Tidbits of Alberta

[Bigwoodsman]

Originally Posted by Red Bullets

This pre-1900 picture shows the hunters of a successful elk hunt in the Ross Creek area. For those that didn't have cattle such hunts were the matter of life and death during the winter.

Looks like a pretty nice whitetail as a bonus harvest.

I love this thread!

BW

[Red Bullets]

Back in 1915 Alberta created the Alberta Provincial police to combat illegal liquor and maintain labour disputes.

I'll bet people listened when the police pulled up on their machine gun mounted motorcycle.

[Red Bullets]

When the depression hit in the 1930's it's effects were enough to create protests. Just an interesting picture.

[Red Bullets]

This was a conclusion of one person about what should be done in Alberta in 1912.

"The worst feature of the Alberta laws is the annual open season on antelope, two of which may be killed under each license. This is entirely wrong, and a perpetual closed season should at once be enacted. Duck shooting in August is wrong, and the season should not open until September. It is not right that duck-killing should be made so easy and so fearfully prolonged that extermination is certain. All killing of cranes and shore birds should be absolutely stopped, for five years. No wheat-producing province can afford the expense to the wheat crops of the slaughter of shore birds, thirty species of which are great crop-protectors.

The bag limit of two sheep is too high, by 50 per cent. It should immediately be cut down to one sheep, before sheep hunting in Alberta becomes a lost art. Sheep hunting should not be encouraged—quite the reverse! There are already too many sheep-crazy sportsmen. The bag limit on grouse and ptarmigan of 20 per day or 200 in a season is simply legalized slaughter, no more and no less, and if it is continued, a grouseless province will be the quick result. The birds are not sufficiently numerous to withstand the guns on that basis. Alberta should be wiser than the states below the international boundary that are annihilating their remnants of birds as fast as they can be found."

[Red Bullets]

This isn't Alberta history but I thought it was worth mentioning....

W.D. Bell (1880 - 1951), known as Karamojo, was one of the greatest elephant hunters of all time. He hunted in the remote wilderness in north eastern Uganda. By studying elephant skulls he perfected the brain shot on elephants and was an advocate of shot placement over big-bore rifles.

He pioneered the feat of shooting elephants while standing diagonally behind them, now called the Bell Shot. He reportedly took more than 1,000 elephants during his time in Africa with a .275 Rigby.

[Red Bullets]

It not that fisheries management didn't try. In 1949, 50, 51 and 53 - One million one hundred thousand walleye fry were stocked in Wizard lake SW of Edmonton. In a FWIN survey of 2010 there were no walleye present. FWIN = Fall Walleye Index Netting.

[Red Bullets]

We now enjoy boating on the quiet North Sask river but the river wasn't so peaceful back in the day. Logs were being boomed downstream to Edmonton from places like Modeste creek, Genesee and Strawberry creek areas. The booms would be big enough that the men had tents on them and lived on the boom until it arrived in Edmonton at John Walters mill ( where the Kinsmen field house is).

Interestingly the old Strathcona hotel on Whyte avenue in Edmonton has the oldest lumber in an existing building in the city. The lumber used to build the hotel was from Modeste creek.

1925 was the last log boom on the North Saskatchewan river.

[Red Bullets]

1800- 1877- most families at Lac La Biche catch 2 to 3 thousand whitefish for the winter. This is to feed family and dogs.

1878 to 1912 - 1 to 2 thousand whitefish was the catch per family. In 1892 the fisheries on Lac La Biche were starting to be regulated.

1800 to 1912- During winter...The fur trade fort at Lac la Biche's daily fish allotments were :
8 pounds of fish per day per man. The allotment was either 3 whitefish or 3 rabbits per day per man. 1 whitefish per woman and 1/2 a whitefish per child. Or 1 rabbit per woman and 1/2 a rabbit per child. Working dogs were fed 2 whitefish or 2 rabbits.

[OpenSights]

Went on shore outside Calahoun bay last weekend and found a old huge dug out. It was 30' wide probably 50 long about 6-8' deep. It had a dug well with wood side inside it. There was lots of little pieces of old metal and porcelain in the low areas. This was all only 30' feet from shore and was maybe 6' above the water level. There was also a few cast iron pieces sunk in the ground. Almost anchor looking to pull on.
Lots of old food cans also around.

Was thinking maybe a fish camp or a ice harvest camp with the dug out like it was a basement to keep temps low.

Anyone know what that would be on the lake shore. There was no wood structure of any kind left.

[Red Bullets]

Originally Posted by OpenSights

Went on shore outside Calahoun bay last weekend and found a old huge dug out. It was 30' wide probably 50 long about 6-8' deep. It had a dug well with wood side inside it. There was lots of little pieces of old metal and porcelain in the low areas. This was all only 30' feet from shore and was maybe 6' above the water level. There was also a few cast iron pieces sunk in the ground. Almost anchor looking to pull on.
Lots of old food cans also around.

Was thinking maybe a fish camp or a ice harvest camp with the dug out like it was a basement to keep temps low.

