As well we have a new page on our website inviting people to Create a Legacy for a loved one. Gifts can be used to celebrate special milestone events, remember a special person, or honour someone for their contributions. Gifts can be directed to a specific need such as film digitization, events, and newsletter sponsorship, or to general funds. Thank you for considering the Archives.
The weather is getting challenging for travelers this year. We dug thorough our photos to see how snow days were conquered in the past. We came across this photo of a snowplane.
The photo includes Jack Alloway, Mr. & Mrs. McQuat and daughter beside their snowplane on the Wapiti Trail. This early form of the snowmobile, made by George McQuat, was used for such emergencies as taking doctors to patients (or vice versa) or entire hockey teams to a game when the roads were drifted. Obviously taking hockey players to a game would have been considered emergency travel!
We have become accustomed to seeing stores putting out Christmas goods before Hallowe’en is over, and we all know people who have their “Christmas shopping” done even before that. I wondered when people in the old days started getting serious about Christmas shopping. While I did notice a few ads in the paper in mid-November, the ads started appearing seriously at the beginning of December. The fact that the Herald was a weekly newspaper meant that merchants had only 4 or 5 papers to advertise their Christmas items, and that every paper in December had a large number of ads. In 1935, the November 29 issue of the paper carried an editorial-like piece on the front encouraging people to shop early. That article and a few of the ads from that Christmas season are reproduced here.Note the “If you want to kill your wife use a club, not a tub” mention in this ad above.
With Civic Elections coming up on Monday October 21, this excerpt from the Editorial of September 27, 1935 seemed appropriate reminder that votes not cast don’t count!
The next article is from the December 20, 1917 paper and tells of a man who walked 100 miles to cast his vote.
The third was written, presumably by the Editor of the Frontier Herald, shortly after legislation had been passed in Alberta in 1916 allowing women to vote or run for public office.
We take it for granted that we can buy fresh fruit year round, but it hasn’t always been that way. This article in “Local Happenings” and ads from the Sept. 27, 1932 Grande Prairie newspaper refers to two train car loads of apples coming in from the Okanagan!
There are locally grown apples but not enough to meet demand. Here is an article found in the same paper about apples grown by W.D. Albright in Beaverlodge.
1928 Apple tree W.D. Albright, Beaverlodge, Alberta
W.D. Albright’s 1932 Apple crop from Beaverlodge Experimental Farm.
In celebration of Archives week the South Peace Regional Archives (SPRA) has dedicated their annual Film and Story Tea to fashion. In conjuncture with that we have decided to host a contest, and we want your fashion photos! Our contest begins on September 12th, time to start digging through your photo albums. We will be accepting fashion photos through our Facebook page, e-mail (spra.technician@telus.net) or you can drop them off at the Archives.
Kinette Club
We want to see your fashions, from any time period. What was your favorite outfit as a child, teenager, what do/did you wear to work? We can’t wait to see your fashion choices! It doesn’t have be a current photo – we are looking for photos of you from any time period! Get your friends involved, see what they were wearing — did you both have the same sense of style?
The photo above shows the lovely ladies from the Kinette Club modeling their wonderful hats, this can be you – featured on our Facebook page.
You may be wondering what the prize is? We will have a wonderful basket of assorted items from local businesses. The basket will be awarded to the winner who has submitted a photo that best represents the fashion of the era.
We cannot wait to see your pictures and what your wore!
We want your paper & photos!! Did you belong to a group or organization in the South Peace? Are you storing the records or maybe you have some from your own family history? Is it just taking up room in your basement or garage and could be damaged by mold, flood or fire?
You can donate it to the archives and we will organize, file and preserve it by keeping it in safe storage. (Oh, and we do this for FREE by the way!)
unprocessed records
processed records
Once that is done we create a ‘description’ of the paper/photographs which is now called a fonds. This description goes up on our website and then everyone will know how amazing your group/family is. Is it then gone — never to be seen again? NO, you can come and visit your donation anytime, it is here waiting for viewing. Why do we want it? Researchers, book writers, family members are always stopping by looking for information, if yours isn’t here we can’t share it. The story of the South Peace is told from the photos and paper that is left behind.
Here are links to some fonds that have been organized from collections that were donated to us.
If you know of some records highlighting an event or everyday occurrences in the South Peace and they are not in our collection, help us to find them and keep them safe, for history’s sake!
Grande Prairie has been a growing city for many years as highlighted by the size of the students enrolled in school over 70 years ago. This article found in our search through this week in history breaks down how many students were registered in school in 1940. The total number of students was 420!
The Herald Tribune
Another clipping we want to bring your attention is about the arrival of “War Guests”. Mentioned is the arrival of visitors to Grande Prairie and Hythe. Nancy & Rea Burrows arrived from Glasgow to visit their grandfather Robert Burrows in Glen Leslie. Welcomed to Hythe was Dorothy & Denis McCann who planned to live with their uncle J. McCann.
Here is an article describing the natural beauty of the Lake Saskatoon area. It is no wonder that it was one of the first choice of pioneers when deciding where to settle in the Peace Country. Lake Saskatoon was bypassed by the railroad in 1924, not to be deterred the towns folks packed up, buildings and all and resettled in Wembley.
Lake Saskatoon is Arcadia
“…the beautiful lake lapping its shores, and the broad expansive view, lends somewhat of an Italian aspect, and would remind the experienced traveller of the Bay of Naples…”
We have been adding new content to our website and have laid it out here for your perusal!
Note the “If you want to kill your wife use a club, not a tub” mention in this ad above.
