What is Edmonton's Jeopardy claim to fame?

When Jeopardy host Alex Trebek read out a question on the show on Monday, contestant Jill Regan, an auditor from Dedham, Massachusetts, immediately buzzed in.

On the board for $1,200: "Found on the North Saskatchewan River, this petroleum and meat packing city was established as a fort in 1795."

"What is Edmonton," Regan responded.

She was correct. But some Edmontonians found that description slightly perplexing.

Sam Maggs, a writer who moved from Edmonton to Los Angeles six months ago, tweeted out a clip of the segment this week, with her husband audibly saying, "What the?" over the sound of the television.

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Maggs said she was very excited to see Edmonton be an answer on the program, but was also confused by the description. She immediately called out the answer, but her husband, who was born and raised in Edmonton, didn't get it when they watched the episode. 

"I think the meat packing thing really threw people off," she told Radio Active on Friday. 

"Many Edmontonians were maybe not aware of Edmonton's meat packing history."

Vogel's Meatpacking Plant built in Mill Creek Ravine, operated in the early 1900's and established one of Edmonton's earliest industries.

Other potential answers

Many people have suggested possible alternatives for the Jeopardy answer.

"This city boasts the largest urban park system in all of North America," one listener e-mailed to Radio Active Friday afternoon.

Edmonton has the largest urban park in Canada, according to the city, with 160 kilometres of pathways through the river valley network.

Amanda Campbell tweeted, "[This] city has the largest and oldest Fringe Festival in North America."  

Another suggested answer on Twitter: "The city where their winters are 'a dry cold.'"

Regan, who correctly buzzed in with the "What is Edmonton?" response to the meat packing clue, won Jeopardy Monday night, earning $31,601.