At the Edge: the North Prince Albert Region of the Saskatchewan Forest
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
At the Edge: The North Prince Albert Region of the Saskatchewan Forest Fringe to 1940 A Dissertation Submitted to the College of Graduate Studies and Research In partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy In the Department of History University of Saskatchewan Saskatoon Merle Mary Muriel McGowan Massie © Copyright Merle Massie, December 2010. All rights reserved. PERMISSION TO USE In presenting this dissertation in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a Postgraduate degree from the University of Saskatchewan, I agree that the Libraries of this University may make it freely available for inspection. I further agree that permission for copying of this dissertation in any manner, in whole or in part, for scholarly purposes may be granted by the professor or professors who supervised my thesis/dissertation work or, in their absence, by the Head of the Department or the Dean of the College in which my thesis work was done. It is understood that any copying or publication or use of this thesis/dissertation or parts thereof for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. It is also understood that due recognition shall be given to me and to the University of Saskatchewan in any scholarly use which may be made of any material in my dissertation. DISCLAIMER The views and opinions of the author expressed herein do not state or reflect those of the University of Saskatchewan, and shall not be used for advertising or product endorsement purposes. Requests for permission to copy or to make other uses of materials in this thesis/dissertation in whole or part should be addressed to: Head of the Department of History 9 Campus Drive 721 Arts Building University of Saskatchewan Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 5A5 Canada OR Dean College of Graduate Studies and Research University of Saskatchewan 107 Administration Place Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 5A2 Canada i Table of Contents PERMISSION TO USE ................................................................................................................... i Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................ ii Table of Figures ............................................................................................................................. iii Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... v Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................ vi Dedication ..................................................................................................................................... vii Map of Canada ............................................................................................................................. viii Map of Saskatchewan .................................................................................................................... ix Map of The North Prince Albert Region ........................................................................................ x Introduction: The Power of Place ................................................................................................... 1 Chapter One: ―The Good Wintering Place‖: Ecohistory and Aboriginal Culture at the Forest Fringe ............................................................................................................................................ 28 Chapter Two: North Prince Albert and the Resource Bonanza .................................................... 71 Chapter Three: ―A Pleasant and Plentyful Country‖: Mixed Farming at the Forest Edge ......... 122 Chapter Four: ―Go North, Young Man‖: Soldier Settlement, the Dryland Disaster .................. 169 and Northern Migration .............................................................................................................. 169 Chapter Five: ―See Saskatchewan First‖: The Rise of Tourism in the North Prince Albert Region ..................................................................................................................................................... 219 Chapter Six: ―Even the Turnips were Edible‖: Depression Refugees and Resilience at the Forest Edge ............................................................................................................................................ 269 Conclusion: South of the North, North of the South .................................................................. 324 Bibliography ............................................................................................................................... 333 ii Table of Figures Figure 1. Map of Canada. ............................................................................................................ viii Figure 2. Map of Saskatchewan. .................................................................................................... ix Figure 3. Map of North Prince Albert region ................................................................................. x Figure 4. Saskatchewan Flag .......................................................................................................... 7 Figure 5. North Prince Albert Region ........................................................................................... 17 Figure 6. Cummins Map 258 ........................................................................................................ 19 Figure 7. Ecoregion map of Saskatchewan.. ................................................................................. 30 Figure 8. Canada Land Inventory Map 73h.. ................................................................................ 38 Figure 9. The Forks of the Saskatchewan ..................................................................................... 39 Figure 10. Christopher Creek canoe ............................................................................................. 44 Figure 11. Parkland Convergence Model. .................................................................................... 46 Figure 12. Lands of the Pegogamaw Cree. ................................................................................... 53 Figure 13. Trading Posts Pre-1789 – Post 1930 ........................................................................... 61 Figure 14. Treaty Map of Western Canada ................................................................................... 65 Figure 15. Picnic under the lobstick tree, c. 1915. ........................................................................ 68 Figure 16. Steamboat on the Saskatchewan .................................................................................. 74 Figure 17. Map of western Canada by George Dawson. .............................................................. 78 Figure 18. Treaty Six Adhesion area ............................................................................................ 81 Figure 19. Sturgeon Lake Lumber Company, north of Prince Albert, circa 1906 ....................... 92 Figure 20. Cookshack on the River Drive, Red Deer River ......................................................... 94 Figure 21. Prince Albert Lumber Company ................................................................................. 94 Figure 22. Logs on Sturgeon Lake ................................................................................................ 95 Figure 23. ―Dinky‖ engine hauling logs on ice road. ................................................................ 102 Figure 24. Sturgeon River Forest Reserve showing timber berths, c. 1916 ............................... 105 Figure 25. Trails near Prince Albert, circa late 1800s ................................................................ 112 Figure 26. Freighting fish to Prince Albert ................................................................................. 116 Figure 27. Crossing a northern lake in winter with a ‗freight swing.‘ ....................................... 117 Figure 28. Mixed farming and landscape. ................................................................................. 125 Figure 29. "First Year in the Bush." ........................................................................................... 129 Figure 30. "Two Years After Settlement on the Prairie." .......................................................... 130 Figure 31. "Six Years After Settlement on the Prairie." ............................................................. 130 Figure 32. "Thirty Years in the Bush." ...................................................................................... 131 Figure 33. Prince Albert North, 1897. Dominion Land Survey. ................................................ 139 Figure 34. Prince Albert Land District, Department of the Interior, 1912. ............................... 144 Figure 35. CPR train stuck in snowdrift. ................................................................................... 148 Figure 36. Department of the Interior survey map. .................................................................... 152 Figure 37. Buckland.. .................................................................................................................. 157 Figure 38. Poor wheat crop in the dryland region, 1918. ..........................................................