Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre

Exhibit Opening! Barbed Wire Solution

2012-01-23T16:41:00.000-07:00

The Peace River Museum will be officially launching our new exhibit:

The Barbed Wire Solution: Ukrainians and Canada's First Internment Operations 1914-1920

The opening will be held on Thursday, January 26 from 6:30 - 8 pm. Join us for Ukrainian paska bread, coffe and tea and learn about this little known and extremely important piece of Canadian history.

Brrrr....Looking for something to do indoors?

2012-01-17T11:57:00.000-07:00

The Museum is a great place to visit on those days when you need something to do indoors! Our Current Exhibits include young artist, Courtney Auger and a travelling exhibit from the Ukrainian Canadian Research and Documentation Centre: The Barbed Wire Solution: Canada's First Internment Operations, 1914-1920.

We also have our rocks and fossils, including a chunk of meteorite from space, the molar of a woolly mammoth and even the tooth of an Albertosaurus dinosaur!

The Sir Alexander Mackenzie Gallery has a variety of furs and fur trade artifacts. You can pet a brown bear or a wolverine and explore the lives of the early traders and trappers, including how they stayed warm in these cold, northern winters without the benefit of modern heating and transportation.

We welcome everyone to come and warm up at the Museum!

Artist of the Peace: Courtney Auger

2012-01-09T15:07:00.000-07:00

For January, the Museum's art will be featuring a young artist, Courtny Auger. We are excited to feature a developing artist and to showcase the variety of styles and techniques Courtney has explored.

According to Courtney, "My preferred style of art is surrealism, surrealism is like a fantasy and it's the way I see the world...it's with this kind of mind set that I have created my version of wonderland..."

We invite everyone to come view Courtney's work this month!

2012 is here!

2012-01-05T11:54:00.000-07:00

We hope everyone had a lovely holiday season and safe New Years!
The Museum is busily preparing and planning for our next year of exciting exhibits.

If you are looking for calendars to help plan your next year, the Museum has three different unique and historic options:

The Archives Society of Alberta has put together a 2012 calendar: Archives in Living Colour featuring colour photography from the collections of Archives across Alberta. Our own Archives is featured in December! This calendar is $5.To see some of these photographs as well as many others, please visit this year's online exhibit: Archives in Living Colour.

Soul of Canada has put together two lovely calendars, each with approximately 100 archival photographs and packed with research and information on Canada's Petroleum Pioneers or Canada's Work Horses. These calendars are $20 each.

The Barbed Wire Solution: New Travelling Exhibit at the Peace River Museum

2011-12-29T15:51:00.000-07:00

The Peace River Museum will be hosting a travelling exhibit from the Ukrainian Canadian Research and Documentation Centre:

The Barbed Wire Solution: Ukrainians and Canada's First Internment Operations, 1914-1920

Our first exhibit for 2012 "explores the social, economic and political circumstances that led to Canada's first use of the War Measures Act. It also looks at the conditions of daily life in the camps for the prisoners and their guards and leaves the viewer with a striking reminder of a dark and relatively unknown moment in Canadian history" (from the UCRDC).

The Museum would like to also showcase local Ukrainian families and culture while we host this exhibit. We invite anyone willing to loan material culture depicting our local Ukrainian heritage, to contact the Museum(i.e. clothing, photographs, dolls, pioneering implements). We would also like to collect stories of Ukrainian Peace Country pioneers and their own experiences as early immigrants to Canada and specifically, to our area.

Christmas Hours 2011

2011-12-22T10:15:00.000-07:00

The Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre will be closed between December 24th and 27th. We will reopen for regular hours (Monday to Saturday 10 am to 4:30 pm) on Wednesday, December 28th.

We wish everyone a happy and safe holiday season!

Peace River's newest Arts & Culture magazine is well worth picking up!

2011-12-15T10:25:00.000-07:00

The Vault Magazine contains thoughtful, challenging articles about political and social issues as well as coverage of our lively, local culture and music scene. The Community Calendar is packed with events from Peace River and surrounding communities.

The Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre wishes to compliment the staff over at the Vault Magazine for putting together a great read every two weeks!

Christmas shopping at the Peace River Museum

2011-12-03T16:31:00.000-07:00

We wanted to remind everyone that we have a wonderful selection of unique, Peace Country gifts available for Christmas including:

loose leaf teas
honey
jewelry from local artists
locally made massage oils and soaps
photography and a DVD of the Northern Lights
postcards and Christmas cards
Art prints of archival photographs
books about the Peace Country and historical figures such as Sir Alexander Mackenzie, Sheridan and Juey Lawrence and family, aviation history, the Edson and Grouard Trails, RCMP history and others!

Also, if you are interested in any photograph we have in our archival collection, we can give you a digital copy for $5 until the end of 2011 or we can provide a print in 4x6, 5x7 or 8x10 sizes. They make a great gift that can be chosen specifically around the historic interests of your friend or loved one! Feel free to call our Archivist, Wendy at 780-624-4261 for more information or photograph suggestions.

Happy 224th birthday Louis Daguerre!

2011-11-18T15:35:00.001-07:00

Google's homepage doodle for November 18th celebrates Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre (1787-1851) who invented one of the earliest forms of permanent photography, which he aptly named the Daguerreotype. Daguerre had been working with a partner, Nicéphore Niépce, to find a way of affixing an image seen through a lens onto a permanent surface. Niépce died in 1933, but Daguerre continued with their experiements and finally in 1839, he presented the first photographs to the French Académie des Sciences. (from: http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/dagu/hd_dagu.htm - accessed November 18, 2011)

In celebration of this groundbreaking invention, we are posting pictures of the daguerreotypes in our Archival collection. Unfortunately, we do not know who these two people are, but the photographs have been dated to ca. 1845. For more information on caring for daguerreotypes, you can visit the Daguerreotype Research Portal.

71.413.a1

71.413.a2

Remembrance Day 2011

2011-11-08T10:49:00.000-07:00

The Peace River Museum will be open this Remembrance Day, Friday November 11 from 11 am to 4 pm.

We invite everyone to come and view some of our local veterans uniforms as well as a collection of digitized World War I postcards on display.

Artist of the Peace: Marie Laventure

2011-11-07T13:49:00.001-07:00

Our November Artist of the Peace is Marie Laventure. Her pieces are full of colour and beauty!
According to Marie, "When I start most paintings, I am unsure of what exactly will end up being on the canvas, but I love playing with paint and colours; for me, making art is meditative and in important part of my wellness maintenance."

We invite everyone to come and view Marie's work in November! And, as always, admission is free to see our art wall.

Happy Halloween from the Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre

2011-10-31T09:55:00.000-06:00

This Halloween, we thought to share a photo from a fund-raising masquerade for the Irene Cottage Hospital in February of 1915. Have a safe and happy Halloween!

PRMA80.1137.1.55

New Gift Shop items: 8x10 Archival Prints

2011-10-24T14:06:00.000-06:00

View from 12 Foot Davis Gravesite, ca. 1930s (PRMAx87.1521.57)

Our Gift Shop has printed a selection of beautiful 8x10 archival prints on fine art paper available for $15 (+gst) each. This price includes a plastic sleeve for safe keeping. These prints are perfect for gifts and for framing. Thumbnails of each print are pictured below.

D.A. Thomas, ca. 1920s (PRMA2008.043.002)

Peace River Train Station, ca. 1920s-1930s (PRMA73.564f)

Delivering mail from Peace River to Fort Vermilion by dogsled, 1908 (PRMA80.1137.1.45)

Main Street, Peace River, 1967 (PRMAAR93.1.160)

Peace River, ca. 1920s-1930s (PRMA81.1162.1)

Peace River, ca. 1920 (PRMA2008.056.003)

Threshing Bee at Gilbert Axford's farm, 1929 (PRMA68.128a)

Peace River's train bridge, ca. 1920s (73.564d)

Artist of the Peace: Carole Gold

2011-10-07T11:14:00.000-06:00

Our October Artist of the Peace is Carole Gold. Carole Gold is a talented quilter who designs many of her pieces. She has been sewing since she was a young girl and eventually narrowed her interests to quilting.

Her passion and artistic ability is evident in the pieces she creates!

We invite everyone to come and view Carole's art during October and read her story.

Alberta Archives Week

2011-10-03T17:09:00.003-06:00

This week is Alberta Archives Week! The first week in October is used to celebrate and promote Archives and what they do in a community.
We participate also in a yearly archives exhibit through the Archives of Society of Alberta. This year's theme is: Archives in Living Colour! The exhibit can be viewed here: http://www.archivesalberta.org/2011exhibit/index.html

There will also be small displays up at the Museum, Kits Office Supply, the Record Gazette and the Peace River Library.

For our promotion this year, we are chatting with businesses and organizations around our area about what the Archives does for them and how to go about donating records to the Archives. Our Archivist, Wendy Dyck, will be presenting to the Peace River Rotary, Peace River & District Chamber of Commerce, Berwyn Women's Institute, Grimshaw & District Chamber of Commerce and Mighty Peace Tourism Association. If your organization or business is interested in a presentation, please contact the Archives at 624-4261 or museum@peaceriver.net. Here are some highlights:

The Peace River Archives acquires, organizes and makes available inactive records from various businesses and organizations in Town of Peace River, MD of Northern Lights, Northern Sunrise County, Clear Hills County, MD #135 of Peace and MD# 136 of Fairview. Inactive records are those which are no longer needed for day to day operations of a business or no longer need to be kept for legal reasons. To discuss your donation, please contact our Archives.

The Peace River Archives is able to provide the following services:

conservation
consultations on storage, care and records retention
research and project help

Peace River WINS Alberta's Cultureville contest! & Alberta Arts Days

2011-09-30T12:32:00.001-06:00

We WON! Peace River has received recognition from Albertans through CBC's Cultureville contest! Congratulations and thank you to everyone who voted for Peace River. To hear the announcement and Mayor Lorne Mann's reaction, click on this link:
http://www.cbc.ca/edmontonam/episodes/2011/09/29/peace-river-is-the-winner-in-the-cbcs-cultureville-contest/

To celebrate our victory, we encourage everyone to take part in the various workshops and performances going on this weekend as part of Alberta Arts Days. There are many different things going on!

Sept. 30: Peace River Music Teacher's Association Recital at the St. James Anglican Church, entry is $5 per person or $20 per family with all proceeds going to support musical program and awards in Peace River.

Sept. 30: Octoberfest at the Belle Petroleum Centre. Click here for a poster of events

Sept. 30: Family Performance Evening at 6:30 (free) at the Elks Hall in Grimshaw

Sept. 30-Oct. 1: Gallery of Artists, 10am - 10 pm at the Elks Hall in Grimshaw

Sept. 30: Mini-workshops at the Legion Hall in Grimshaw, 7-9 pm
           SQUARE DANCING: Come try out something new - good fun and great exercise!
           All experience levels & ages welcome!

Oct. 1: Mini-workshops at the Legion Hall in Grimshaw, 9am-12pm
          GLASS & MIRROR ETCHING: Try a new craft! All supplies provided. Class suitable for
          ages 14 & up.

Oct. 1: Mini-workshops at the Legion Hall in Grimshaw, 1:00 - 4:00 pm
         IMPROV THEATRE: Feeling like you might have some actor in you? Try out Improv Theatre!
          You never know what might happen!

          KEEPSAKE BOXES: Make your own keepsake box. All supplies provided.

Oct. 1: Sketching classes at the Peace River Library (free); 10-11:30 for children and 1-3 pm for adults

Oct. 1: 3rd Annual Reach for the Arts Night, 7-10 pm at the Elks Hall in Grimshaw (tickets available at Beyond 2000 in Grimshaw)

Oct. 1: Open Stage at Belle Petroleum Centre (free), doors open at 7:30, No Limits will be present

Artist of the Peace: Layton Paul Ramer

2011-09-20T09:57:00.000-06:00

Berwyn Catholic Church

Our artist for the month of September is talented photographer, Paul Ramer. His exhibit: "Splendour of the Seasons" highlights the beauty of the Peace Country in all seasons. We invite you to come view his work this month.

Paul's work is available for purchase and he also has small cards and matted pieces for sale.

Peace River: CBC Alberta's 2011 Cultureville?

2011-09-15T13:41:00.002-06:00

As some of you may have heard or even been involved with, Peace River has made it into the final six for this year's CBC Cultureville contest! We are so proud to be a part of this and hope everyone will go out and vote for Peace River once per day. Here is the link:
http://www.cbc.ca/alberta/features/cultureville/

New Research Resources available online!

2011-09-07T09:05:00.000-06:00

The Peace River Archives received a grant from the Archives Society of Alberta and the National Archival Development Program to hire a student this summer. This student handled many front end duties as well as entering the archival maps into our database to increase their accessibility.
The Archivist was then able to spend her time putting 8 new sets of records (fonds) online on the Archives Network of Alberta website, which brings our total to 16.

New records include:

Alberta Historic Sites Service fonds

This fonds covers a survey done in Peace River and surrounding areas of many of our major historic buildings and sites.

Alexander Wallace fonds

Alexander Wallace started the Wallace Drug Company, which later became the Hanna Drug Company.

Hanna Family fonds

Sam & Grace Hanna bought into the Wallace Drug Company and it became the Hanna Drug Company. Their son, Jim, was a World War II veteran.

Dora Lloyd fonds

Dora Lloyd was an early nurse and matron of the Irene Cottage Hospital in Peace River. This fonds focus on her time here.

Jack O'Sullivan fonds

Jack O'Sullivan owned, with his partner Ted Stigsen, O'Sullivan and Stigsen Company which freighted up and down the river until 1949 as well as operating trading posts in the region. This fonds includes a great deal of information on Jack's career on the river as well as his family.

"Peace River" Jim Cornwall fonds

"Peace River" Jim was a tireless promotor of the possibilities in thenorth, MLA for this area as well as operating boats on the river and many other activities in the north. This fonds includes, amongst other records, 3 photograph albums of trips through the Peace Region.

Pearl MacRae fonds

A collection of photographs of early Peace River.

Stanley Lawrence fonds

This fonds contains information on two generations of the Lawrence family, the Sheridan & Juey Lawrence family and their son, Stanley Lawrence and his family.

We thank the Archives Society of Alberta and the Government of Canada for their funding for this project.

Reminder: Twelve Foot Davis Gravesite GRAND RE-OPENING

2011-08-30T13:04:00.000-06:00

The Peace River Museum would like to remind everyone to come out on Thursday, Sept. 1 between 5pm and 8:30 pm for the grand re-opening of the Twelve Foot Davis Gravesite.

Updates include the return of the refurbished original headstone, landscaping with wild plants and interpretive panels.

The program will include a live performance from local band, "No Limitz" at 6pm.

We hope everyone is able to come out to the opening!

