[1] Witnesses reported that within 100 seconds the rock reached up the opposing hills, obliterating the eastern edge of Frank, the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) line and the coal mine.

Multiple factors led to the slide: Turtle Mountain's formation left it in a constant state of instability.

Coal mining operations may have weakened the mountain's internal structure, as did a wet winter and cold snap on the night of the disaster.

It has been designated a provincial historic site of Alberta and is home to an interpretive centre that receives over 100,000 visitors annually.

[2] It was named after Henry Frank who, along with Samuel Gebo, owned the Canadian-American Coal and Coke Company, which operated the mine that the town was created to support.

[3] The pair celebrated the founding of the town on September 10, 1901, with a gala opening that featured speeches from territorial leaders, sporting events, a dinner and tours of the mine and planned layout for the community.

[6] In the weeks leading up to the disaster, miners occasionally felt rumblings from within the mountain, while the pressure created by the shifting rock sometimes caused the timbers supporting the mine shafts to crack and splinter.

[7] In the early morning hours of April 29, 1903, a freight train pulled out of the mine and was slowly making its way towards the townsite when the crew heard a deafening rumble behind them.

The engineer immediately set the throttle to full speed ahead and sped his train to safety across the bridge over the Crowsnest River.

[1] Witnesses to the disaster claimed it took about 100 seconds for the slide to reach up the opposing hills, indicating the mass of rock travelled at a speed of about 112 kilometres per hour (70 mph).

[18] Fifteen-year-old Lillian Clark, working a late shift that night in the town's boarding house, had been given permission to stay overnight for the first time.

[20] Through falling rocks and a dust cloud that impaired his visibility, Choquette ran for 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) to warn the oncoming locomotive of the danger.

[21] Premier Frederick Haultain arrived at the disaster site on May 1, where he met with engineers who had investigated the top of Turtle Mountain.

Siding with the latter, Haultain ordered the town evacuated,[22] and the Geological Survey of Canada (GSC) sent two of its top geologists to investigate further.

[24] The North-West Mounted Police, reinforced by officers who arrived from Cranbrook, Fort Macleod and Calgary, kept tight control of the town and ensured that no cases of looting occurred during the evacuation.

[29] A new study commissioned by the Dominion government determined that the cracks in the mountain continued to grow and that the risk of another slide remained.

[30] A study conducted by the GSC immediately following the slide concluded that the primary cause was the mountain's unstable anticline formation; a layer of limestone rested on top of softer materials that, after years of erosion, resulted in a top-heavy, steep cliff.

[32] Local Indigenous peoples of the area, the Blackfoot and Ktunaxa, had oral traditions referring to the peak as "the mountain that moves".

The crew of the freight train that arrived at Frank shortly before the disaster said it was the coldest night of the winter, with overnight temperatures falling below −18 °C (0 °F).

Geologists speculated that the cold snap and rapid freezing resulted in expansion of the fissures, causing the limestone to break off and tumble down the mountain.

[34] Later studies suggested that the mountain had been at a point of "equilibrium"; even a small deformation such as that caused by the mine's existence would have helped trigger a slide.

[40] Over 80 monitoring stations have been placed on the face of the mountain to provide an early warning system for area residents in case of another slide.

[42] "Acoustic fluidization" is another theory, which suggests that large masses of material create seismic energy that reduces friction and causes the debris to flow down the mountain as though it is a fluid.

[46] Crews building a new road through the pass in 1924 operated under police guard as it was believed they could unearth the supposedly buried bank.

Several stories were told of her miraculous escape: she was found in a bale of hay, lying on rocks, under the collapsed roof of her house or in the arms of her dead mother.

[48] The slide has formed the basis of other songs, including "How the Mountain Came Down" by Stompin' Tom Connors ,[49] and more recently, "Frank, AB" by The Rural Alberta Advantage.