Anyone know what that would be on the lake shore. There was no wood structure of any kind left.

Very interesting find. Prior to the 20th century, the area around Buck Lake was known as Minnehik with means "place of the pines".

I suspect this place you found might have been a structure made to house loggers. Back around 1900 the area was being logged of it's big trees. Being that it was sunk into the ground was a common building practice.

I could be totally wrong too. Wondering if it was distinct that the displaced dirt from the hole was piled around the "pit"? 30' by 50' is a big area.

[Red Bullets]

Canadian politicians have been self serving for a long time.

In 1881 Quebec's senator Cochrane was the man that fought for grazing leases in western Canada and succeeded in getting legislation passed. The terms... a rancher could lease 100,000 acres for 1 cent per acre per year. Cochrane already had a small ranch in Alberta territory and instantly leased 100,000 acres along the Bow river. By 1882 Cochrane was supplying the NWMP and FNs with beef under contract. At one time cochrane's family controlled 334,500 acres. He went on to have land at Waterton too which was later sold to the Morman church. By the 1890's settlers were wanting land and Cochrane had to relinquish much of the land.

So some of the roots of Alberta's grazing leases were based on Senator Cochrane's self serving desire to be a big rancher.

[Red Bullets]

This isn't really an Alberta tidbit but thought it was a cool pic.

How you like to go duck hunting and take one shot for your yearly quota and then some? These old punt guns could take out one hundred ducks at a time.
Pic is circa 1910 -20.

[Red Bullets]

In 1893 Calgary Brewing Malt company produced their first beer. The brewery was started by a rancher, A.E. Cross. Cross also bought a several hotels and licensed premises which sort of guaranteed the breweries success so much so that they were shipping beer all the way to Saskatchewan less than 10 years later.

[Red Bullets]

In the 1880's there was a man named John Lee who operated a little post office where Fisher Home is on the very north west end of Pigeon Lake. The store was on the Pigeon Lake Trail. Not many settlers at that point so his customers must have been fishermen in season and area trappers. John had a large family and his two eldest sons were considered great hunters in the area. The oldest son shot all his game off of the back a pinto pony. He shared his game with First Nations friends at the lake, probably for trade in fish during winter. John (junior) Lee was noted to have shot 27 moose in one fall. And all the moose were all a close horse ride from home.

[Red Bullets]

We know some years rabbit cycles go high. In the year 1902 a few miles west of Leduc two men out hunting noted that in a half an hour and a half mile walk they shot 55 snowshoe hares.

I too remember a high snowshoe hare cycle in the early 80's. 2 of us shot 28 snowshoe hares in a half mile walk there and back.

[Red Bullets]

In the fall of 1896 east of Leduc fire burned the entire area and most of the wild hay. Then it was a becoming a bad winter and was hard on livestock. Some area pioneers turned to poisoning coyotes for income and sold the coyote pelts for 50 cents each. 1896 and 97 was desolute for the homesteaders who stayed. It was the people using the overland trail to the Yukon gold rush in 1898 that saved the homesteading farmers when there was all of a sudden a great demand for beef, hogs, poultry, produce and horses. Otherwise, all the settlers east of Leduc probably would have had to give up their farms.

[Red Bullets]

There's a place at Pigeon lake that no matter when I have gone there there is always a calm peaceful feeling there no matter what the weather. It wasn't always so...

In the 1842 Pigeon Lake's Rundle's Mission on the north shore was an important place for christianity coming into the west. Many the important missionaires in the early history of the area spent time at Rundle's mission. Rundle, Sinclair, Woolsey, McDougall and Steinhauer.

At one stage in the 1840's a group with Sinclair were massacred at nearby Battle lake by blackfoot FN. By 1845 the mission was abandoned and burned down. It wasn't until 1869 that Rev. MacDougall rebuilt and started up the mission again, with his new bride to keep him company 50 miles away from Fort Edmonton.

A year later....

*Rev. Peter Campbell. Pigeon Lake
April 13, 1870
"Now there is no safety for the traveler, and he who journeys alone runs great risk of losing their scalp. Of late we have become painfully familiar with deeds of cold-blooded butchery and unpitying revenge."

Presently the mission site is an interesting place in that you can walk the grounds and see the 'cellar' depressions of buildings past and there are graves in the area. I believe the log mission house still has church services too. Just to the east of the mission there is a year round spring that I'm sure is what attracted the missionaries to build in the area. Many locals over 170 years got water from that spring including myself. Only a few years ago was it deemed possibly unsafe.

A nice place for an Alberta break.

[Red Bullets]

The town of Millet was named after August Millet in 1891 when the new train siding needed a name. Father Lacombe is the person who suggested August's name. August Millet was a fur buyer and trader who sold furs to another buyer named Ben Slaughter who had the first house and fur warehouse in Millet.

August Millet was also travelling companion to Father Lacombe. Millet served Father Lacombe as canoeman on long river trips. Tragically he drown trying to cross a flooded Red Deer river. His grave was thought to be by the old Red Deer river crossing east of Red Deer and now its location is unknown.