A Wonderful Family Fun Day

2011-08-26T10:04:00.000-06:00

This past Saturday, August 20th, the Peace River Museum had its Cabinets of Curiosities Family Fun Day. The afternoon was filled with much laughter, discovery, and fun. Our visitors treasure hunted, they dressed up in many hats, sometimes more than one at a time, vests, military jackets, RCMP red coats, ceintures fléchées, and high-heeled shoes. They curated (designed, installed, and named) their own cabinets of curiosities with our education artifacts. They coloured butterflies to make butterfly cabinets and they did word games, puzzles and mazes.

Elizabeth shows off her exhibit: "Elizabeth's Bones"

Autumn and Jack show off some historic fashions!

Sydney and Autumn are styling!

Sydney's diplays her beautiful artwork and maze skills.

Overall, a wonderful day was had by all. We at the museum certainly had a great time interacting with everyone that came in and enjoyed hearing all of the stories that our Cabinets of Curiosities evoked for them.

Twelve Foot Davis Gravesite

2011-08-18T10:26:00.003-06:00

The Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre’s role in the revitalization of Twelve Foot Davis Gravesite in Greene Valley Provincial Park is many-fold. Primarily, it is to provide historical information, from several sources, including Museum files, for the text and photographs used on the signs gracing the Park.

The snippets of information reveal, not only the man, but also the era, environment and culture in which Henry Fuller Davis lived, worked and died.

In addition, the Museum on whose grounds Davis’ headstone rested for a number of years, was charged with the task of seeking an artist – stonemason to bring it back to as close to its original lustre as possible. Rénald Lavoie, from Northern Sunrise Country was that artist.

The Twelve Foot Davis Gravesite is the co-operative effort of Alberta Tourism, Parks and Recreation; Northern Sunrise County; Town of Peace River and GeoTourism Canada.

BE ON TOP OF IT! Come join neighbours, visitors, entertainers and dignitaries at the newly refurbished Twelve Foot Davis Gravesite in Greene Valley Provincial Park, Thursday September 1, 5-8:30 p.m. for a party. There will be a special “hilltop” Concert in the Park performance at 6 p.m. This concludes the Concert in the Park series for this year – Featuring No Limitz.

Cabinets of Curiosity Family Fun Day

2011-08-15T15:12:00.000-06:00

The museum’s current exhibition, Cabinets of Curiosity, was our way of finding more space during our collections inventory. Right now, we have over 3,000 objects on display; usually the number of artifacts on display is only about 150. This means 2,850 more objects to discover and stories to tell!

In the time that we’ve had this exhibit open to the public, we’ve received many wonderful comments, so we thought to spend an afternoon celebrating these new cabinets.

What better way to celebrate the cabinets than with a family fun day! The cabinets are as they suggest, curious, so we invite you in to get involved in the exhibit and have some fun. We have a treasure hunt, words games, puzzles, and a dress-up station with historic hats, shoes, vests and much more. You even get the opportunity to be a museum curator; to do what we do and decide which objects to put in your cabinet, arrange them, help them tell a story and then name your curious cabinet.

There is fun for all ages, so bring the entire family and try out some of our activities.

The Museum Grounds

2011-08-09T13:17:00.001-06:00

Although the inside of the Museum is filled to capacity with neat historical objects, the grounds of the Museum also have much to offer. The sternwheel of the D.A. Thomas steamship, the private cemetery of Felix Akernum Shaw, and the original headstone from H.A. George and family, and other historic pieces are available for viewing.

Recently, there have been two changes to our grounds:

This past Friday, the museum was lucky enough to play host to the artistic talents of the Ground Level Youth Centre. Tianah, Brittany, Savannah, Kaitlynn, Katelyn, and Riley were here to paint the picnic table on the museum grounds for us.

This table is well used by both Museum staff and the public to enjoy a picnic lunch or a coffee while observing our beautiful river valley. However, we have had difficulties with graffiti on the table as well.

So, in an effort to deter graffiti from marking our table, we asked the Ground Level Youth Centre to come down and intentionally paint the table. Our table now has a beautifully painted river scene with such details as decorated tipis, meat drying on a rack, a black bear, canoes, fish, birds, cabins and a fire pit.

As well, we have opened up our Northwest Mounted Police replica cabin and have set up an exhibit for you to enjoy. A huge thank you to Jeremiah Gloor for building a grid door so that we can leave the cabin open during the day for all those who stroll by on the river walkway.

August Artist of the Peace: Rhonda Warren

2011-08-05T09:48:00.001-06:00

August will feature a textile exhibit from Rhonda Warren. Rhonda is a homegrown Peace Country artist who says that "the natural environment of the area inspires much of her art." Though Rhonda works with various mediums, including making her own paper, this exhibit will focus on her felted art.

Felt is created using wool strands which are covered in tiny scales which when rubbed together, catch on each other and shrink into a mat. If you are interested in how felting is done, Rhonda has included information with her art on the process.

We invite everyone to come and view Rhonda's beautiful felt pieces.

The Peace River Musuem would also like to extend our gratitude to Rhonda, who has been scheduling our art wall. We appreciate her volunteer time and effort in helping our Peace River artists show off their beautiful work.

Heritage Days Cemetery Tour

2011-07-26T12:27:00.001-06:00

Join the staff of the Peace River Museum on August 1st, 2011 for an interpretive stroll through the Mount Pleasant Cemetery. The tour, which will begin at 11 am and again 3 pm, will highlight fascinating stories of some of Peace River’s historic personalities now resting in Mount Pleasant Cemetery. The tours will run rain or shine, so please dress appropriately.

The Museum gets new storage!

2011-07-20T09:27:00.000-06:00

It’s been a big year for the artifact collections of the Peace River Museum. In a previous blog, we brought to you the history of Cabinets of Curiosity and told you about our own versions of these cabinets which would be set up this year. This new type of exhibition is happening because we are undertaking a complete collections inventory for the year. It’s a big job but we’re up to the task.

So far, we have removed every object from the collections room and inventoried it. This cleared the room in preparation for our new rolling shelving!!! The shelving, pictured below, was obtained through a Community Facility Enhancement Program grant, monetary donations to the Museum, and help from the Town of Peace River. This wonderful new shelving has given us 50% more space in that room than we had previously, which means that all our artifacts are now going to be in a better situation where we can more easily protect and care for them.

The next stage of this inventory is to continue to clean each of the artifacts and move them onto their new shelves. Conservation projects on some of these objects have taken a great deal of time as well. We are also taking photographs of as many of the artifacts as we can.

The Peace River Museum opened in 1967 as a Canadian Centennial Project. In our 44 years of existence, we’ve amassed quite a few artifact donations. This amounts to about 8000 objects in our collection. That’s a lot of artifacts to inventory, clean, conserve, photograph and re-shelve. But, since January we’ve made great progress and we look forward to continuing with this worthwhile project.

The Cabinets of Curiosity exhibit will be up for the 2011 year. Keep an eye on our blog and website for an upcoming Family Fun Day!

Artist of the Peace: 4-H Multi Club

2011-07-13T09:21:00.000-06:00

This month's Artists of the Peace are sponsored by Peace of Art (formerly the Peace River Art Club) and they are the Peace River 4-H Multi Club. These enthusiastic youth have brought their art to show off and it is lovely. Much of the art is a reflection of the different modules they have held over the past year. We invite everyone to come view their work.

Some of our local 4-H Multi Club members

Here is a little history, as written by the 4-H Club:
"The Peace River 4-H Multi Club has been run in Peace River since 1998 and has had a range of projects from horse to foods and paintball and crafts. We have had a range from 9 to over 30 members."

If you are interested in more information on the 4-H Club please contact Jill Wood at 780-624-5270

And remember that admission to the Art Wall is FREE (admission to the Museum is $2 per person).

Meet the Authors evening

2011-07-05T15:08:00.000-06:00

The Museum will be hosting three local authors this Friday, July 8th from 6:30-8pm. At 7 pm, each of the authors will read from their books.

Carmel Ellis
Many have already enjoyed Carm's book: Barns of the North Peace. On July 8th Carm will be bringing his new and updated version as well as promoting his second book: Wilderness Park - Reflections 2010 which is a great book for anyone who loves the flora and fauna of the North.

Dollye Cooper
Dollye's memoirs: Looking Back with Dollye Cooper, is filled with wonderful memories of her life:
"When I came up to Grimshaw and he[Basil] asked me to marry him, we stayed at the Nickersons'. After supper the two of us went for a walk. The sidewalks were just boards and had many large cracks in them. Basil went to put the ring on my finger, but it fell down in the snow between the boards! Both of us were down on our knees, frantically searching in the snow. We must have been a sight, laughing so hard. Needless to say, we found it. Our children and grandchildren love to hear and relate this tale to anyone who will listen."

David McLaughlin
Stories I Love to Tell by David McLaughlin is also filled with great memories growing up in Alberta and eventually reaching the Peace River area: "In yet another life changing passage, I resigned from my teaching career of thirteen years with its steady paychecks and solid pension plan. We sold our mobile home; borrowed as much money as Farm Credit would lend us; borrowed additional funds from my mother; loaded up the family and all our belongings on two pickups and a trailer and headed for the Peace country and a career in full time farming. Most people, including our families, thought we were crazy and maybe we were. The years that followed were filled with hard work, disappointing crops, falling grain prices, rising costs and isolation from our families and friends. On the plus side, we raised our family in an excellent environment away from the problems of an urban life style and, in the end, inflated real estate prices set the basis from our eventual financial freedom."

Anyone interested in self-publishing, genealogy and local history would very much enjoy chatting with any of our local talents that will be present at this event. The local Peace River & District Genealogy Society will also have information available.

Happy Canada Day!

2011-06-28T14:57:00.001-06:00

As is tradition, this year's Canada Day festivities will begin at the Museum with a flag raising ceremony at 11:30 am. Bring your decorated bikes and strollers and participate in the walking parade from the Museum to the Riverfront Park along the scenic river trail. At Riverfront Park, the festivities will continue with performances and family activities until 3 pm. (For more information, please call Community Services at (780) 624-1000 or you can view their poster here.) And don't forget the fireworks that will take place July 1st at 11:59 pm!

The Museum will also be open from 12-4 pm and admission is FREE all afternoon. Come and see our Cabinets of Curiosities including our excellent rock and fossil collection and explore the Sir Alexander Mackenzie gallery where you can see a beaver, brown bear and many other northern furs and learn more about Sir Alexander Mackenzie's historic voyage across Canada.

Fun at the Fossil Road Show

2011-06-23T09:54:00.001-06:00

Dinosaurs, rocks, fossils and minerals are certainly interesting subjects, and the residents of Peace River seem to agree. More than 240 people, including 117 students visited Athabasca Hall last Thursday to learn about Northwest Alberta Palaeontology from Grande Prairie Regional College palaeontologists Katalin Ormay and Robin Sissons.

There were slide shows of photographs and interesting facts, a floor puzzle, colouring sheets, crosswords, rocks and minerals to identify, and dinosaur bones to touch. In the photograph to the left, the Winters boys, Noah (7), Jabin (5) and Jude (8) show us the floor puzzle they completed and Noah also shows us a dinosaur he coloured and put together with moveable arms and legs.

The museum was delighted to host this event so that we too could learn more about palaeontology. Following the Road Show on Thursday, Katalin and Robin were at the museum on Friday, to help us identify all of the pieces in our collection. This project took all day and was fun for both the museum and the palaeontologists. They tell us that we have quite a wonderful collection!

This Road Show as well as the identification of the museum’s pieces stem from Robin’s first visit to Peace River to find out what sorts of palaeontology artifacts we have in our collection. They were quite impressed and offered to come up again to help us identify all of the pieces. There just wasn’t time in her first visit to identify it all.

We invite you all down to come and see this collection! It was unknown to us until last Friday, but we have another Albertosaurus tooth and another dinosaur bone in our collection. We can also boast that most of the bison bones in our collection are from the Ice Age, so they are at least 10,000 years old.

The museum would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to Katalin and Robin as well as everyone that attended our event.

Artist of the Peace: Ground Level Youth Group

2011-06-20T11:06:00.001-06:00

The Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre is pleased to host the art of the Ground Level Centre Youth Group. The group was run by Rhonda Warren and features a number of different kinds of projects. We hope many are able to come out and view the hard work of these young people.
Note that there is no fee to view the art wall. There is a $2 admission fee to see the Museum.
Please see below for some more information on the Youth Group, which is open to all young people, or come to the Museum to get a brochure and a calendar of events!

From the Youth Centre: "The Ground Level Youth Centre Project provides youth with opportunities, through programs and activities to connect with positive caring and supporting adult role models who are available to assist youth to build on their strengths, identify their weaknesses, and thus encourage them to be the best that they can be.
All programs, services and activities are structured in a manner so that youth are empowered to address the challenges they face and determine their own future with a sense of pride in a safe, secure and culturally sensitive environment.
Youth are actively involved in the project design, development and delivery at all levels within the project through their attendance and participation at regularly scheduled Youth Council meetings and daily interaction with project staff members.

Program Mission Statement:
"All youth are valued, supported and provided with opportunities to realize their individual and collective potential."

The mission statement is inclusive of all youth in our community and allows us to develop new programs, or revise to strengthen current programs and activities so that the ever changing needs of the youth are being met."

Results of Heritage Run

2011-06-18T10:36:00.001-06:00

The Peace River Museum would like to sincerely thank the Peace River Running Club for organizing the 2011 Heritage Run and also to thank the individuals who participated. It was a great success with approximately 80 runners and walkers from all over the Peace Country and as far away as Edmonton!
Here are the top three times from each category (note that these are not organized by age group).

5k Run

John Mark Earle at 22:22
Mathieu Breker at 23:44
Kevin Breker at 24:25

5k Walk

Ken Bonertz at 36:37
Danielle Murray at 49:19
Kayleigh Goy, Michelle Duval & Tracy Goy at 52:46

10k Run
Neil Martin at 47:13
Yves Lavoie at 48:22
Laurene Willox at 48:27

Half Marathon
Ken Wurst at 1:28:18
Bart-Jan Jorna at 1:38:01
Nicole Steffelaar at 1:49:50

Here are our runners coming in around the corner. As you can see, those of all ages participated in the run and we hope everyone had a wonderful time!

Dinosaurs Roaming the Peace

2011-06-15T08:50:00.000-06:00

Big! Awesome! Scary! Cool!

These are all words that are often used to describe dinosaurs. Who doesn’t love the idea that over 65 million years ago, there were dinosaurs running around in our very own province? We even have a dinosaur named after our province, the Albertosaurus. We, at the museum, certainly think it’s cool. We didn’t know until just a few short months ago, that in our collection is a partial tooth from an Albertosaurus.

Also in our collection are a vertebra of a hadrosaur tail (backbone), two ichthyosaur vertebrae (marine reptile backbones), ammonites, baculites, coral, brachiopod shells, bison bones, a mammoth molar, and many more.

To help us learn more about the exciting field of paleontology, Grande Prairie Regional College (GPRC) is coming up to Peace River on Thursday, June 16th, 2011 for a Fossil Roadshow, complete with school presentations, public drop-in times, and a public presentation.

