Category: Alberta Historical Resources Foundation

A Boost to Heritage Projects: Alberta Historical Resources Foundation Awards Grants

Alberta's Historic Places

The Alberta Historical Resources Foundation has just announced funding of over $1.4 million to 72 heritage projects through two of its grant programs.

  • The Heritage Preservation Partnership Program provides financial assistance to individuals and organizations for initiatives that preserve and interpret Alberta’s heritage through conservation, heritage awareness, publications and research grants as well as scholarships.
  • The Municipal Heritage Partnership Program provides opportunities for municipalities to access funding assistance, expertise and networks to help them establish or maintain existing municipal heritage conservation programs.

Read the funding announcement: Government of Alberta information bulletin.

Check out the full list of recipients.

Written by: Carina Naranjilla, Grant Program Coordinator

Tour of the Peace (Part II)

Michael

I previously wrote about the Alberta Historical Resources Foundation board receiving a tour of historic places on the Peace River, during their May board meeting (see Part I). This blog post continues that tour with visits to the St. Augustine Roman Catholic Mission and the Twelve Foot Davis grave site.

The St. Augustine Roman Catholic Mission is located on the grounds of the Peace River Correctional Centre, south-west of the Town of Peace River. The church was once part of a mission established by the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, a Catholic religious institute of missionary priests. The oblates sent several waves of missionaries to western Canada during the second half of the 19th century. This church was built in 1894 by the oblate missionaries and brothers who ministered to First Nations and settlers in the area. It was part of the settlement that included farm buildings, a school and a small clinic. The vibrant religious community that lived here came to include members of the Sisters of Providence. In 1978 the site was designated a Provincial Historic Resource. Click here to read the Statement of Significance.

I first saw the church as we came round a small hill. Its size is striking. Even the most modest modern parish church is much, much larger than this tiny church. This church nevertheless housed a large community of worshippers. Entering the church, the other thing that strikes you is how carefully the building has been designed and decorated. You enter under a choir loft and the elaborate, pre-second Vatican council alter is visible against the opposite wall. Small statues of various saints are set upon wall mounted platforms surrounding the altar. Pointed-arch windows line the long-walls. They are simple but nevertheless designed with great care. The oblates efforts were even more impressive when you consider that these buildings were made of wood they hewed themselves.

The church was part of a settlement that included farm buildings, a convent and a school. The missionaries first served the surrounding aboriginal community and starting around 1907 the settlers. The sisters and the oblates ministered to the inhabitants and setters in the area, providing a church, school and makeshift hospital. The SS St. Charles, the fist steamboat on the Peace River, was built here in 1903. As the area was opened to settlement, the missionaries offered assistance to the newcomers who often arrived with very little.

Later, our tour concluded by visiting the Twelve Foot Davis grave site. Henry Fuller Davis was an American-born prospector who came to Canada to prospect during the Cariboo Gold Rush in the early 1860s. Davis earned his nickname (and a small fortune) by filing a claim on a 12 foot wide piece of land between two existing claims in Barkerville, BC. He subsequently began trading along Peace River in competition to the Hudson’s Bay Company.

Davis requested of his friend, Jim Cornwall, that he be interred on a hill overlooking the confluence of the Peace and Smoky rivers. The spot is just adjacent to Greene Valley Provincial Park and offers a magnificent view of the two rivers and the town itself. The Town of Peace River, Northern Sunrise County and Alberta Parks jointly oversaw the recent landscaping of the site and installed interpretive markers (including some interesting audio recordings).

After taking in the breathtaking views, the board went to a reception hosted by the Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre. They met members of the Town of Peace River council and many local history enthusiasts.

The board had a great discussion the next day and made several funding recommendations (which will be announced as soon as they are finalised. We had a great day and I know the board appreciates learning about how historic sites are conserved and appreciated.

Read Tour of the Peace (Part I), which featured the Board’s visit to the Northern Alberta Railway Station and the Shaftesbury Ferry.

Written by: Michael Thome, Municipal Heritage Services Officer

Tour of Peace River (Part I)

Michael

The Alberta Historical Resources Foundation held a board meeting in Peace River on May 11 and 12. The staff of the Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre organized a tour of the area, allowing the board members to experience first-hand a few of the community’s historic places.

We began at the Northern Alberta Railway Station in Peace River. The wooden railway station still sits on its original sitting, adjacent to the railway tracks. The station was constructed in 1916 just as the railway connecting Peace River to southern Alberta was finished. The Northern Alberta Railway Company’s new line linked Peace River to the Canadian railway system and its opening increased the flow of people and goods coming into the region.

The station is divided into rooms for passengers, freight and staff. Historical artifacts are displayed throughout the building, and many relate to the operation of the railway station. The station was a communications hub; mail and freight first moved through here and later it housed the telegraph and telephone switching equipment.

