Written by: Sam Judson and Lindsay Amundsen-Meyer, Department of Anthropology and Archaeology, University of Calgary.
Alberta’s cowboy culture is embraced by many and celebrated through events and conventions like the Calgary Stampede, K-Days or Calgary’s ‘White Hat’ tradition. This culture is largely represented in the history books by white, European settlers, although Alberta’s past is much more multiethnic and multicultural than many realize.
John Ware was one of Alberta’s early Black setters. Ware’s name is recognizable today to many Albertans, who refer to him as Alberta’s first Black cowboy, and the longevity of his legend is fascinating. Despite this, few know his story and very little is known about the true nature of his life.
John Ware, rancher, with wife Mildred and children Robert and Nettie in southern Alberta, [ca. 1896], (CU1107289) by Unknown. Source: Glenbow Library and Archives Collection, Libraries and Cultural Resources Digital Collections, University of Calgary.
Editor’s note: This article was originally published on the RAM Blog, the official blog of the Royal Alberta Museum.
Written by: Chihiro Iwamoto, Administrative Assistant, Royal Alberta Museum
When Canada declared war on Japan in 1941, people of Japanese ancestry were met with intense discrimination. The Canadian government ordered the removal of Japanese Canadians from the West Coast of British Columbia in 1942, and within two months, approximately 22,000 Japanese Canadians, about three-quarters of whom were born in Canada, were forced to leave their homes and their properties were confiscated.
Most male Japanese Canadians were sent to labour camps to work on road construction, while their families were sent to internment camps in interior British Columbia.
Around this time, Alberta’s sugar beet industry struggled to secure labour due to the heavy, harsh, labour-intensive nature of sugar beet cultivation. A group of 560 Japanese families agreed to move to Southern Alberta by 1943, where they signed a labour contract to work in the sugar beet fields because it allowed the families to stay together. One of the communities they were relocated to was the small town of Picture Butte, about 27 km north of Lethbridge.
Previous recipients from the Heritage Awards are a testament to the varied range of individuals and groups who work to preserve and celebrate our province’s heritage. Alberta’s history is unique and diverse; the Heritage Awards are just one way to recognize and commend those who write about, research, advocate and celebrate Alberta history.
The Heritage Awards, presented by the Alberta government, help to honour the work of Alberta citizens, groups and communities helping to share protect, preserve and promote our province’s history. The awards recognize individuals, non-profit organizations, corporations, municipalities, First Nations and Métis settlements.
This year, the awards are broken down into three categories: Heritage Conservation, Heritage Awareness and Outstanding Achievement. Learn more about these categories and the nomination process.
Recipients will be recognized at an awards ceremony in September. Further details will come out during the next few months.
To nominate an individual or group, fill out a nomination form and drop off, mail, courier or email your nomination package to:
Heritage Awards Program Old St. Stephen’s College Building 8820 112 Street Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2P8 Email: acsw.heritageawards@gov.ab.ca
Written by: Ronald Kelland, Historic Places Research and Designation Program
Recently, some new Municipal Historic Designations in the Crowsnest Pass, Trochu and Grande Prairie have been added to the Alberta Register of Historic Places. These resources have been deemed by their municipality to be of significant heritage value to their community. Like Provincial Historic Resources, municipally designated properties are protected under the Historical Resources Act and qualify for conservation grants from the Heritage Preservation Partnership Program.
Cosmopolitan Hotel(Crowsnest Pass – Blairmore)
The Cosmopolitan Hotel is a three-story brick building. Its heritage value lies in its: association with the urban and commercial development of the former mining town; for its design; and for its position as a community landmark. Like many communities in their early days, Blairmore’s earliest buildings were simple, wood-frame structures, which were highly susceptible to fire. The original, wood-frame Cosmopolitan Hotel burned down in 1912, along with much of Blairmore’s commercial district. The hotel was rebuilt as a substantial, 50-room brick structure later that same year.
Although still a simple and understated structure, it affects an impressively solid appearance and has some ornamental details, such as the corbelled parapet that were common on commercial buildings of the period. Located on a corner lot on what was Blairmore’s most important intersection, the Cosmopolitan Hotel has long been a significant landmark in the Crowsnest Pass. Being located across the street from the Blairmore Bandstand, which was a favoured location for community events, miners’ union rallies and strikes, the Cosmopolitan Hotel was often the backdrop of those events, making it a significant focal point for the community.
The Cosmopolitan Hotel was designated as a Municipal Historic Resource in 2016 and was listed on the Alberta Register of Historic Places in early 2024.
Cosmopolitan Hotel from the southwest, November 2018. Source: Historic Resources Management, Arts, Culture and Status of Women.
Miners’ Union Rally at the Blairmore Bandstand with the Cosmopolitan Hotel in the background, May 1, 923. Source: Glenbow Archives, NC-54-1607.
Written by: Todd Kristensen and Emily Moffat, Archaeological Survey of Alberta
Small rings of rock appear across Alberta’s prairies. These stones once weighed down the bison hide covering of tipis – a type of dwelling used by generations of First Nations. Tipis, and the remnants of them, have drawn the attention of archaeologists and historians in the province for over 70 years. It is estimated that Alberta had a million stone circles before being displaced by farming and other developments. Currently, the province has over 8,000 recorded archaeological sites with tipi rings: some are a single circle (a small camp) while others host over 200 rings in one spot (a large gathering of family and allies). New figures and imagery here highlight decades of archaeological research and help visualize how records of tipi rings can reveal dimensions of pre-contact life.
Exposed, excavated, and mapped tipi rings in Alberta. Source: permits 08-110, 09-050, 11-048, and 21-046.