Come and join the museum in learning about dinosaurs and fossils from Katalin Ormay and Robin Sissons, paleontologists from GPRC on Thursday, June 16th, 2011 at the Athabasca Hall. Public drop-in sessions are from 11:45 AM – 12:45 PM and from 3:00 – 6:00 PM. At 7:30 PM is the public presentation.

16th Annual Aboriginal Gathering and Pow Wow

2011-06-09T09:25:00.001-06:00

This weekend (June 11th and 12th) is the 16th Annual Aboriginal Gathering and Pow Wow at the Peace River Ag Grounds (NOTE: new location from previous years). For more information, please see the Aboriginal Interagency Committee website for more schedules, directions, etiquette information and other details.

Heritage on the run – a way to perpetuate our past

2011-06-07T13:07:00.001-06:00

Fourteen years ago this June, the Peace River Running Club changed the name and the beneficiary of its annual race.

Routes, running surfaces and people have changed. One thing has not – the running club’s commitment to a healthy fund-raising endeavour to benefit our community. In 1997, the Museum and the Peace River Running Club teamed to present the Peace River Heritage Run, the successor to the previous summer’s Run in Peace 10K. As race director Patrick Mackenzie said in a 1997 news release – “[It] will not only provide a recreational and competitive opportunity for runners from near and far, it will also raise money for, and awareness of, the Museum. The Peace River Heritage Run brings together two important aspects of life.”

Museum Director Laura Gloor knows first-hand the value of the Heritage Run. “The museum has been a most appreciative annual beneficiary of the physical and financial efforts of the PRRC organizers and the runners and walkers since 1997. These sizeable donations have purchased exhibit cases, Ken Ayre of Ayre Loom wooden furniture, a research table and most recently, contributed almost $3,000 towards our new, compact, mobile shelving in the Diane Gayton Collections Room. Combining Heritage and Health is beneficial in so many ways.”

The Heritage Run, Sunday, June 12, this year is comprised of a half marathon, 10km individual run, 5km individual run, 5X2km relay and 5km walk. Start times are not quite as early as in previous years to allow out-of-town participants an opportunity to attend. “We hope this allows for an increase in the number of participants,” says Frits Dijk, race director. The half marathon begins at 9:30 a.m., while other distances commence at 10 a.m. – all from just south of the Museum. Entry forms may be obtained by going to the Peace River Running Club’s Heritage Run website or from Marian Craig: sunshine@wispernet.com or Ken Wurst: Ken.Wurst@hotmail.com

Dijk urges race-day entrants to arrive in plenty of time to register.

York Boat arrives on the Peace Once Again!

2011-06-02T17:04:00.000-06:00

It is an historic event! For the first time in over a century, a York boat will be navigating the Peace River!

Our river was a major route for Canada’s fur trade from the late 1700s to the late 1800s. Trade goods, furs and people plied the water of the Peace in canoes and flat bottomed scows until the arrival of the York boat. The design was commonly associated with the fur trade empire of the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC). It came with the rugged Scottish men of the Orkney Islands who brought their seafaring hardiness, along with the boat design, to the HBC. At 3000 pounds and 33 feet long, the freighting capacity of the Hudson’s Bay Company was greatly improved, thus providing a competitive edge to their intense rivalry with the North West Company.

GeoTourism comissioned this historic watercraft to be rebuilt and with Flow North Paddling is recreating a trip from Ft. Dunvegan to Ft. Vermilion. To see photographs of the building of the boat, please visit the GeoTourism website. The York boat was blessed by Dave Cummings of Fairview and given a grand send off from Fort Dunvegan Park on June 1st. To follow its progress, visit the GeoTourism facebook page.
The boat is scheduled to overnight at Strong Creek Campground June 3rd and to arrive at Riverfront Park at midday June 4th.

There will be a pancake breakfast at Strong Creek Campground at 9 am, June 4th. Everyone is welcome to enjoy some delicious pancakes by Grimshaw High School and witness the launch of the York boat.

At around 1 pm, the Town of Peace River will give a hearty welcome to the boat and the crew at Riverfront Park. Enjoy the performances that will highlight the cultures of the First Nations, Métis Scottish and Francophone people who inhabited the land along the river one hundred years ago. Dress in your best Twelve Foot Davis outfit or your best trapper gear for prizes to summer events like Peacefest and the North Peace Stampede!

Following the departure of the York boat, the band C.Alice will take to the stage to launch the first of the summer Concert in the Park Series, sponsored by the Town of Peace River and Northern Sunrise County.

We would also like to let our community know that it is a weekend full of events and we hope you will be out taking in as much as you can. Along with the York boat's arrival, the Peace River Art Club and The Social are hosting the "Arts in the Hall" event all weekend with art, concert and workshops.

Dinosaurs at Peace River Museum

2011-05-28T11:41:00.001-06:00

Let’s compare teeth … Yup, teeth!

Take a look at the picture below and take a guess as to which is a dinosaur tooth and which is a mammoth tooth.

If you guessed dinosaur for the small tooth and mammoth for the large tooth, you’re right!

The small, partial tooth is from an Albertosaurus, a meat-eater that looked a lot like a Tyrannosaurus rex, just a bit smaller and lived during the cretaceous period. Albertosaurus was about 8-9 metres long, 3 metres tall at the hip and weighed up to 3 tonnes. It had short arms with two-fingered hands and long powerful back legs with three-toed feet for speed and agility. The “Alberta Lizard” was first discovered in 1884 by J.B. Tyrrell along the Red Deer River in Alberta.

This Albertosaurus tooth may look small but it would have been razor-sharp 75 million years ago, perfect for tearing flesh.

Contrary to the “Alberta Lizard”, the mammoth was a grazing plant-eater that fed mostly on grasses. They were ancestors to but larger than the modern Asian elephant. They lived during the Pleistocene era, also known as the American Ice Age and died out at the end of the Ice Age, about 10,000 years ago. They were about 5 metres long, up to 4 metres tall at the shoulder and weighed up to 3 tonnes. Their pointed, curved tusks could be up to 5 metres long, though they usually ranged from 3-3.7metres long.

With how large the mammoths were, they would have spent up to 20 hours a day grazing for food. In that case, it’s fortunate that the mammoths teeth were composed of layers of compressed enamel plates, held together with cementum. This composition made them very strong and resistant to wear, since eating grass is a hard thing to do and really wears at the teeth.

Come and join us to learn more about palaeontology, the study of fossils from past ages, on Thursday, June 16th, 2011. Robin Sissons and Katalin Ormay, palaeontologists from Grande Prairie Regional College will be with us at Athabasca Hall from 12 noon – 1 PM and 3 – 6 PM for public drop in sessions and again at 7:30 PM for a public presentation on Northwest Alberta Palaeontology.

An Afternoon of Chinese Tea event

2011-05-20T09:06:00.000-06:00

Thank you to all who attended the Afternoon of Chinese Tea. It was a lovely event filled with a great variety of teas, not only from China, but from a few from Korea and Japan as well. Thank you also to Wend Wagner, of ZenSpa, for bringing her knowledge about the history and culture of tea and her tasty teas.
Here are some photographs from the event:

Wend Wagner, our hostess, demonstrating the proper way to sip tea.

Sonia Rosychuck tests dungulaecha, a Korean tea, which was served cold and used to refresh our palettes in between teas.

The tea table!

A few of our attendees learning about teas.

We also want to remind everyone that our feature exhibit "Chop Suey on the Prairies: A Reflection on Chinese Restaurants in Alberta" will only be up until May 28th! However, it will also be available to view at Lac Cardinal Pioneer Museum in Grimshaw for the month of June.

An Afternoon of Chinese Tea

2011-05-11T15:37:00.000-06:00

In conjunction with our current exhibit, "Chop Suey on the Prairies: A Reflection of Chinese Restaurants in Alberta", we will be hosting An Afternoon of Chinese Tea. On Saturday, May 14th, from 3:30 to 5:30 pm, Wend Wagner, from ZenSpa, will be at the Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre to speak to the art of drinking and serving tea in China. She will offer taste testing of teas from China, as well as Korea and Japan.
The Chop Suey on the Prairies exhibit will run only until the end of May, but will be on display at Lac Cardinal Regional Pioneer Museum for the month of June.

The International Year of the Forest reflected in Art

2011-05-06T09:55:00.001-06:00

For the month of May, in honour of International Year of the Forest and Alberta Forestry Week (May 1 - 7), the Museum's art wall is a dedicated our boreal forest. Contributing artists are: Sonia Rosychuck, Wend Wagner, Rhonda Warren, Trudy Plaizier, Diane Spirig and Marie Laventure.

And just a reminder, there is no admission to see the Peace River Museum Art Wall, and general admission to the Museum is $2 per person.

Results of the Unchaga Run

2011-05-05T12:35:00.001-06:00

The Fourth Annual Unchaga Run took place on Shaftesbury Trail on May 1st. There were 154 runners. The top three winners each division were:

5K:

1. Zachary Billard, 22:21.67

2. Andrea Taylor, 25:48.14

3. Liam McCracken, 28:02.28

10k:
1. Brandon Duvall, 39:40.89

2. Ken Wurst, 42:02.14

3. Tammy Burrows, 42:14.05

20k:

1. Joe Larsback, 1:37:30.25

2. Laverna Hards, 1:51:51.08

3. Toni Craig, 1:55:28.09

And here are our runners, preparing to set off!

An estimated $2500 dollars was raised for the Peace Regional Outreach Campus. Seen below is Stacy Parsons (left), the organizer of the Unchaga Run, presenting a cheque to Outreach staff: Dave Matilpi and Carol vanSlyke and Peace River School Division #10 trustee, Louise Woroniuk.

The following volunteers are sincerely appreciated for their help in this event: Lorri, Kevin, Kayla, Ed, Mike, Stacy and Cal. Also, a special thank you goes out to Dave Matilpi for the Blessing.

Sponsors for the event were: InVision Chartered Accountants, Grande Prairie Run and Walk Club, Peace River Running Club, River Rock Restaurant, Peace Safety and Environment Training Ltd., Town of Peace River, Tim Horton's and Wolves Athletic Club.

The Fourth Annual Unchaga: Run in Peace, May 1, 2011

2011-04-30T10:43:00.002-06:00

Unchaga is the Cree word for Peace. Unchaga: Run in Peace, begins at the Shaftesbury Ferry and follows the scenic and historic Shaftesbury Trail along the Peace River. The history of the Trail begins with the Beaver and Cree Nations and continues through Alexander Mackenzie on to settlement in more recent times.

As with past races, a First Nations blessing will be received prior to the race/walk.

All distances are out and back and hills are involved. The 5K turns at the bottom of the first hill. The 10K turns at the Brick’s Hill turn-off. The 20K proceeds up (and down) a 600-foot gain over 3.5K. This makes this choice a challenge. Those who completed the 20K indicate it rivals many of the tough and technical half marathons in Alberta. The payback for climbing Brick’s Hill is turning around to a downhill run where one has a great view of the Mighty Peace.

Awards consist of participant medallion dog tags: Gold for completing the 20K; Silver for the 10K; and Bronze for the 5K. Other awards will depend on donations.

Profits, if any, will be donated to the Peace Regional Outreach Campus.
Past groups to have received donations were: Grimshaw and District Agricultural Society (2008); the Weekend to End Breast Cancer (2009); and the Peace River Women’s Shelter (2010).

Registration Fee: $25/runner, payable to: Wolves Athletic Club

Contacts: whyteOf@telus.net 780-332 -1102 or stacy.p@telus.net 780- 263-2667

Information from the Fourth Annual Unchaga: Run in Peace brochure (used with permission).

Happy Easter!

2011-04-21T10:40:00.001-06:00

The Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre is open for Easter. Here are our hours:

Friday, April 22: closed
Saturday, April 23: 10 am - 4:30 pm (If you wear a hat to the Museum on April 23rd and get in FREE admission!)
Sunday, April 24: closed
Monday, April 25: 11 am - 5 pm

And you can also join us April 23rd between 1-3 pm to make Easter Bonnets.

We hope everyone has a lovely Easter weekend.

Peace River Genealogy Society presentation: Liliane Maisonneuve Lavoie

2011-04-21T09:45:00.003-06:00

The Peace River & District Genealogy Society will be hosting Lilian Maisonneuve Lavoie tonight, Thursday, April 21st at 7 pm to talk about her experiences researching her French Canadian and Métis roots. Liliane will be speaking at the the Peace River Library's temporary location (the Industrial Arts building next to Peace River High School) and will be of great interest to anyone who is looking for help in or is doing their own research into French Canadian and Métis backgrounds.

We hope to see you there!

Chop Suey Stories: The Peace Region Chinese Community memories

2011-04-13T09:05:00.001-06:00

Our next group of posts will be featuring stories and snippets that have been gathered as a result of our current exhibit: Chop Suey on the Prairies.

From the Peace River Record Gazette, September 21, 1966:
"Funeral Service for the late Dan Soo Der, 73, of Grimshaw, was conducted at the Howard and McBride Funeral Chapel in Edmonton, September 17.
Mr. Soo, who died at his home in Grimshaw September 12, was a well-known resident of the Peace River District having operated restaurants in Grimshaw, Peace River and Dawson Creek.
He came to Grimshaw in 1928 and operated the Royal Cafe since that time except for a few years during World War Two when he operated his Dawson Creek cafe.
Born in Canton, China in 1893, Mr. Soo immigrated to Canada in 1910 and worked at Nelson, B.C. and other points in Western Canada. In 1916, he returned to China and married Miss Fong Kim Tai.
While in business in Grimshaw, he earned a reputation of being one who could always be relied upon to support all community projects...A service was held at the B.P.O. Elks Hall in Grimshaw September 14 and remains were forwarded to Edmonton for internment.
Officiating at the service in Grimshaw was Rev. W. Kranendonk. Nixon's Funeral Home of Peace River was in charge of arrangements."

Artist of the Peace: Sonia Rosychuk

2011-04-05T15:53:00.000-06:00

For just over two years now, the Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre have been working with artists of the region to put their work on display. Our Art Wall, in the front area of the Museum rotates on a monthly basis to showcase the talent that the Peace Region has to offer.

To view only the Artist of the Peace, there is FREE admission! (A nominal $2 admission applies for the rest of Museum.)

For the month of April, we have Sonia Rosychuck. She says about her art: "The work I create comes from thing I value, issues that concern me and beliefs I hold dear. This art is the result of my love and reverence of our natural envrionment and the challenge of using found or recycled materials to reduce consumption and waste..."

We also would like to thank Rhonda Warren, of the Peace River Art Club for her tireless work scheduling our Artists of the Peace!

Chop Suey Stories: The Peace Region Chinese Community memories

2011-03-23T12:36:00.000-06:00

Our next group of posts will be featuring stories and snippets that have been gathered as a result of our current exhibit: Chop Suey on the Prairies.

