Harry Strom left a legacy of integrity
With Albertans going to the polls on Monday, it’s a good time to look back on the legacy of Alberta’s 9th Premier, Harry Strom. Although usually associated with the end of the Social Credit dynasty in 1971, this son of the southeast’s greatest legacy was that of being a man of uncommon personal integrity: Who [...]
A bit of Norway on the prairie
A century ago, several thousand settlers of Norwegian extraction set out from their homesteads in the American Midwest, in search of a “second chance” in Alberta. According to historian, Gulbrand Loken, the exodus of Norwegians between 1900 and 1920 was prompted by “rural depression, agricultural crises, mountain debts, few new economic opportunities for expansion and [...]
True Grit
To eake out a living in these parts, you have to possess true grit. On a recent trip through the Eastern Irrigation District, the Calgary Sun’s Mike Drew encountered some of that grit, in the form a nascent black blizzard: The black blizzards of the Dirty ’30s became became just another part of the endless [...]
2005 Forgotten Alberta Road Trip – Day Two
In late August 2005, my wife and I were joined by our friend, Greg, on a two-day journey through the southeastern Alberta outback. On the first day, we took the roads less travelled from Lethbridge to Medicine Hat, checking in at outposts such as New Dayton, Warner, Foremost, Manyberries and Onefour. Following a stopover that [...]
Rabbit drives were a part of pioneer life
My second column for the Prairie Post, a modified version of a blog post from late last year, talks about when Mother Nature goes sideways, and features a pretty morbid photo from Idaho. The past few months have been a “hare-raising” experience for the people of Canmore. The Rocky Mountain town made worldwide headlines last November after town [...]
Bow City – The village born unlucky
Many thanks to the Historical Society of Alberta, and the legendary Mr. Hugh Dempsey, CM, for the opportunity to share a decade’s worth of research on the former village of Bow City. Below is a brief excerpt from my article, followed by the piece in its entirety, which appears in the Winter 2012 edition of Alberta [...]
Who are the forgotten dead of Vulcan County?
Update: No leads yet, but thanks to Michele Jarvie at the Calgary Herald for running an ever-so-slightly modified version of this article here. During the decade after 1916, settlers fled the drought-ridden plains of southeastern Alberta en masse. As David C. Jones outlines in his book, We’ll all be buried down here- The Prairie Drybelt [...]
Wedderburn’s War – The great rabbit drives of 1924-26
The people of Canmore are facing a “hare-raising” dilemma. Much has been written about the divergence of opinion arising from the decision of town council to cull the approximately 2000 feral rabbits currently hopping free in the mountain community. In all seriousness, the prospect of exterminating a few thousand rabbits is an unpleasant one to [...]
Handy historical and genealogical resources for Albertans
As Albertans we are truly fortunate to have a wealth of free digital resources with which to explore our community or family histories. A couple of exciting new initiatives have recently debuted which, had they existed in their current form five years ago, would have saved me a few trips up the QEII.
“Well that is that, and God bless them anyway”
The story of Francis Miller of Medicine Hat has captured the imagination of the many who are anxiously awaiting the upcoming Royal Visit by Prince William and his new bride, Kate. If you haven’t caught it, Ms. Miller has been afforded the opportunity to meet William and Kate (no word on whether they will henceforth [...]
keep looking »About
Drawing on over 100 years of family history in the southeast, this is my attempt to shine the spotlight on southeastern Alberta's forgotten history.
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