The building has been beautifully restored and is used by Peace River’s Chamber of Commerce as a visitor centre for the community. It’s fitting that the building has been repurposed as a visitor information centre. The building will continue to welcome visitors to Peace River. It was designated as a Provincial Historic Resource in 1988. You can learn more about the station by checking out its entry on the Alberta Register of Historic Places.

Later, we drove down the Shaftesbury Trail and arrived at the Shaftesbury Ferry. The ferry has been transporting people, vehicles and farm equipment over the Peace River for over 50 years. The confluence of the Peace and Smoky rivers is just south of the town. Without the ferry travelers arriving from south of the confluence would have needed to travel an extra 100 kilometers simply to get to Peace River. This would have been unworkable for a famer to haul grain or produce to market. Everett Blakely, a local resident, built a ferry privately in 1951. Mr. Blakely wanted to acquire farmland near the banks of the Peace south of its confluence with the Smoky and needed a ferry to access it. Mr. Blakely allowed his neighbors the use of the ferry and it quickly became indispensible. In 1977 the provincial government established a public ferry service on this location.

Seeing the ferry moored on the riverbank reminded me that Alberta transportation infrastructure is not just roads and our geography is more than just the plains. A hundred years ago, barges steamed up and down the Peace River loaded with goods and people. Both David Thompson and Sir Alexander Mackenzie both visited the area while exploring the northwest.

After visiting the ferry, we headed back towards Peace River. Stay tuned for Part II, to learn about other sites visited by the Alberta Historical Resources Foundation board.

Written by: Michael Thome, Municipal Heritage Services Officer

Nomination Deadline for AHRF Heritage Awards 2012: Extended to June 30

Alberta's Historic Places

Deadline Extended: June 30, 2012

As part of its ongoing efforts to honour local contributions in the protection, preservation and promotion of Alberta’s heritage, the Alberta Historical Resources Foundation is seeking nominations for the Heritage Awards 2012.

Deadline for nominations has been extended to June 30.  The awards ceremony will take place on November 30th.

The Heritage Awards Program provides an excellent opportunity to recognize and celebrate the outstanding accomplishments of individuals, organizations, corporations and municipalities who have demonstrated their commitment in preserving our province’s heritage.  Awards are presented as follows: to projects for the Heritage Conservation and Heritage Awareness Awards; to municipalities for the Municipal Heritage Preservation Award; and to individuals for the Outstanding Achievement Award.

Conserving Alberta’s heritage benefits all of us, but it is often the actions of individuals and communities that drive these efforts forward.  If you know of an exceptional building conservation project, a heritage awareness initiative, a municipality or individual in your community, this is your chance to have them recognized.

For a copy of the guidelines and nomination form, click here or contact me at 780-431-2305.

Written by: Carina Naranjilla, Grant Program Coordinator

REMINDER: Submit Nominations for the AHRF Heritage Awards

Alberta's Historic Places

Deadline: June 1, 2012

As part of its ongoing efforts to honour local contributions in the protection, preservation and promotion of Alberta’s heritage, the Alberta Historical Resources Foundation is seeking nominations for the Heritage Awards 2012.

The Heritage Awards Program provides an excellent opportunity to recognize and celebrate the outstanding accomplishments of individuals, organizations, corporations and municipalities who have demonstrated their commitment in preserving our province’s heritage.  Awards are presented as follows: to projects for the Heritage Conservation and Heritage Awareness Awards; to municipalities for the Municipal Heritage Preservation Award; and to individuals for the Outstanding Achievement Award.

Conserving Alberta’s heritage benefits all of us, but it is often the actions of individuals and communities that drive these efforts forward.  If you know of an exceptional building conservation project, a heritage awareness initiative, a municipality or individual in your community, this is your chance to have them recognized.

The deadline for submitting nominations is June 1st.  The awards ceremony will take place in November.

For a copy of the guidelines and nomination form, click here or contact me at 780-431-2305.

Written by: Carina Naranjilla, Grant Program Coordinator

AHRF Grants Awarded

Alberta's Historic Places

The Alberta Historical Resources Foundation’s (AHRF) Heritage Preservation Partnership Program has recently awarded total grants of over $630,000 to support projects for historic resource conservation, heritage awareness, publications and research projects and scholarship.

The Brazeau Collieries Minesite Provincial Historic Resource in Nordegg recently received a conservation grant from the Alberta Historical Resources Foundation.

With an allocation from the Alberta Lottery Fund, AHRF is the Government of Alberta’s primary window for heritage preservation funding.  To learn more about who has benefited from this program, click here.