From the Peace River Record Gazette, May 27, 1938:

Chong Had Birthday - and Celebrated

"Friday, May 20, was Chong's birthday. Although Chong was born in China a considerable number of years ago, he is certain he has folded back at least forty years of his sojurn on earth, half of which has been spent in Canada, and six years in Peace River.
Chong figured his age this year at forty, as that was the number of his friends, who as his guests, sat down to a very elaborately arranged and enticingly prepared birthday dinner at the Chong Café. Next year Chong expects to celebrate his fiftieth birthday, and plans on having fifty guests.
U. Adams as toastmaster very fittingly described the varied handicaps encountered by Chong since making Canada his home, and his method of overcoming those handicaps.
Radio station CFGP, the Voice of the Mighty Peace, made everyone assembled prick up their ears when felicitations for Chong came over the air. At this stage "Grandpa" who is plenty tough, expressed the hope that his friend Chong will continue for many years and not run out of birthdays. All assembled agreed that Chong is a jolly good fellow."

If you wish to contribute your own story to the growing narrative of the Chinese community in the Peace Region, you can comment here on our blog, come in and see the exhibit or contact the museum at museum@peaceriver or 780-624-4261.

EXHIBIT OPENING: Chop Suey on the Prairies

2011-03-11T15:05:00.008-07:00

We are inviting everyone to visit the Museum tomorrow between 4 and 6:30 to attend the launch of our new exhibit: "Chop Suey on the Prairies".
Come view this neat exhibit celebrating the history of Chinese Restaurants and the contribution of Chinese Albertans.
TJ's Restaraunt will be catering the event and Jeff McCann will be giving a Tai Chi demonstration.

March 12 between 4 & 6:30 pm

at the

Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre
10302 99th Street

Please call 624-4261 for more information.

NEW EXHIBITS: Cabinets of Curiosity

2011-03-02T12:42:00.008-07:00

The museum is changing it up a bit this year and offering our visitors a new experience. You get to explore the collections yourself instead of us choosing what you see in an exhibit.
Coinciding with a collections inventory, we are creating Cabinets of Curiosities. Each of these cabinets will feature a different type of artifact from our collection. Right now for example, you can see fossils, rocks, lanterns and lamps, sports equipment, shoes and cameras!

This is a new concept for our museum, but in the context of museums in general, this is the oldest idea in the book. Museums actually stemmed from and were made up by Cabinets of Curiosities. In the 16th century, it became a badge of honour and importance for the rich, the powerful, and the noble to travel and collect items that were weird and wonderful for their own cabinets of curiosity. Collecting was popular long before cabinets of curiosities were created, but it was in the 16th century that it became popular to exhibit those collections.

Unlike the museums of today, not just anyone could visit these cabinets. The owners made the decision on who to let in and oftentimes it was limited to their friends and others of power and nobility.

There was no order to these cabinets; instead, all of the curiosities were placed together, on shelves, on top of each other, hung on the wall or from the ceiling. There was also little discrimination on which objects were placed in the cabinets, though the weirder the better seemed to have been the rule. They included collections of natural history, ethnography, geology, historic and religious relics, art and antiquities objects. Some of these objects were authentic, while others were forgeries. One could find books, paintings and sculptures amongst the pressed leaves, shells, stuffed aligators and unicorn tusks (actually it was the tusk of a narwhal, but that was not known at the time).

In the 18th century, and even moreso in the 19th century, trends began to change. These collections of weird and wonderful objects began to be gifted to public institutions, which gave rise to the modern concept of a museum. It was these cabinets that served as the first collections of some of the world’s earliest museums. The new trend, then was to invite everyone in, even lower class people, to learn about history and nature but also for fun.

We all collect something, though you may not have set out to start your collection, it still exists. Is it cook books, serving platters, coins, stamps, rocks or shoes? Come and tell us what it is that you collect and see our modern day version of a Cabinet of Curiosity, then give us your opinions on your favourite objects and what sorts of exhibits you would like to see in the future.

Chop Suey on the Prairies: A Travelling Exhibit from the Royal Alberta Museum

2011-02-14T10:19:00.007-07:00

From the Royal Alberta Museum: "There are more Chinese restaurants in North America than there are fast food outlets combined. They range in size and grandeur from upscale banquet halls serving over 500 people to family-run, hole-in-the-wall cafés where the parents cook and serve while the children do homework or clean vegetables in the corner. Chinese restaurants have become so much a part of our landscape that it is hard to imagine a time when they were considered exotic.

All across the prairies, Chinese restaurants can be found in almost every town and hamlet. While the families that have run these restaurants may have changed over the years, the restaurants remain and have become indispensable centres of small town life."

The Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre's newest exhibit will be a travelling exhibit from the Royal Alberta Museum. From March to May 2011, we will be hosting "Chop Suey on the Prairies: A Reflection on Chinese Restaurants". This exhibit will feature stories and artifacts from restaurants across Alberta with a special focus on the restaurants in the Peace Region.

In conjunction with the exhibit, we at the Museum would like to gather the social and cultural history of our own local Chinese restaurants, grocery stores and laundries. Do you remember the Royal Café in Grimshaw, Geo. & Lucky’s in Berwyn, Joe Hong’s in Manning and in Peace River the Sun, the Golden Palace, Chong’s Café and the Star Café? Do you remember the proprietors Jack Lock, Jimmie Darr, Tom Guey, Benny Wing, Dan Der and their families? Jot down your memories of going to eat the best ice cream, or the tastiest sweet and sour pork ribs, or was it the ginger beef? Maybe it was the exotic colours of the decor you remember.

There are many ways to submit your memories:

by commenting on our blog,
or to the Museum in person, or by email at museum@peaceriver.net or by phone at 780-624-4261
or to the local libraries at Peace River and Grimshaw.

We look forward to reading and sharing your reminisces!

Peace Country Kids Exhibit Launch

2010-10-01T09:21:00.005-06:00

Peace Country Kids: An exhibit about Childhood in the Peace
This exhibit was inspired by the theme of this year's Alberta Archives Week, which is "Growing Up Albertan". The Peace River Archives wanted to preserve stories of "Peace Country Kids" who grew up in the region. To help us gather these stories, we have enlisted the aid of Springfield School's Grade 4 class who have each found one of these Peace Country Kids to ask 10 interview questions. These questions have been formed into an exhibit that highlights the changes and the similarities of childhood of the past and present. The exhibit will run for the month of October 2010.

We hope you will be able to join us on Monday, October 4th between 6:30 and 8 pm for a special launch party. Door prizes and historic games will be available to help celebrate the accomplishments of our young historians.

Meet the Author: Keith Hansen

2010-08-23T09:34:00.004-06:00

Keith Hansen's book, "North from Edmonton: The Northern Alberta Railways" is of interest to anyone who wishes to follow the railroad on it's push north. The railroad was the lifeline of many communities for transportation of goods and people out of the remote north for many years and Keith's book is filled with intense detail, glossy photographs and maps that really bring to life this vital link to the rest of the province.

The author, Keith Hansen, will be at the Peace River Museum (10302 99th Street) on Wed., August 25th from 6:30 to 8 pm to discuss his book and sign copies.

NEW Virtual Exhibit: Transporting Northern Dreams

2010-08-05T09:42:00.008-06:00

Thanks to support from the Canadian Heritage Information Network, Dallas Wood has written a new virtual exhibit entitled, "Transporting Northern Dreams: Steamboats on the Peace River, 1903-1930" which is available on virtualmuseum.ca or you can use this link.

The story of the steamboats is one that is essential to the development of the Peace Region. The rivers were the highways of the early days before the railway reached our area. Boats and scows were even used up until 1950 for freighting.

There are different ways to view the exhibit. Under the "Stories" category, you can read through the exhibit with all the text in order. If you are interested in browsing the photographs with only their captions, choose the "Gallery" option and if you are looking for a specific photograph, use the "Thumbnail Gallery" option.

Enjoy!

Peaceful Portraits of the Peace

2010-07-26T15:41:00.008-06:00

On Heritage Day, August 2nd, the Museum will be conducting two interpretive strolls (11 am or 2pm) through Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Peace River. Your guides will be highlighting historic personalities buried on these grounds.

One of the early settlers buried at Mount Pleasant is well-known Pierre Gauvreau, who was born in 1888 and came to Peace River in 1911 with his wife, Mae, to become the first telegraph officer in the town. He remained in Peace River until his death in 1966. One of Pierre's persistent projects was the grave of Henry Fuller "12 Foot" Davis. He is pictured here sitting beside the grave that he helped to restore and to look after. It is also said that he supported Jim Cornwall in moving the remains of Mr. Davis to its current site overlooking the Town of Peace River.

Pierre loved Peace River and was quoted as saying:
“The lure of the north cannot be defined, suffice to say, but the oldtimer, the pioneer in every sense of the word, remains to watch the result of his work and faith unfold itself before his very eyes.”

Please join us with sturdy footwear on August 2nd at 11am-12pm or 2-3 pm to meet the fascinating figures of Peace River's past!

Remember to dress for the weather!

An Evening on the Peace

2010-07-24T11:18:00.001-06:00

Tonight will mark one of the final events for the 2010 Alberta Summer Games - 'An Evening on the Peace' at the Museum (10302 99th Street) tonight between 7 and 9 pm. Admission is by donation and all are welcome. There will be a delicious snack of strawberries and chocolate and a chance to meet new faces that have arrived in our town for the Games. We hope to see you tonight!

Lucille deBeauchap on reaching the summit of Mount Everest.

2010-06-02T14:09:00.001-06:00

Lucille deBeauchap, who grew up in the Peace Country at Donnelly, was once encouraged by a teacher to write a "bucket list" of things she wanted to do in her life. At the top of that list was to climb Mount Everest. And just last month, on May 7, 2010, Lucille stood at the summit. You can read about her amazing journey at her blog at http://myfriendlucille.blogspot.com/.

Lucille will be in Peace River on June 8th at 7pm at the Catholic Conference Centre (10307 99th Street) to show photos and talk about this incredible experience. We hope you will all be able to join us.

Lucille on the summit of Mount Everest.

A Place in Mind: The Search for Authenticity by Avi Friedman

2010-05-29T11:30:00.001-06:00

We are excited to host another author in June, one Dr. Avi Friedman, who was also the contractor for our Town's recent Downtown Revitalization and Tourism Action Plans.

Dr. Friedman has written a new book, "A Place in Mind: The Search for Authenticity" and will be at the Museum on June 11th at 7pm to give a short presentation about his new work.

from Vehicule Press:

"...Avi Friedman conveys his excitement at discovering people-friendly places - antidotes to social isolation. Searching for good places - authentic places - and wondering about the disappearance of others, are at the heart of A Place in Mind..."

The 2010 Heritage Run

2010-05-27T11:30:00.002-06:00

The annual Heritage Run is held by the Peace River Running Club with proceeds going to us!
It is being held on Sunday, June 13, 2010. There are 5 different choices for all levels of interest:
Half Marathon
10 km individual run
5 km individual run
5 x 2 km relay
5 km walk

The half marathon event begins at 8 am with all others beginning at 8:30 am. Registration forms can be picked up at the Museum (10302 99th Street).

We truly appreciate the work that the Running Club does each year and the runners who have participated over the years. We encourage everyone to come participate in the event!

For more information, please contact Frits Dijk at fhdijk@telusplanet.net or Marian Craig at sunshine@wispernet.ca.

Shirlee Mattheson visits the Peace River Country

2010-05-24T10:46:00.001-06:00

We are excited to welcome Shirlee Matheson to the north. With the aid of the Peace River Air Show Committee, the Museum will be hosting Shirlee on June 1st at 7pm where she will be reading from her new book, "Amazing Flights and Flyers". One of the chapters, "The Murphys of Musk-Ox Lake" tells the tale of Peace River's Neill Murphy who worked in the wilderness of the Northwest Territories for many years, first with his father, a trapper and later as an engineer for Yellowknife Airways. According to Alberta History magazine editor, Hugh Dempsey, "Author Matheson interviewed him [Neill Murphy] at length and so the stories take on a personal touch as they deal with accomplishments, disasters, and the adventures of Northern aviation." (Spring 2010).

We hope you will be able to join us on June 1st to meet Shirlee and get your copy of any of her amazing books autographed!

Highlights of Our Collection

2010-05-18T09:58:00.005-06:00

This photograph, from the Edward Whittaker fonds, shows the team of geologists who travelled north along through the Peace River region, the Northwest Territories, Saskatchewan and the Yukon between 1916 and 1921. This collection of beautiful photographs is available for researchers at the Peace River Archives.

More Highlights of our collection

2010-05-05T10:27:00.006-06:00

These four fine, young officers of Peace River in the 1930s show off their bloodhound, Melody, who appears to be not cooperating for the shoot.

More Highlights of our collection

2010-04-29T09:14:00.007-06:00

This photograph of Jack O'Sullivan and what is likely his son ranks high for it's adorable factor as well as the fact that O'Sullivan and Stigsen was one of the last boat companies to freight up and down the Peace River. Their company was the end of an era in river transportation.

For anyone interested in this era, the Museum Gift Shop has a lovely little book, "Where Go the Boats?" by Evelyn Hanson for $5 that summarizes wonderfully, the boats on the Peace River from 1792-1952.

Archival Photograph Highlights

2010-04-19T16:07:00.009-06:00

Whew, we've been so busy setting up our newest exhibit, "Play On! A History of Sport and Culture in Peace River", we've barely had time to breathe! So for the next little while, we will be posting our favorite archival photographs. Enjoy!

This is one of our Archivist's favorite: From left to right we have Brother Wagner, Philip Gerard and James St. Germain at the St. Augustine Mission school, ca. 1940s. James was a former student of the school who later worked for the school doing various things. In this photograph he appears quite James Bond-esque in his driving scarf, sunglasses and cigarette.

Upcoming Exhibit: Play On!

2010-03-15T09:11:00.006-06:00

The staff at the Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre are gearing up for our next exhibit: Play On! A History of Sport and Culture in Peace River. The exhibit goes hand in hand with the Peace River, Grimshaw and area hosting the the 2010 Alberta Summer Games this year. We will be highlighting summer and winter sports as well as dances, theater, cultural experiences, and music. As always, we invite and encourage members of the community with relevant items to bring them in for the exhibit. Examples could include sports equipment, medals, uniforms, photos or documents. Also, promotional posters, programs, recordings and photographs from performances would be lovely. Some choose to donate the items and others choose to loan the item for the length of the exhibit, we are just as pleased for both!

Also, if you have memories or stories from these types of events, we would love to hear them and add them to our knowledge of the history of sport and culture in Peace River.

The Spirit of the Peace Museums Group meets in Peace River

2010-03-08T17:00:00.006-07:00

The Spirit of the Peace Museums Group was started in December of 1989 and celebrated its 20th anniversary just last year! The group consists of approximately 60 members (both museums and individuals) who meet quarterly and discuss the issues that face us, share our goings-ons and just support each other.

On March 1st 2010, we met at the Senior's Drop-in Centre and had a lovely time. David Leonard was in attendance to speak to what the province is doing regarding culture, we discussed the upcoming forum with Alberta Museums Association regarding their strategic planning process and did our regular round table discussion on what projects we were working on.

