenging drive, the highway is now paved over its entire length.

An informal system of historic mileposts developed over the years to denote major stopping points; Delta Junction, at the end of the highway, makes reference to its location at "Historic Milepost 1422." It is at this point that the Alaska Highway meets the Richardson Highway, which continues 96 mi (155 km) to the city of Fairbanks. This is often regarded, though unofficially, as the northern portion of the Alaska Highway, with Fairbanks at Historic Milepost 1520. Mileposts on this stretch of highway are measured from Valdez, rather than the Alaska Highway. The Alaska Highway is popularly (but unofficially) considered part of the Pan-American Highway, which extends south (despite its discontinuity in Panama) to Argentina.