Written by: Carina Naranjilla, Grant Program Coordinator

Updated Website, Funding Guidelines and Application Forms

Alberta's Historic Places

As you may recall, changes to the funding policies of the Alberta Historical Resources Foundation’s Heritage Preservation Partnership Program will be adopted beginning the next application deadline, February 1, 2012.   These changes, along with updated and improved application forms for all grant categories, are now available. Click here.

Changes include:

  • grant ceiling of $100,000 for Provincial Historic Resources per application for conservation;
  • limiting applications to one application for conservation and one application for architectural/engineering studies/reports/plans per historic resource per calendar year;
  • stronger policies on retroactive funding for conservation grants;
  • second deadline for the Roger Soderstrom and Heritage Trades Scholarships of October 1st ;
  • significant changes on funding parameters for the Roger Soderstrom and Heritage Trades Scholarships.

If you need further information, please call 780-431-2305.

Written by: Carina Naranjilla, Grants Program Coordinator.

MHPP Funding Deadlines (2012)

Alberta's Historic Places

The Municipal Heritage Partnership Program (MHPP) provides cost-shared funding opportunities to Alberta municipalities for the identification, evaluation and management of local historic places. Municipal Heritage Services staff are also available to provide guidance and training to Alberta municipalities to enable successful identification and conservation of local historic places.

Funding proposals from municipalities are accepted on an on-going basis. These proposals are then reviewed by the board of the Alberta Historical Resources Foundation.

2012 MHPP funding deadlines:

  • February 3, 2012
  • April 13, 2012
  • September 21, 2012
  • November 2, 2012 

If you would like to learn more about MHPP funding opportunities, or discuss project ideas please contact MHPP staff.

The Alberta Historical Resources Foundation also supports a range of community and individual heritage initiatives through the Heritage Preservation Partnership Program.

Written by: Brenda Manweiler, Municipal Heritage Services Officer

Some Changes to AHRF’s Grant Program: February 1, 2012

Alberta's Historic Places

The Alberta Historical Resources Foundation (AHRF) continues to find strategies to strengthen its ability to meet its mandate. One strategy is to adopt some changes to the funding policies of the Heritage Preservation Partnership Program. These changes will become effective for the next application deadline: February 1, 2012.

To manage the demand for historic resource conservation grants, the maximum grant for conservation of Provincial Historic Resources will be capped at $100,000. Currently, there is no grant ceiling set for these historic resources. Other grant ceilings remain the same: $50,000 for the conservation of Municipal Historic Resources, $5,000 for Local Historic Resources, and $25,000 for architectural/engineering studies/reports/plans.

Applicants may only submit one application for conservation and one application for architectural/engineering studies/reports/plans per historic resource per calendar year. The February 1st deadline is still the primary deadline.

To support the Municipal Heritage Partnership Program’s goal of strengthening the municipality’s role in historic place management, Provincial Historic Resources and Municipal Historic Resources will have the same opportunity for funding – Provincial Historic Resources are not given priority.  The awarded level of funding will continue to be determined using criteria which include: grant ceilings, project scope, resource’s conservation priorities, grant program’s budget and applicant’s ability to complete the project.

The second deadline for the Roger Soderstrom and Heritage Trades Scholarships will be moved from September 1st to October 1st to give more time for students to prepare their applications.

New funding guidelines and application forms will be released in time for the next application deadline.  For more information, click here or contact the Grants Program Coordinator at 780-431-2305.

Written by: Carina Naranjilla, Grant Program Coordinator

New MHPP Projects Funded for Communities!

Matthew Francis

Congratulations to four communities that have recently been awarded grants by the Alberta Historical Resources Foundation for heritage planning projects!

The Town of High River will receive a $20, 000 matching grant from the Municipal Heritage Partnership Program (MHPP) to undertake a Heritage Inventory project, evaluating potentially significant historic places in this growing southern Alberta town. This is the first collaboration of the Town of High River with MHPP.

Heading up north to another “River” town, Peace River has been awarded a matching grant of $6, 000 to develop a Heritage Management Plan. This plan will build upon the previous Heritage Inventory work funded by the Foundation through MHPP.

Lacombe, Alberta’s newest City, will receive a matching grant of $24, 500 to continue its program of evalating its significant collection of historic places in a second phase of Heritage Inventory work.

And, last, but definitely not least, the Municipal District of Bighorn, located on the cusp of Banff National Park, has been approved for a matching grant of $20, 000 for the creation of its own Heritage Management Plan. This project will build upon years of previous partnership with MHPP, which yielded both a Heritage Survey and Inventory.

These municipalities join numerous others – both rural and urban – that are currently partnering with MHPP to help create a future for Alberta’s historic places. These communities include:

We are looking forward to working with these municipalities to help protect, conserve and celebrate the places that matter most to Albertans.