The Senior's Centre made delicious biscuits for breakfast and soup and sandwiches for lunch. A tour of the Museum followed the meeting.

For more information about some of the Museums involved in the Spirit of the Peace, please see our brochure.

PRADS African Night a Success: Part 2

2010-03-04T09:00:00.017-07:00

The Peace River African Descendents Society (PRADS), which was started in 2009, held cultural experience with dinner and music on Saturday, Feburary 20th. Laura Gloor of the Museum had been invited to talk about black pioneers in the area. The information from her wonderful presentation has been reproduced here in two parts!

Part 2: The Kelly Family

The timeline for the Kelly family is uncertain. It is believed that Mr. and Mrs. Dan Kelly brought their family to Peace River in the 1920's. We can only speculate that the Kelly family were likely part of the original wave of Black American immigrants to Canada's West between 1908 and 1911. Dan Kelly was known as "Nigger" Dan, years after Dan Williams, who was also known by that name.

Dan Kelly hauled the honey wagon in Peace River (an essential service that pumped out residential outhouses ). He and his family lived just outside the Belle Petroleum Centre in a house still standing today. This same house was purchased from the Kelly's by Dave and Johanna Steedsman in 1937 and Dave also took over the job of hauling the honey wagon. Near this home was a popular sledding hill for the children of Peace River colloquially known as "Nigger" Hill even as late as the early 1960s.

Unfortunately, none of the names of the other members of Dan's family are known, except that one of his daughter's name was Emma. It is known though that his three daughters had beautiful singing voices. It seems the family moved to Toronto to give the girls a better chance to pursue their singing careers and that Dan later returned to Peace River on his own. He lived with a single mother in town, and it was believed that a child resulted from this union.

Here are some more pictures from the PRADS event:

The band, Ezeadi Onukwulu & One Human Race, had everyone up and dancing!

PRADS African Night a Success!

2010-02-24T08:57:00.023-07:00

The Peace River African Descendents Society (PRADS), which was started in 2009, held a dinner and cultural experience on Saturday, February 20th. Laura Gloor, of the Museum had been invited to talk about black pioneers in the area. The information from her wonderful presentation has been reproduced here in two parts!

Part 1: Dan Williams:(Source: Delayed Frontier by David Leonard, p. 124, 138-146)

Dan Williams was a prospector in the late 1800s and remained in the Peace Country after the gold rush dwindled. He was known, in the parlance of the times, as "Nigger" Dan and took up residence in Fort St. John, BC circa 1870s. His reputation was varied depending on who you spoke with. It ranged from a travelling author saying he was a "pioneer, cook, trapper, vagrant, idler or squatter..." to being known for his generosity to government surveyors. He continued prospecting with partners, but also traded across the river from the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) at Fort St. John.

He was also well known for his gardening skills. In a Dominion Land Surveyor's journal that first mentioned him as well as the botanist, John Macoun, speak of his flourishing garden of vegetables and grains.

In 1873, the Hudson's Bay Company told Dan Williams that the land on which he resided was theirs and he would have to move. Dan refused and even posted a sign dividing his property to read:

DAN WILLIAMS

A Loyal British subject

Who objects to be trodden upon

By any man except

Her Gracious Magesty Queen Victoria

The dispute grew until 1879, when Dan Williams injured horses belonging to the HBC that had wandered onto his land. He was also reported to have issued death threats against HBC employees. The two employees he had threatened, captured him and tied him up but he escaped and fled to his cabin. When they approached, he fired gun shots at them and they retreated. Dan was eventually apprehended and brought to trial at Fort Saskatchewan on July 1880. The charges involved the shots fired at the HBC horses and employees.

No Hudson's Bay Company employees were allowed on the jury due to bias. Dan did not have a lawyer, but rather his companion in prospecting and a man, "Banjo Mike" McDavidson. In his final argument, McDavidson was reported to have said regarding Dan's intent to injure the Company's employees: "...Dan Williams at a distance of one hundred yards can take the eye out of a jack-rabbit at every pop. Gentlemen, if Dan Williams had the slightest intention of hariming Mr. McKinlay, he [McKinlay] would not have been here today to tell you the amusing little story whereby he gives you credit for some sense of humor without paying much compliment for intelligence."

It was thought the jury had sympathy for Dan Williams as a David against the Goliath of the HBC and he was acquitted of all charges. Dan returned to his life in the Peace Country.

It was reported he died in the middle of February 1887 in a cabin by the Finlay River.

Stay tuned for Part 2: Dan Kelly!

For now, here are some photos of the African Night taken by Natalya Verosovaya:

The first part of the evening was delicious dinner, afterwards, Laura Gloor gave her presentation.

After the dinner and presentation by the Museum, there was a drum circle.

Noted Author and Historian David Leonard coming to Peace River Museum

2010-02-16T11:35:00.005-07:00

We are very excited to be hosting David Leonard (photo courtesy of www.lieutenantgovernor.ab.ca), who has a extensive knowledge of settlement and surveying in the Peace Country.

The event begins at 1pm on Saturday, February 27th at thePeace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre (10302 99th Street).

David will be speaking specifically about surveying in the Peace River area in conjunction with our current exhibit from the Land Surveyor's Association, "Making Their Mark: The land surveyor's role in the peaceful and orderly development of Alberta"

David Leonard has authored books such as, "The Last Great West: The Agricultural Settlement of Peace River Country to 1914", "Delayed Frontier: The Peace River Country to 1909" and "The Lure of the Peace River Country, 1872-1919" (with Victoria L. Lemieux). He will be bringing a selection of his books, which will be available for purchase during the event and are also in the Museum's Gift Shop on a regular basis.

We're online!

2010-02-03T10:59:00.006-07:00

In September 2009, the Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre received a grant from the Archives Society of Alberta to help our Archives advance to a new phase. Canadian archives have a standard for describing their records known as RAD (Rules of Archival Description). As we continually striving to increase our level of service as a research facility, the move towards RAD is an important one. It gives us the ability to share our records with the rest of the country!

And as of February 1, 2010 six sets of records from our Archives are officially online with the Archives Society of Alberta's database and can be viewed at: Archives Network of Alberta!

The database contains descriptions of these six records and the Archives will continue to update new descriptions as they are completed. Let us know your impressions!

The Archives Network of Alberta is eventually uploaded to CAIN (Canadian Archival Information Network) which gives us a national presence! We are very excited to have started this new process in making our records available online.

Public Input for Updated 12 Foot Davis Grave Site Invited

2010-01-26T10:45:00.015-07:00

The Government of Alberta, Northern Sunrise County and the Town of Peace River have partnered together to update the site around the 12 Foot Davis grave site including also the Dr. Greene Cairn and the Peace River Provincial Recreation Area. Tonight (January 27, 2010) there will be an Open House inviting the public to give their input on the proposed upgrades to the site. The Museum will also be on hand to pass along historical information about 12 Foot Davis, the grave site (see photograph below for original headstone) and of Dr. Greene as well.

The Open House will run for 4-8 pm at the Belle Petroleum Centre (www.bpcentre.ca/Contact.html).

Alternatively, you can go online to www.tpr.alberta.ca/parks/consult/. The link for the 12 Foot Davis park is near the bottom. Here you can view the different concepts and a map of the sites to be upgraded. There is also a online survey form where you can give your input. The deadline for giving input is set at March 26, 2010.

EDIT (January 27): Please accept my apologies for the error in this blog. The Open House was at the Provincial Building in Peace River and not the Belle Petroleum Centre.

Digitized Newspapers Available at Peace River Archives

2010-01-26T09:53:00.006-07:00

The Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre has recently embarked on a project to digitize its collection of Peace River Pilot, Peace River Record, Peace River Standard, Northern Gazette and Peace River Record Gazette. The project is complete and available to researchers on-site at the Archives. The digitized collection includes the Peace River Pilot from 1910, the Peace River Record from 1914-1943, the Peace River Standard from 1917-1922, the Northern Gazette from 1932-1939 and the Peace River Record Gazette from 1943-1983.

The collection has been made into OCR (optical character recognition) pdfs which allows users to do searches by keyword or by date(s). Reproductions of specific articles for private research only are available at a cost of 35c per page.

This project will be of great benefit to all researchers allowing for easier searching and also protecting the microfilmed collection from deterioration from use. For more information, please call the Peace River Museum and Archives at (780) 624-4261 or email us at museum@peaceriver.net.

Making Their Mark

2010-01-18T15:11:00.008-07:00

Our new travelling exhibit from the Land Surveyors Association has officially been launched! "Making Their Mark: The land surveyors role in the peaceful and orderly development of Alberta" is a wonderful exhibit which combines text, photographs and artifacts to bring to life the experiences of the early Dominion Land Surveyors all the way up to what surveying is like today. It includes a full sized tent showing the tools and supplies of an early surveyor. On display from the Museum's collection are rocks and fossils from Dr. F.H. Sutherland, an avid collector of Peace River's history.

Thank you to everyone who came out to our exhibit launch, to Ross Metcalfe for helping to host the opening event and to our local ALS members for helping to set up the display.

"Making Their Mark" will be on display until March 30, 2010

Happy Christmas and a Merry New Year!

2009-12-22T15:28:00.007-07:00

The Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre would like to wish you a very happy holiday season. We also extend a huge thank you to all of our volunteers, members and donors that have helped the Museum and Archives continue to grow and preserve the history of Peace River.

Our Christmas hours are:
Dec. 26 - Open (10 - 4:30 pm)

Dec. 27 - Closed

Dec. 28-31 - Open (10 - 4:30 pm)

Jan. 1 - Closed

Jan. 2 - back to regular hours (Monday - Saturday, 10 am - 4:30 pm)

Happy 90th Birthday Peace River!

2009-12-01T11:32:00.013-07:00

On December 1st, 1919, Peace River became a town. Here we are 90 years later celebrating the contributions made by so many people even before the inauguration of our township. Along with the wonderful work Beth Wilkins has been doing in the newspaper and on CKYL, here are some of the highlights of Peace River's history:

1792-93 - Sir Alexander Mackenzie winters at Fort Fork

1877 - After moving their post up and down the rivers near

the junction of Peace and Smoky, the Hudson's Bay

Company moves their post where the Town of Peace River

now stands.

1886 - The Anglican Church sets up the first mission on

Shaftesbury Trail

1888 - The Roman Catholic Church sets up St. Augustine

mission on Shaftesbury Trail

1898 - The North West Mounted Police make a permanent

post at Peace River Crossing
1903 - The St. Charles is the first steamboat on the Peace

1906 - Allie Brick becomes Peace River's first MLA

1909 - Peace River's townsite is surveyed

1912 - Peace River's first public school opens

1911 - Peace River holds its first agricultural show

1914 - First meeting of the Village council

1914 - Peace River's first hospital, the Irene Cottage Hospital,

opens

1916 - Railway trestle over the Heart River is completed

1917 - The Peace River Women's Institute is organized

1918 - Railway bridge is completed

1919 - Peace River is incorporated as a town

1926 - Constable Burstall and Louis Bourass complete a census

of the area

1930 - The Peace River Municipal Hospital opens

1932 - Peace River holds its first Stampede and Rodeo

1935 - Pat's Creek floods it's banks

1942 - The U.S. Army moves into Peace River in preperation

for builing the Canol Pipeline

1954 - CKYL opens

1958 - Peace River floods

1965 - The Peace River Auxiliary Hospital opens

1967 - The Peace River Centennial Museum opens

1968 - Peace River's traffic bridge is completed

1968 - Peace River Correctional Centre opens

1972 - Peace River floods

1992-93 - The bicentennial anniversary of Sir Alexander

Mackenize's journey is celebrated

1997 - Peace River floods

2004 - Peace River hosts the Alberta Summer Games

2009 - Peace River celebrates its 90th Anniversary

Peace River Remembers, Book 2 - Submission Deadline Extended!

2009-11-23T09:29:00.004-07:00

As many of you have probably heard, the Sir Alexander Mackenzie Historical Society is publishing "Peace River Remembers" Book 2 and is inviting anyone who has called Peace River home to submit their stories for publication. The society is also looking for those who would be willing to write stories for the various businesses, social clubs, schools, religious organizations and sports groups in Peace River. Please see http://www.peacerivermuseum.com/ for more information on what stories are needed, ideas to get you started writing your story and how to submit it once it is finished.

The original deadline for submissions of November 30, 2009 has been extended to January 15, 2010!

Remembering Our Veterans

2009-11-14T16:15:00.008-07:00

This past Remembrance Day, the Museum created an archival exhibit to honour the veterans of our town who served. The exhibit includes copies of newspaper clippings from the wars with various details, mainly from the the World Wars. Also as part of the exhibit we have digitzed a series of World War I postcards and put together an album of these. They depict various scenes from the rubble of destroyed buildings, the exodus of civilians from threatened cities and burying of soldiers on the front lines. The postcards show in vivid detail the reality of war and its effects on our land and peoples.

One of the important projects that the Museum and Archives has been working on over the past year or so in concert with the Legion is to create a comprehensive list of the veterans from this area, past and present. We have a copy of our current list in this exhibit and would welcome additions to the list. If you have information regarding veterans or those currently serving in our forces, please contact the Museum at (780) 624-4261 or email us at museum@peaceriver.net.

Uniformity: The Uniforms of Peace River

2009-10-29T14:22:00.005-06:00

"Uniformity: The Uniforms of Peace River" will be running until December 15, 2009

A uniform often conjures up images of conformity, authority or identity. The early history of the European settlement of Canada is often characterized by those who were seeking to cast off the conformity and rules of the culture they were living in. They sought the adventure and freedom in the wilds of a new land and sacrificed many comforts in order to have that freedom.

As settlement marched westward and more and more people arrived on the land, the types and personalities of those settlers became more varied. The human inclination to organize and form social structure began to rise once again. This tendency plays out in various ways, from the moral values brought in by the missionaries, to the legal order established by the North West Mounted Police. It can be found on a national level, such as military authorities, or on a smaller scale, such as the social groups which were formed in order to build a sense of community or to teach children about their culture.

All of these groups wore particular clothing in order to identify their authority or even just their state of belonging to a particular group. In this exhibit, the Museum is seeking not only to simply show those uniforms but to inspire us to consider our own viewpoints on authority, conformity, and identity. We invite visitors to examine their personal reactions to the way in which our society has enforced order, promoted identity and a sense of belonging using what is, in its basic state, a piece of cloth.