Previous recipients from the Heritage Awards are a testament to the varied range of individuals and groups who work to preserve and celebrate our province’s heritage. Alberta’s history is unique and diverse; the Heritage Awards are just one way to recognize and commend those who write about, research, advocate and celebrate Alberta history.
The Heritage Awards, presented by the Alberta government, help to honour the work of Alberta citizens, groups and communities helping to share protect, preserve and promote our province’s history. The awards recognize individuals, non-profit organizations, corporations, municipalities, First Nations and Métis settlements.
This year, the awards are broken down into three categories: Heritage Conservation, Heritage Awareness and Outstanding Achievement. Learn more about these categories and the nomination process.
Recipients will be recognized at an awards ceremony in September. Further details will come out during the next few months.
To nominate an individual or group, fill out a nomination form and drop off, mail, courier or email your nomination package to:
Heritage Awards Program Old St. Stephen’s College Building 8820 112 Street Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2P8 Email: acsw.heritageawards@gov.ab.ca
Written by: Sara Bohuch, BA Archaeology (Simon Fraser University) , MSc Conservation Practice (Cardiff University)
The philosopher Cicero once said that memory is the treasury and guardian of all things. It is also a fleeting feature of the brain, so people have attempted to capture their memory in a physical format for as long as humans have existed.
If these physicalized memories are still considered a treasury, then the place where they are stored becomes less a place to stash random material and more of a bank. If you get enough memory kept in the same place, that bank can start to reflect and inform the identity of a people.
Written by: Michael Gourlie, Government Records Archivist, Provincial Archives of Alberta
In the early 1950s, George Dunn appeared frequently on the Edmonton sports pages. Described as a lightning flash, his boxing career lasted only about a decade in Canada, but his contributions to sport continued after he left the ring.
Dunn was born in Raleigh, North Carolina in 1925, the son of William Moses Dunn and Mary Helen High-Dunn. His parents died several months apart in 1926, and he was raised by his siblings. He was working in Hartford, Connecticut at the Pratt and Whitney Aircraft factory in 1943 when he registered for the World War II draft. He served in the US Army for just over two years during the Second World War, seeing action in the Philippines and New Guinea. During this period, Dunn took up boxing to avoid “KP” (kitchen patrol) duties. He became a professional boxer in 1946 and lost only two matches between 1946 and 1948, racking up 14 knockouts. In his early career, he fought against Sonny Boy West and Lil’ Arthur King.
Geo Dunn vs. Dutch Hopper, 1950 at the Edmonton Stock Sales Pavilion. Source: Provincial Archives of Alberta, photo number: GS798
Written by: Colby Parkkila, Historical Interpreter, Rutherford House Provincial Historic Site
Within the walls of Rutherford House, the home of Alberta’s first premier Alexander Cameron Rutherford, there are numerous artifacts that are displayed for public viewing. While some items receive plenty of attention, such as Mrs. Rutherford’s piano, Alexander’s bust of Prime Minister Wilfred Laurier, or Mrs. Rutherford’s china, there are many that receive considerably less attention. However, each of these items, big or small, are representative of stories and histories that are deeper and more important than they first appear.
One of these often overlooked artifacts sits atop a nondescript doily on the second shelf of a side table in the library of Rutherford House – a silver-plated brick-laying trowel. Often missed simply because of its slightly obscured location, the trowel appears unassuming at first. After all a trowel is merely a working man’s implement. However, upon closer inspection more is revealed to the keen-eyed observer.
Trowel presented to Alexander Rutherford on September 3rd, 1909, in honour of the laying of the cornerstone for Alexandra School. Source: Rutherford House Provincial Historic Site.
Immediately noticeable is the trowel’s material. Unlike most other trowels, it is not made of wood and metal, but is silver-plated with ornate flowers carved into the handle and a decorative border added to its blade. Both elements suggest that the trowel is not meant for use in construction, but for display and commemorative purposes. Upon closer inspection, an inscription can also be found, reading “Presented to Hon. A. C. Rutherford by Medicine Hat School District No. 76. Laying of Corner Stone Sept 3. ‘09.” The inscription provides some valuable information regarding the provenance and the occasion during which Alexander received this trowel. However, it also raises additional questions: What was this school and why was Alexander present at the laying of its corner stone?
What makes your holiday season complete? Is it fruit cake, latkes or bannock? Lighting a menorah, Christmas tree or a kinara? How old or new are the traditions you participate in? Where did they originate?
The Beaver people who first inhabited the areas bordering the Peace River have been gathering at Dunvegan for thousands of years. Like other Indigenous peoples, before the arrival of the fur traders and missionaries, it’s possible they may have celebrated the Winter Solstice while camping in the area.
When Northwest Company fur traders arrived in 1805 and established Fort Dunvegan, they brought with them the customs of European Christians, particularly those of the Scots. You’ve probably heard of Kwanzaa, but have you ever heard of Hogmanay? In Scotland, Christmas was celebrated quietly, while Hogmanay or New Year’s Eve, was well…a party! Being as many fur traders originally hailed from Scotland, those traditions came with them over to what is now known as Canada.
By the time this photo was taken in 1909 by A.M. Bezanson, the St. Charles Mission at Dunvegan had been shut down for six years. Source: South Peace Regional ArchivesTaken from the north bank of the Peace River, this photo shows Fort Dunvegan in the early 1900s. Source: South Peace Regional Archives.
Indeed, this is reflected in the journals left by the men in charge at Fort Dunvegan through the 1800s. In some cases, Christmas isn’t even mentioned at all on December 25. When it is mentioned it’s often to say that nothing of importance happened. But every entry that was made on January 1 (at least between 1822 and 1844) mentions everyone gathering at the fort for their usual treat of a ration from the store. This included gifts of tobacco, rum, meat or biscuits. Even lime juice has been mentioned as a special treat given to visitors.
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