August Millet's name was actually pronounced "Millay."

[Team Anzac]

Originally Posted by Red Bullets

Some of the older folks will remember the air raid sirens that were placed in different towns and cities during the cold war of the 60's. Most were removed in the 1990's. I think some places might still have the sirens for historical display. Not sure if any are still functioning.

I remember the town that was nearby used to sound off the siren every so often. You could hear that siren 4 or 5 miles away. If we were in school and heard the siren we did the drill to get under our desk and put our heads between our knees.

During the cold war some of the towns had underground bunkers made of large 8 or 10 foot diameter culverts by the railway tracks too. They had fold down tables/beds on the sides and nothing else.

Anzac Alberta to this day still has an Airraid siren, and it’s very functional. Going off twice a day, at noon and nine PM.

[Team Anzac]

Red Bullets
Not sure if you have Facebook, there is a great resource and person that reflects a lot of the Historical accounts and people that pioneered this town going back to HBC. Look him up Blair Jean Author Historian.

[Red Bullets]

In 1919 after WW I this was the scene in Edmonton. The 49th Battalion of Edmonton coming home.

[IMG][/IMG]

[Red Bullets]

A pack train getting ready to head north to Grand Prairie from Edson. The Edson/Grand Prairie trail was a hard trail. The trail was built and used from 1911 to 1916. A railway from Edmonton to Grande Prairie was running by 1917 and the the Esdon Grand Prairie trail was no longer used.

[IMG][/IMG]

[Red Bullets]

Originally Posted by Team Anzac

Red Bullets
Not sure if you have Facebook, there is a great resource and person that reflects a lot of the Historical accounts and people that pioneered this town going back to HBC. Look him up Blair Jean Author Historian.

I will check Blair Jean out. Thanks. These tidbits researched and known by local historians are the true gems to the past not so long ago. Alberta has several towns' local history books that are mostly the local people's stories and their accounting of the times from settlement in those areas. They are an interesting flip through. University of Calgary has started putting them online to read for free. Over 700 titles just from Alberta presently.
https://cdm22007.contentdm.oclc.org/...r/title/ad/asc

And back then is still relevant now because what they dreamed of we now live and what we dream for is what they lived.

[Albertadiver]

Originally Posted by Red Bullets

A pack train getting ready to head north to Grand Prairie from Edson. The Edson/Grand Prairie trail was a hard trail. The trail was built and used from 1911 to 1916. A railway from Edmonton to Grande Prairie was running by 1917 and the the Esdon Grand Prairie trail was no longer used.

[IMG][/IMG]

I couldn't imagine a trip like that, especially in foul weather. Neat!!

[Red Bullets]

Originally Posted by Red Bullets

A pack train getting ready to head north to Grand Prairie from Edson. The Edson/Grand Prairie trail was a hard trail. The trail was built and used from 1911 to 1916. A railway from Edmonton to Grande Prairie was running by 1917 and the the Esdon Grand Prairie trail was no longer used.

[IMG][/IMG]

Oops! Excuse my grammar and mistakes. I failed to re-read what I wrote before edit time expired.
*Grand Prairie should be Grande Prairie. And Esdon should have been Edson.

[Okotok]

Originally Posted by Team Anzac

Anzac Alberta to this day still has an Airraid siren, and it’s very functional. Going off twice a day, at noon and nine PM.

Peace River had the same thing when I grew up there in the 60's and 70's. The sirens would go off at noon and were also a call to arms for the volunteer fire department. Moved out in 81 so not sure if it's still a tradition.

[Sooner]

Originally Posted by Red Bullets

A pack train getting ready to head north to Grand Prairie from Edson. The Edson/Grand Prairie trail was a hard trail. The trail was built and used from 1911 to 1916. A railway from Edmonton to Grande Prairie was running by 1917 and the the Esdon Grand Prairie trail was no longer used.

[IMG][/IMG]

Thanks to a friend with a river boat, I have been at the GP Trail where it crosses the Atha B river and have walked east on the trail to an old homestead cabin and farm. Would have been a pretty cool set up when it was a functioning site back in the day.

Great thread Red

[Sooner]

Originally Posted by Red Bullets

This pre-1900 picture shows the hunters of a successful elk hunt in the Ross Creek area. For those that didn't have cattle such hunts were the matter of life and death during the winter.

Love the old pics of days gone by when areas close to us were wild. Friends have land north of Ross Creek, we hunt there too. He has elk on his trail cams but I think these elk are escapees from the Blackfoot grazing lease a few years back. That's a sweet bull to take for food.

[Red Bullets]

poof.. will re post soon

[Red Bullets]

Here is a weird little tidbit. Back in the 1950's people were more interested in learning about each other...in an odd way. We studied them...

This clip is from an old family film my uncle took. The parade took place in Calmar, Alberta around 1960.

Just a few seconds long.. but you should get the idea. I wonder what political correctness was back then.

Posted online exclusively for AO viewers of Tidbits.

https://youtu.be/SGioKaqM1zc