The Long Awaited Part II of the saga of the René and the Vic

2009-06-30T13:20:00.003-06:00

René and Vic
Part 2
(Source: Northward Into the Bush and Snow 1919-1929; notes of Elmer G. Fullerton one of – Pioneer Flying in the Canadian Sub-Arctic, one of the pilots; files of the Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre)

As promised, this second in the series of René (G-CADQ) and Vic (G-CADP) – two versatile German Junkers all-metal monoplanes will feature the plight of pilots Elmer G. Fullerton and George Washington Gorman; mechanic William Hill; engineer S. (Pete) Derbyshire and others they met along the way.
We left the newly-named René and Vic and their crews on the tarmac of the Municipal Airport in Edmonton prior to their initial flight north to the sub-Arctic in 1921. The town of Peace River was their base.
Fullerton writes in his notes that they decided on a route along the Peace River to within 40 miles of Fort Vermilion – north-north-westerly across country to the Upper Hay River; along the Hay River to Great Slave Lake; across the south-western portion of Great Slave Lake to the mouth of the Mackenzie River; thence along the Mackenzie River to Fort Simpson and Fort Norman. The total distance was a little more than 800 miles.
The availability of fuel was in question. Thus, no advanced arrangements could be made for refueling. There was, however, credible information to suggest that trading posts along the way would have an adequate supply of motor-boat gasoline and oil. The concern, though, was for the first part of the route as far as Great Slave Lake. Consequently, the crews established a fuel cache about midpoint on the Upper Hay River.
As they were about to take off, an RCMP officer approached them with a note from Imperial Oil’s head office to take Sgt. Thorne, who had “mushed” out by dog team with a prisoner and was not looking forward to mushing back. He hitched a ride with them as far as Fort Simpson.
The two planes and crew took off from the Peace River aerodrome at 9 a.m., March 24, 1921, for ‘points north’. The day looked promising, but about 100 miles out it began to deteriorate. This meant a route change, which took them to Fort Vermilion. A short while later, they landed in a field near the Hudson’s Bay Company trading post where they were able to fill the planes’ tanks, but were unable to take off because of a blizzard. They were forced to stay the night.
A couple of days later they continued their journey, eventually making it to Fort Providence where they encountered snow so deep they could not gain enough speed to take off. After a couple of attempts, they returned to their starting point from which the five men and some locals on snowshoes tamped down the snow sufficiently to support the aircrafts’ skis. They were off now for Fort Simpson.
“Here, real trouble was encountered,” writes Fullerton. The violently uneven ice on the Mackenzie precluded their landing on that surface. They sought an alternative on a field at the edge of the settlement. “The Vic landed satisfactorily, but as the René was landing, one of her skis suddenly broke through the heavy crust of snowdrift, smashing the skis and breaking the propeller.”
No one was injured.
The pilots and crew later confirmed that about a mile south on a small subsidiary channel or “snye” of the Mackenzie, the ice was free of hummocks and would likely afford better landing conditions. They flew the Vic there to take off for Fort Norman alone with René out of commission. But, on the way, the Vic did not sound quite right. The conclusion – she would need a major overhaul before continuing.
The situation – the René had a broken propeller and ski – the Vic had engine problems. Plan – transfer the propeller and skis from Vic to René and fly René to Fort Norman. Changes were made – aircraft loaded – ready for takeoff – on their way. No! The René stalled at about 50 feet in the air. Crashed. People aboard were shaken.
The René, on the other hand, was damaged – broken propeller, slightly damaged wing and damaged undercarriage. “By an amazing bit of luck, the Vic’s ski was found to be the only part of the undercarriage which was practically undamaged.”
What to do?
The next in the series will tell about how the men and planes escaped from this dilemma.

Award Winning Authors Visit the Peace Country

2009-04-03T10:05:00.008-06:00

On Thursday, April 2nd for our final Storytelling evening until the fall, we were honored by a visit from Larry Loyie and Constance Brissenden, authors of a number of First Nations children's books, including "When the Spirits Dance", "As Long as the Rivers Flow" and his most recent book, "Goodbye Buffalo Bay."

An animated Constance shares a story with some young visitors to the Museum.

This was a wonderful way to end our storytelling series with Billy Joe Laboucan until this fall. The Museum would like to thank Billy Joe for his leadership in these events and also Larry and Constance for the stories they brought with them on Thursday.

2009-02-27T10:13:00.004-07:00

René and Vic
Part 1
(Source: Northward Into the Bush and Snow 1919-1929; notes of Elmer G, Fullerton, one of the pilots; files of Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre)

This is the first in a series of articles compiled by Beth Wilkins, Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre, pertaining to the two Junkers aircraft, which pioneered flight in Alberta’s North

The saga of two German-built Junkers and the Canadian North begins in 1920. One author wrote about the personal affinity – pride and affection ‘you might even call it love’ airplane pilots have for the aircraft they entrusted with their life. ‘For all I know, it might have worked both ways. Certainly there were some machines in the early days that seemed to have a personality – even a soul of their own,’ the writer surmises.

The 'Rene' and the 'Vic' at Edmonton PRMA71.400.2c

The wife of the vice–president of Imperial Oil Company Ltd. christened the two large monoplanes René and Vic – call letters (G-CADQ) and (G-CADP), respectively. The oil company obtained the aircraft to more expediently reach its experimental oilfield on the fringe of the Arctic Circle. They were especially necessary during the winter months. At the time, the only means of transportation from Edmonton to a site 60 miles north of Norman (later Norman Wells) on the Mackenzie River was by railway to the end of steel at McMurray. Then in the summer it was by steamboat on the Athabasca River, Lake Athabasca, Slave River, Great Slave Lake and the Mackenzie River, approximately 1,200 miles. Usually, the ice on Great Slave Lake did not depart until July and started its return in October. The navigation window was, at most, three months. This, coupled with the fact that the journey took two to three weeks, including an 18-mile portage from Fitzgerald to Smith meant irritating delays. Following freeze-up, travellers used dog teams on this route, extending travelling time to up to six weeks.
With the rapid development of oil resources, it was imperative Imperial Oil reached the fields as expeditiously as modern equipment would allow. Thus, the purchase of the two all-metal Junkers, which could be adapted to wheels, skis or pontoons. As well, a 175 h.p. engine powered each plane, which could carry five people or an equivalent weight.
The agent for the German-manufactured planes was in New York. That necessitated the contracting of pilots and crews to ferry them to their base in Edmonton. The company chose as pilots Captain Wilfrid R. ‘Wop’ May and Lieutenant George W. Gorman and S. (Pete) Derbyshire as engineer. The men journeyed by train to New York at the end of November 1920. By the time the three started back to Edmonton, winter was well on its way making it a long, cold flight.
When May arrived in Edmonton, Jan, 5, 1921, the temperature was -50F. Gorman’s plane, however, succumbed to the icy conditions and was forced to land at Brandon, Manitoba, where he and his plane remained for several weeks before being able to continue to Edmonton.
The author says, ‘the flight of the two machines across two-thirds of the North American continent in mid-winter drew little publicity or tribute, but it was a great achievement.’
On his return to Edmonton, ‘Wop’ May ended his association with the oil company. In his stead, it retained the services of Lieutenant Elmer G. Fullerton and mechanic William Hill. The new arrivals joined Gorman and Derbyshire to fly to the well sites. It was prior to the flight north from Edmonton that the Junkers were formally named.
The next in the series will feature the plight of Fullerton, Gorman, Hill and Derbyshire and others they met along the way.

Better Late Than Never! (And Safe!)

2009-02-11T14:13:00.011-07:00

Northern Sunrise County Reeve Agnes Knudson, president of the Peace River Air Show Committee greets (L-R) Mercy Flight recreation pilot Tom Hinderks and pilot/navigator Curtis Peters in the Northern Air Charter hangar at Peace River Airport.

After a month or so of braving cold weather and mechanical delays, the pilots of the much anticipated Mercy Flight Recreation were able to fly north. The pilots, Tom Hinderks and Curtis Peters, arrived safe and sound, and very, very cold at around 5:25 pm on Tuesday, February 10th. This trip comes exactly 80 years and 40 days after Wop May and Vic Horner made their way north to help stem the tide of a diphtheria outbreak on January 2nd, 1929. Members of the Museum Staff and Board, Constable Dave Brown of the RCMP, Don Good of Town Council and many others of our community were on hand to welcome the chilly aviators and revive them with cake and questions.

The entire crew included:
Pilot: Tom Hinderks
Navigator/Co-Pilot: Curtis Peters
Ground Crew: Ed Doucette, Rod Macleod
Chase Plane pilot: Bram Tilroe
Volunteer videographer: Greg Mockford
Media Relations: Dave Heathcourte
Dave was unable to come along, but was kept very busy updating everyone on the progress of the flight from Edmonton. His communications were indispensable. Denny May, son of Wilfrid "Wop" May, was also planning to attend but was unable due to health complications. He sent greetings along with the crew which was well-received.

The Spirit of Edmonton Kelly D two open-cockpit biplane that brought Tom and Curtis safely to Peace River.

Mercy Flight Re-enactment - January 2009

2009-01-17T11:28:00.007-07:00

by Beth Wilkins

The Mercy Flight to Fort Vermilion (with a stop in McLennan and Peace River) by Wilfrid “Wop’ May and Vic Horner, Jan. 2, 1929 is to be re-enacted. The purpose of the original flight was to deliver diphtheria antitoxin to Dr. H. A. Hamman in Fort Vermilion to inoculate residents of nearby Little Red River against the disease and thus to avert an epidemic.

By the time the flyers arrived in Fort Vermilion in their open cockpit biplane, an Avro Avian, one of the six or so people affected had died, but the antitoxin arrived and was administered in time to prevent the feared epidemic.

The 80th anniversary re-enactment of the flight itself, part of a Spirit of Edmonton Project, a joint venture of the Alberta Aviation Museum and the Edmonton Aviation Heritage Society, is to raise awareness of the 100 years of flight in Alberta and Canada. It also emphasizes the importance of medical flights into and out of the North to medical centres, such as Edmonton and the importance of Edmonton’s Municipal Airport.

The ‘Wop” May/Vic Horner Mercy Flight recreation is one of four slated from December 2008 to August 2009. The weather has played a major role in postponing the early flights. Thus, the flight scheduled for Peace River and Fort Vermilion Jan 2, 2009, looks as though it will not arrive in Peace River until Tues. Jan. 27.

When in Peace River, the plane, similar to the Avro Avian flown by the intrepid flyers, will be housed in Northern Air Charter’s hanger at the Peace River Airport, thanks to Rob King, and will set out the next day for Fort Vermilion.

There will be a public reception, hosted by the Town of Peace River, at Northern Air Charter. The exact date and time will be announced.

If you have any questions, please call, or e-mail us at the Museum, 780 – 624-4261, or museum@peaceriver.net

Happy Holidays!

2008-12-19T12:48:00.005-07:00

The staff at the Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Years! We will be open over the Christmas season and all are invited to bring friends and family to see us:

December 24, 27, 29, 30, 31

and January 2nd and 3rd

from 10 am -4:30 pm

We also have a Christmas exhibit of toys and cards that might make some a little nostaligic:

And don't forget our gift shop for unique gifts from local authors, artisans and producers of the Peace Country.

(note: We can only take cash or cheque, thanks.)

Million dollar bridge spans Peace River

2008-11-26T10:31:00.004-07:00

by Beth Wilkins

Construction of the superstructure of the $900,000, or Million Dollar bridge as media were want to call it, began the latter part of May 1918, but not before the substructure was completed with some ice-related delays.
It was noticed during the high water in the spring of 1917 that the blunt ends of the deep water caissons offered such a resistance to the current that erosion was apt to result. It was decided to point the upstream end of piers 6, 7, and 8 of the 10 piers holding the bridge’s 11 steel spans in place. Other modifications were made to make the now 90-year-old steel structure sound.
The throughspan of the steel bridge provided a clearance of 65 feet above low water and 48 feet above extreme high water – high enough to allow river navigation by even the largest of sternwheelers, such as the D. A. Thomas, which required hinged stacks to allow its passage. The deckspan, on the other hand, offered only 19 feet clearance above high water.
Work, by up to 250 men, on the much-anticipated bridge was a 24-hour a day enterprise, accompanied by the inevitable noise associated with heavy construction.
For its first half century, the first bridge across the world-famous Mighty Peace River served several purposes – railway, vehicular, and pedestrian traffic. Its multi-purpose use caused some concerns and provided many interesting anecdotes, but served its users well. It does to this day, although vehicular and pedestrian traffic cross the river by way of the transportation bridge completed in 1968, which is just north of it.
The railway bridge is 1,736 feet long with 11 steel spans set on concrete piers and abutments. The structure had no guardrails or decking to enable horse teams and vehicles to cross safely until successful, vigorous lobbying by the Peace River Board of Trade encouraged the approval of the Government of Alberta for the additions.
It is said that the Million Dollar Bridge is the most important single item of construction to be brought to a successful conclusion in Western Canada during 1918. Its importance cannot be emphasized enough. At the time of its building, land suitable for soldier settlement was being sought. The transportation facility connects the markets of the world to the wonderfully rich Peace River Basin and as importantly, the Peace River Basin resources – agriculture, mining, lumber and oil to the rest of the world. During the Second World War, it provided a vital link to the West conveying men, equipment and goods.
(From: Peace River Museum Archives and Mackenzie Centre notes; Ribbons of Steel, by Ena Schneider; Sense of the Peace by Roberta Hursey; Peace River Remembers)

Council of the Town of Peace River invites you to an Open House at the historic NAR Station, Dec. 12, 3 p.m.-7 p.m. to help celebrate the 90th anniversary of the completion of the Million Dollar railway bridge spanning the Mighty Peace River.

Keep an eye out in the Record-Gazette for more historic articles from Museum writer, Beth Wilkins!

The Peace River Museum announces...

2008-11-10T11:26:00.011-07:00

...our very first Virtual Exhibit on the Virtual Museum of Canada's website, entitled: "Peace River, 1780-1914: From Athabasca to the Last Great West". Dallas Wood has worked very hard on this exhibit and we are proud to launch it. The exhibit tells the story of Peace River in it's very early days! Starting from Aboriginal Peoples of the area and moving through the explorers and fur traders and ends with the formation of the village of Peace River Crossing in 1914. We encourage all Peace Riverites to check it out at the Community Memories Website

and use the search bar to find our exhibit. (Just a note, the results are listed alphabetically, so you will have to skip ahead a few pages to the "P" section.) We also encourage you to check out many of the exhibits on this site. There are many fascinating contributions from Museums all over Canada.

The Peace River Museum and Archives would also like to put a callout to our community. This Remembrance Day, we have really been searching for information about out local veterans. We would like to encourage everyone in Peace River to bring in any stories and information you may have about your ancestors being involved in any military conflicts. The Museum will be compiling this information and make it available to those researching the military history of Peace River. We welcome any donations related to the veterans of the Peace River area and currently have an exhibit with some of the artifacts and stories that have been collected over the years at the Museum. We will be open from 12-4 pm on Remembrance Day and resume normal hours on Wednesday, Nov.12.

World War I soldier, James Mitchell (PRMA73.550.F.2)

Archives Week: What Archives Can Do For You!

2008-10-09T11:02:00.007-06:00

Celebrating Alberta Archives Week: October 6-11

The Peace River Archives is a relatively new addition to the heritage work the Museum has been doing for the past 40 years. This year for Archives Week, we wanted to get the word out about the role of our Archives in the community.

A view of the interior of the Archives.

As an accredited member of the Archives Society of Alberta, we are committed to certain standards of care and preservation for the materials that we house. We monitor temperature and humidity and limit light exposure, all of which can contribute to the deterioration of records. We use archival standard storage materials to keep these records in the best condition possible.
However, we do not just keep the records around for the sake of doing so. We want these records to be accessible and available to researchers. Part of this process was to hire a full-time Archivist, which was made possible thanks to the support of the Town of Peace River.

As you can see, the Archives is a vital resource in Peace River and the research community at large. Other ways that the Archives can be involved in the community are to:

store your family's records with the utmost care and attention
aid in genealogical research
store the records of community clubs, business' and schools
act as a resource for care and preservation for your own archival items including photographs, negatives, maps, documents and even textiles!
provide access to microfilmed copies of the Peace River Standard, Record and Record-Gazette

Family Records & Genealogical Research:
Many people don't know that the Archives can be a central repository for your family's records. We exist to keep records alive and accessible, which includes private records as well as those of public institutions. Your family can bring in the records and talk to our Archivist, Wendy Dyck, about what types of records we keep and how we look after them. Many families have split up their records among siblings, cousins, etc. which can make it difficult to locate particular documents or photographs. The Archives can keep these records together so that any family member, especially generations down the road, can access the records and receive copies. The Peace River Archives has a high quality scanner and printer to reproduce these items for a nominal, cost-recovery based fee.

Club, Business and School Records
Public institutions often have 'dead' records that they may wish to have preserved but either space or human resources are an issue. Our Archives is an excellent solution as we are able to keep these records preserved and available. Each group in Peace River is a part of the identity of this town and as such, it is important that the records of these groups, schools, business' and the people in them are preserved.

How do I look after ....?
If you feel that you would like to hold on to your archival material, the Archives can also be a resource for how to best care for that material. You, as a community member, are always welcome to bring your items into the Archives where our Archivist can make recommendations for your particular collection, as well as refer you to other helpful resources.

The Standard, Record and Record-Gazette
The Museum was part of a micro-filming project with the Legislative Library for Alberta where virtually every issue from 1910-1983 was put on micro-film. The Record Gazette purchased a copy of these rolls and donated them to the Museum upon completion of the project. These are available for the public to either peruse or for specific research projects.

As you can see, there are many different ways that the Archives can interact with and be a part of the larger community of Peace River. If you have any thoughts or questions regarding the Archives, please don't hesitate to email us at museum@peaceriver.net or phone at 624-4261.

Happy Archives Week!

Final Recollections of Jean Cameron Kelly

2008-10-03T13:41:00.005-06:00

Jean Kelly Cameron was the second school teacher in Peace River, arriving in December of 1913. In "I Remember Peace River, Alberta and Adjacent Districts 1800s - 1913 Part I", Cameron recalls her journey to Peace River, her memories of school and how Peace River Crossing looked in 1913. The first installment of the Recollections was published in our first newsletter sent out to our Members. For more membership information, please visit: http://peacerivermuseum.blogspot.com/2008/08/membership-drive-2008.htmlcall the Museum at 780-624-4261

Recollections of Jean Cameron Kelly, Part VI (Final)

"When I met H.A. George's children the first things Bertie, a boy of nine, wished to know was if I could speak Cree. I told him no, and he said that was O.K., then they could be saucy to me in Cree and I would not know what they were saying. I gathered that when Miss Anderson had reproved some of them, they would answer, "Kip-a-ha-Kea-toon" which meant "Shut your mouth!" I remember once when little Alice George chimed in with a somewhat naughty version of a little Cree song I had heard, her mother turned on her with a shocked Wah! Wah! Kip-a-ha! This song, sung to the tune of heel-to-toe polka was:
Kispin kea sakahin, (If you love me)
Semack pe-O-che min (Quickly kiss me)
Kisipin kea Pakwa sin (If you hate me)
Semack ke waya wan (Quickly leave me)

Many of the old-timers were fluent in Cree, notably Mr. George and T.A. Brick, both of whose wives were Metis; but while few of us new-comers could handle the language we all used Cree words in our colloquial talk. For instance, we would say, "Are you coming to our Waskeagan (house) tonight?" or "Give this a wepaemow (look)." Billy Smith, a mail carrier who had a homestead somewhere out the Shaftesbury Trail was called "Apsis monnagen napec," meaning little (on account of his short stature) letter man. I am afraid Billy was a bad little man. He sang me a Cree song one day, knowing I did not understand it, and thinking I could not learn it. But when I repeated it word perfect, he gave me a look of shocked horror. When I said, "Wasn't that right?" he said with a sheepish grain, "Yeah, it's right, but don't ever let anyone hear you sing it!"

The suffix "Sis" was a diminutive, so that while the word napeo meant man, nape'sis meant a boy. Similarly, isquao (a local pronounciation of Squaw) meant woman, and isqua'esis (which the young men delightedly mispronounced "Squeeze us") indicated a girl.

The Crees belong to the Algonquin family, and it was easy to see the resemblance between their words and the words used in Longfellow's poem Hiawatha. Nokomis was the word for grandmother, though it was locally pronounced No-Kimis; wapoose meant rabbit, (wabasso) Mis-te-hay of missou meant large and see-pee was water. The Crees called the Peace River Mis-te-hay See-Pee or Missou Seepee, and the phonetic resemblance of the latter to Mississippi can readily be noted. Kisemente, the Cree words for God shows its derivation from Gitche Manito, while muchimento (devil) is a variation of Mitche Manitou.

Mr. George told me that the Cree have no special word for muddy, but instead used the same word as for Smoky. Thus Smoky River simply meant muddy river. He also said that Cheepi Seepee, the Cree name for Spirit River meant Ghost River, because in its mists they believed the spirits of the departed could be seen. Having no word for thank you they used the French word merci.

The word for money was soonias, and pay-ak soonias was one dollar. I recall an amusing anecdote about a native woman who brought in a pair of moccasins to the Revillon Freres trading post and demanded a pay-ak soonias from Jimmie McCashin, the accountant. Being overstocked with moccasins at the time her refused to take them; but she sat there doggedly all afternoon, at regular intervals flapping the moccasins on the desk and reiterating "Pay-ak soonias!"

In exasperation he finally took the moccasins and gave her a note to take to the clerk-cashier which read "Give this S.O.B. one dollar." The clerk was an innocent lad who racked his brain as to the meaning of the note, and finally decided that S.O.B. meant soda biscuits. So he gave her a dollar's worth, whereupon she departed highly satisfied.

In playing cards the king was oki-mow (big chief), the queen was merely the woman, isquao, while the Jack was mounted policeman, (smoggens.) Mustus meant an ox, and Buffalo Lake was Mustus Lake on old maps. Atim was the word for dog, but a horse must-atim literally cow-dog or cow-chaser.

The Cree word for daughter is Tannis, and I used to love to hear Allie Brick address his daughter Emma as Ne'Tannis, (my daughter). I still think Ne'Tannis is a lovely name for a girl. According to J.H. MacGregor, the name Cree is from the name the Crees called themselves, Kenistenoag, "Men of the Forest." The French pronounced this Kinistino or Kristinaux, and then shortened the latter into Cris or Kris, which was pronounced like Cree in English."

Thus completes Jean Cameron Kelly's recollections from "I Remember Part I". She continues with more recollections in "I Remember Part II" and it is available at the Peace River Museum library if you are interested. We hope you enjoyed this short series and any feedback would be greatly appreciated. We can be contacted at museum@peaceriver.net or 780-624-4261.

Recollections of Jean Cameron Kelly

2008-10-02T10:11:00.005-06:00

Recollections of Jean Cameron Kelly, Part V

"The Crossing was surrounded by five hills. The Grouard Hill on the east of town where Twelve-Foot Davis lies was so named because the road leading down its face into town was the end of the Grouard Trail from Grouard to Peace River. To the south east and separated from the Grouard Hill by the Heart River canyon is the Judah Hill, named after a settler, who, however, spelled his name Juda. To the north east and separated from the Grouard Hill by Pat's Creek is the Kaufman Hill, named after Colonel Kaufman a colorful character from Chicago, who built his house on the brow of the hill and lived there with his little dog, Guiseppe. The house was recently destroyed by fire.

Across the Peace on the north west is the George Hill, where H.A. George had his homestead, while directly west of the Town lies Mount Misery. On this hill a great many homesteads were filed when it became known that the advent of the railroad was at hand. Most of these were filed, not with any idea of making a farm out of the land, but in the hope that the land would appreciate in value. The attempts of the "homesteaders" to put in anything approximating a legal term of residence in wretched shacks, cabins and even tents were frought with so much misery that this was so named.

South of the Crossing the barracks of the old Royal North West Mounted Police occupied the site of the present R.C.M.P. barracks. The O.C. was a massive block of Icelandie granite whom we knew as Sergeant Anderson - his real name was said to be unpronounceable. When it was time to exercise the horses a number of constables used to canter through the village on horseback, each leading a second horse. The contrast of their scarlet coats against the surrounding snow made one of the most unforgettable pictures I had ever seen, and I never failed to get a thrill out of it, even when the background of the picture changed from white snow to green foliage. Along the south side of the Heart just before it reached the Peace bloomed a line of tents and shanties which in the light hearted mood of the day was nicknamed Rotton Row. Nothing of Rotton Row survives; but in line with its former site, though pre-dating it by many years, on the back of the Peace was a forlorn little enclosure in which surrounded by a weather-beaten picket fence, were a number of what looked like equally weather-beaten chicken coops. I was told that this was a cemetary where a number of native children were buried. The coop effects were to keep the rain off the graves so that the bodies would not decay so soon, since Mr. George said, there was an old belief among the native people that so long as the body remained intact, the soul of the departed would hover around their old homes. Today the chicken coops have vanished and the fence is neatly whitewashed. The graves are carefully tended to and the sign of the Cross is raised above them.

Besides the Heart River, another tributary of the Peace colloquially known as Pat's Creek, enters town from the northeast, from between the Kaufman Hill and Grouard Hill. On the township plots it is more formally designated Wesley Creek, and was named after Patrick Wesley, and Metis whose Half Breed script covered the present Anglican Church property. When he was afflicted by small pox he was cared for by a devoted and courageous woman, Mrs. Robert Holmes, wife of the Anglican minister. For this act of Christian charity she paid dearly, for one of her own children contracted the dread disease and died.

Poor Pat died too, but in his gratitude he made a grant of his lands to the Anglican Church, asking only that his bones be laid to rest in the shadow of the church which was to be built on the land he had given. Pat lies there to this day, God rest his soul."

Recollections of Jean Cameron Kelly, Part IV

2008-10-01T08:48:00.005-06:00

Recollections of Jean Cameron Kelly, Part IV

"The schoolroom also served almost every week for evening parties and dances with myself at the piano quite often and whatever fiddler could be pressed into service. Besides this Mr. George had a phonograph and a large number of records of the popular music of the day.

I had ten pupils that first day, but by the end of June this had increased to about fifty, in all eight grades, and the ballroom was no longer adequate. Seventeen of my first pupils were: Bertie, Alice and Ethel George; Teddy White; Simon, Freddie and Alice Gullion; Emma Brick; Mary, Robert and Jimmie Hodgson; Mary, Henry and Paul Smith (from Fort Vermilion) and Mable and Willie George.

The members of the School Board at that time were H.A. George, chairman; W.J. Doherty, secretary, and Johnny Gaudet, treasurer. I was paid $850.00 a year which I thought princely compared with the $600.00 I had received on the prairies. Also, that first year I was made secretary of the school board with an honorarium of $25.00 for that year.

The old minutes book is still in existence, I believe, and it records a pathetically dogged struggle on the part of the school board, and especially Mr. George, to keep the school running. Practically every other meeting ended hopefully with the resolution: "It was resolved that the bank be again contacted regarding the possibility of obtaining another loan." This was usually for the purposed of paying the teacher's salary or buying fuel.

That first six-month term was the last time the ballroom was used as a school room, for as the fall term opened in a new school house - the first built in Peace River for that specific purpose. It was located on what we called "the first bench", just a little south of the where the railroad crosses the road up the Grouard Hill. It had a bell tower with a bell which I believe had originally been in some building in England, and which Mr. George procured.

This school now forms part of the Baptist Church, as when Timothy and Riley's grading outfit came in 1915 to grade the right of way for the railroad it was found to run right through the north east corner of the building, which had to be moved; and in 1916 tenders were called for the building of the old high school which until recently stood on the present site of the Travellers' Motel.

Down the river some distance were the homesteads of Willie George (a brother of H.A. George) and James Hodgson, and I had children from both these homes as pupils.

Recollections of Jean Cameron Kelly, Part III

2008-09-30T09:14:00.009-06:00

Recollections of Jean Cameron Kelly, Part III

"...Past the Hudson's Bay Post we drove west until we came to the River, passing on the way the Hudson's Bay residence, presently the home of Mrs. Ann Cambridge, which then stood fairly close to the present CKYL building, and just across the road from it stood the whitewashed log building which was the house of the fabulous Captain John Gullion, a riverboat captain, widely known as the strongest man on the Peace River, and tales of his feats of strength were unbelievable. A little farther down the river we passed the little log Anglican church which was then the only Protestant church in the Crossing. The minister was the Reverend Robert Holmes. Captain Magar's handsome Siwash wife (a Dudeward from the British Columbia Coast) was the organist, and often a soloist.

Crossing the river on the ice we drove up the George Hill to Mr. George's homestead. Until recently, when it was purchased by the Department of Highways, it was the Percy Eyre place, and was owned by John Lang-Hodge prior to that. We were welcomed by Mrs. George, the former Louise Auger from Wabasca, and her four children. Three of them Bertie, Alice and Ethel, were pupils of mine, but Emma was a baby in the mossbag.

The next night being New Year's Eve, we all went to the dance, which was held in the dining room of the new log hotel. Mr. George had had his piano moved there for the occasion, and there was a fiddler, also a large crowd of people, both white and native, all of whom seemed to be having a wonderful time. There was a surplus of men so there were no wall-flowers. My foot being too painful to dance, I ended up at the piano accompaning the fiddler for the evening. [NOTE: Miss Kelly's foot had been burned on her way to Peace River by a foot warmer]

At the stroke of twelve, there were twelve revolver shots from outside, whereupon everyone kissed the ones nearest him or her. Mr. George had prepared me for this and also told me that on account of this custom, New Year was called "Kissing Day" by the natives. Some of the ladies I remember at that dance were Mrs. Allan MacKenzie, Mrs. Pierre Gauvreau, Mrs. Anderson (wife of the O.C. of the R.N.W.M.P.), Mrs. H.A. George, Mrs. Willie George, Mrs. Gullion, Mrs. M.R. Upton and Mrs. W.J. Doherty.

On New Year's Day we drove to the home of the M.L.A. for the constituency, Mr. T. Allan Brick, a son of the Reverend Gough Brick, an Anglican missionary who founded the Mission at Shaftesbury about twelve miles up the river. We had a wonderful New Year's dinner there. There was stuffed turkey with vegetables and cranberry sauce and a real English plum pudding. We spent the night there, and I learned the local meaning of the word "camp." It did not mean roughing it in the open or in a tent, it simply meant that you spent the night somewhere. So, we camped at Bricks' that night and the next day drove home and moved across the Peace to Mr. George's town house, a large story and a half house which was destroyed by fire in 1966.

There were four bedrooms upstairs, and the greater part of the downstairs was in one large room, originally used as a sort of ball-room when the factor gave a dance for his trappers in the spring at the conclusion of the fur buying business of the winter. This large room was also my schoolroom, where I taught by day, and at night rolled down my bedroom on the floor behind the stove and slept there. In a couple of weeks one of the upstairs rooms was furnished and set up for my bedroom.

Recollections of Jean Cameron Kelly

2008-09-29T14:56:00.010-06:00

call the Museum at 780-624-4261.

Recollections of Jean Cameron Kelly: Part II

"In the morning I was awakened by a tall Métis who brought me a cup of coffee...He reminded me of Pierre of the Plains. We were soon on the road and at the next stopping place I slept in a bed. A pretty young Métis gave up her own bed to me, with its new rabbit paw robe, a quilt with a filling made of pieces of rabbit paw skins, instead of wool, very cosy (sic) and warm. She told me her name was Pelage Stoney, and that she was sixteen and would soon be married. She asked me if I were married and when I told her no, she asked with great concern how old I was. When I told her twenty-five, a look of distress came over her face and she said commiseratingly, "Oh, that's too bad! But maybe you will find somebody at the Crossing."
The next day we started out on the last day of our trip, out of the unholy Grouard trail, which I later heard described as one of the worst roads in North America. We arrived about dusk December 30th, at the top of the Grouard Hill just east of the Crossing. We slid down the hill into the little community with Bell hanging desperately to the wheel and yelling all the way, "I can't do it! I can't hold it!"
Despite his fears he did it and held it, and the car came to a stop at the telegraph office. Our actual travelling time from Edmonton was twenty-six hours, which was considered good, since we had no lights and could travel only in daylight, of which we had about five and one half hours daily. Also, we were so overloaded that at ever little incline we had to get out and walk...
The telegraph office, the present residence of Mrs. Henry Miller, then stood in very much the same location as the one which was recently removed to become the Friendship Centre. A crowd was waiting to greet the arrivals, interest being equally divided between the car and the new teacher. After looking me over, Harry Coombs (later Captain Coombs, who died of war wounds received in World War I) collected a bet from somebody. He had bet that the new teacher would have blue eyes, as it was his theory that the blue-eyed people were the explorer and adventurer type, and he pointed out that the only white person in this pioneer community who had dark eyes was a young Englishman named George Matthews.
Just east of the telegraph office was the Revillon Freres trading post (later the United Church and presently the Elk’s Hall), whose manager was then William John Doherty. South across the road from these buildings was Johnny Gaudet's pool hall and stopping place, a store and a half log building which occupied approximately the site of the Motor Car Supply Building. As I recall it there were no other buildings as we proceeded west until we came to the Hudson’s Bay Post, the building which was recently wrecked to make way for the Campsall Block. The Hudson’s Bay factor at that time was Mr. Gamlin, the first of the two Gamlin brothers who successively served as factors here.
North across the street from the Hudson’s Bay Post a three story log building was under construction on the present Firestone location. This was H.A. George’s “New Peace Hotel.” There was nothing but woodland north of this on Main Street. Turning south, the Old Peace Hotel stood where the Eaton Building now stands, and on the south side of the present location of the Stedmans store was a rambling frame building which was the store of the third trading company in the Crossing, the Peace River Trading and Land Company, colloquially known as the “Diamond P” from the brand placed on their freight – a Capital P enclosed in a diamond shape. The manager of this company was then Phillip Godsell.
Behind the Diamond P was the Maple Leaf Restaurant, where Jim Lonsdale was the chef, and in this building was [where] the first telegraph set had been set up on a packing case. However, when I arrived it had been installed in the regular telegraph office, Pierre Gauvreau being the first operator.
Farther south and east, out on the point where the Heart [River] joins the Peace stood two old log buildings, which I heard referred to as the old Revillon warehouses; however, at a later date Jim Cornwall told me that they had been the warehouses built by his own company, Bredin and Cornwall. At the time of my arrival they were housing the first bank in Peace River, the Canadian Bank of Commerce; the manager was Allan MacKenzie, whose first customer had been Pierre Gauvreau.
South across the Heart from these buildings stood the tower of the Government Ferry. As well as I can remember, this was the extent of the business section at this time – there was nothing at all on the east side of Main Street that first day I came down the Grouard Hill.”

Aboriginal Pioneers of the Peace - Alex Mackenzie

2008-09-25T15:17:00.001-06:00

The "Aboriginal Pioneers of the Peace" is a feature written by Beth Wilkins, Curatorial Assistant and Researcher, in conjunction with the Museum's Treaty 8 Exhibit on display until the end of August. The articles have also been published on the Community Page of the Peace River Record-Gazette.

Alex McKenzie

PRMA 68.130

Alexander McKenzie was born November 1843, near Three Rivers, Quebec, to Alexander Mackenzie, Sr. and Mary Traversy, a Metis woman. It is said he is a descendant of explorer/fur trader Sir Alexander Mackenzie.

He was orphaned when only an infant and thus sent back to his father’s homeland, Scotland, to be nurtured and educated by his parental relatives.

Alex is among the first Peace River settlers, arriving in 1863, coming from Norway House to the Athabasca District on snowshoes. Peace River became his home for more than half a century.
He married Elizabeth (Eliza) Sawan, nee LePretre/LaFleur) at St. luke’s Anglican Church, Fort Vermilion, Sept. 30, 1876. Eliza died June 6, 1917.

Alex retired from the service of the Hudson’s Bay Company in 1888 after 27 years. His successful, adventurous career, laden with hardships and hairsbreadth escapes, was admired even by his opposition for his cleverness and his attention to service. He was extremely popular with the natives, which made trading easier. Farming then became his main endeavour on River Lots 30 and 31 on the Shaftesbury Trail. His family continues to farm on those lots. The Province of Alberta, in 1993, lauded the family with the Alberta Century Farm and Ranch Award for having owned, operated and maintained the 285-acre farm for more than 100 years.

A well-known picture of McKenzie shows him wearing the typical coureur-de-bois outfit, formerly worn by all Hudson’s Bay Company employees and natives in the country – a blue blanket cloth mackinaw with cream blanket cloth cape and red trimmings, a turban cap to match and black pants with trimmings of Indian design.

Alexander McKenzie died Jan. 16, 1919 from the flu.

It was said that his death brought to an end the link between the Peace River Country of that day and the early days when the first of the Hudson’s Bay traders ventured into the unknown North to ply their trade with the natives of the country.

Sources: Peace River Record; Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre files; Peace River Record-Gazette; Caron Riley

Make sure to join us starting next week for Recollections from Jean Cameron Kelly, the second school teacher in Peace River and her journey north in 1913. The first installment was in our inaugural newsletter which is available to all members of the Museum. Information about Museum memberships is available here: http://peacerivermuseum.blogspot.com/2008/08/membership-drive-2008.html

Aboriginal Pioneers of the Peace - Louise Auger George

2008-09-24T15:33:00.001-06:00

Louise (Auger) George

Louise (Auger) George: Photo cutline: (l-r) Amy Eaton, Louise George (the first Mrs. H. A. George). The child is Alice George. From Peace River Remembers

Louise (Auger) George was born December 1883 at Wapiskow Mission—Claim No. 513. Scrip Certificate No. 1078A. Louise’s parents were: Father Michel Auger (Metis) and her mother Mary Anne Chekastaye (Metis)

She married Herbert Alfred (H.A.) George, September 1898 at Wapiskow Mission.

Louise was 15 – her husband 18. He was a Christian teacher at the Indian residential school for two years prior to his employ as an accountant with the Hudson’s Bay Company.

The couple and their two children, Max and Bert, moved to Peace River when H.A. became the manager of the Hudson’s Bay post -- among the first residents of the community. He is said to have told a friend that when he and his family left Wapiskow (Wabasca) with all their earthly possessions loaded on a light set of sleighs pulled by a team of cayuses”, he had the worldly sum of $400 in his pocket.

Later, the George’s had four more children, among them Louisa Irene George for whom Peace River’s first hospital was named.

The headstone bearing her name and year of death, 1915, and the names of two of the George children – Maxwell Sandfield, age 10, June 1910, and Louisa Irene, age two years, September 1910, now resides on the grounds of the Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre.

The George children were the first known burials in the Anglican cemetery on the ledge overlooking what is now the Bishop’s Lodge.

Source: Peace River Remembers; collectionscanada.gc.ca; Record-Gazette

Aboriginal Pioneers of the Peace - Nancy Brick

2008-09-23T09:30:00.001-06:00

Nancy (Gray) Brick

The Brick Family (l-r) Standing - Emma and Allie; Seated: Nancy with, probably, Robert (PRMA - AR89.36.024)

Nancy Gray, a Métis woman, was the daughter of a Red River Hudson’s Bay employee. In 1895, she married Thomas Allen (Allie) Brick, first Peace River Member of Provincial Parliament (now Minister of the Legislative Assembly).

While Allie was establishing a commercially viable farm along the Shaftesbury Trail, and representing a constituency one third the size of the province of Alberta, a staunch supporter of his efforts became, herself, widely known in the Peace River district.

She acted as a hostess to many travellers who stopped at the Brick farm in their quest for land and trade.

Jean Cameron Kelley wrote in Peace River Remembers, about a wonderful New Year’s meal she and other guests enjoyed at the Brick’s home. “There was stuffed turkey with vegetables and cranberry sauce and a real English pudding” – a testament to Nancy’s culinary and hospitable flair.

The Bricks had nine children – three lived to adulthood – Earnest, Fred and Emma.
A heart attack during preparations for anesthetic prior to dental work was the cause of Nancy’s death in 1923, leaving Allie a widower.

Source: I Remember, Peace River and Adjacent Districts – 1914-1916 (Part 2); Electoral History of the Peace River Country of Alberta – 1905-1993

Aboriginal Pioneers of the Peace - Pat Wesley

2008-09-22T12:00:00.002-06:00

Pat Wesley – Peace River Benefactor Lends Name to Creek

PRMA AR89.36.022

One of the Town of Peace River’s pioneers was a man, who lent his name to a creek running from an area northeast of town between Kaufman and Grouard hills and through it to meet with the Peace River behind the Third Mission Heritage Suites.

Although details of Pat Wesley’s life are obscure, it is plain to see the man, who was in the area from at least 1902, indeed, was an important person in the history of the town.

An Evelyn Seeley poem lauds Wesley for whom Pat’s Creek and the district of Wesley Creek in Northern Sunrise County are named.

Wesley was Métis. “He was one of the Métis who took scrip – that is the title to certain land,” writes Muriel Oslie in Peace River Remembers. According to Oslie, he moved onto his land and lived in a cabin near Pat’s Creek. He gave five acres to the Anglican Church, asking only that his body be laid to rest in the shadow of the church to be built on the land he had donated.

In 1910, Wesley contracted smallpox, the disease, which eventually killed him. He was buried, as requested, in what is now the rectory garden.

Three of the five acres Wesley donated were sold. The funds from the sale were used in 1916, for the erection of a house on ground near Wesley’s grave for the Incumbent of St. James Church, Rev. Harold Hesketh.

Current buildings on the property include: rectory, Synod office, St. James Cathedral, and Athabasca Hall.

Sources: Peace River Remembers; Archdiocese of Athabasca; I Remember 1; Record-Gazette; Northern Sunrise County Web site; Place Names of Alberta, Vol. IV; I Remember 2

Aboriginal Pioneers of the Peace - The Flette Family

2008-09-19T15:48:00.001-06:00

The Flette Family

PRMA 79.1021.2 Nicholas Flette in his WWI uniform, seated. The other chap is unknown.

Nicholas Flette

Often called Sunny or Nick

Born: December 1896, in Fort Vermilion area, one of William and Charlotte (Smith) Flette’s sons
Died: December 1965, died of a heart attack

Served in First World War – said to have served in Siberia driving a dog team in the line of duty

September 15, 1928, Nicholas married Caroline Margaret Lawrence

Margaret Flette

Margaret Flette in one of her many hats

Born: March 17, 1904, in the Fort Vermilion area, third child of 15 and descendent of pioneers and missionaries – Sheridan and Julia Lawrence. Died: July 31, 2007, 103 years old

Received early education at home – went to a school on Lawrence family ranch, also attended by local children – won Governor General’s Medal for highest marks in grade school – travelled to Winnipeg for further education in 1924 – taught school in Fort Vermilion for two years – had varied careers thereafter.

Following Nick’s death in 1965, Margaret continued to live in their Peace River home, to which they had moved in the late 1950s, having sold their previous house to daughter Hester and husband, Fred Hutton.

Margaret had many talents, one of which was making delicious cinnamon buns – a treat at Chuck’s Place – a popular Peace River restaurant. Even after the closure of the restaurant, she continued, well into her 80s, to bake the treats. She was always busy – taking in boarders and roomers – being active in several organizations and her craft interests.

Margaret was also known for her hats and her walks along Main Street.

The Flettes

Nicholas and Margaret renewed their friendship while both were in Cloverbar, Alberta, near Edmonton. They had five children: Hester, Clifford, Lawrence, Allan and Shirley. Clifford died while serving in the Second World War.

After their marriage, the Flettes homesteaded at Cloverbar before succumbing to the lure of the Peace Country. They farmed in the Stewart District (Weberville Road) for more than 20 years.

Source: Fort Vermilion People In Our Vast Trading North; Margaret Flette’s obituary

Aboriginal Pioneers of the Peace - Duncan Tustawits

2008-09-18T15:59:00.001-06:00

Duncan Tustawits, Tastatoots, Testawich

PRMA 76.689.39 - Photograph taken 100 miles north of Peace River Crossing (no date available): Duncan Testawits on dog sled with Dr. Bayfield in foreground.

Duncan Tustawits, first Headman of the Duncan’s Band was one of the signatories of the second signing of Treaty 8, witnessed by North West Mounted Police Sgt. K.F. Anderson. Duncan signed on behalf of the Cree population of the Peace River Crossing district, July 1, 1899. He was a capable ambassador of his people, speaking Cree, Beaver, French, English and Chippewa.

The Duncan’s Band in 1899 had 46 members. By 1900, it had grown to 67 members. Today the Duncan’s Reserve population is 101

The 1918 flu epidemic took many lives, though no figures are known, including all but two sons and one daughter of the 18 children of he and his wife. Duncan also succumbed to influenza in 1918 at the approximate age of 70.

The well-respected band Headman farmed on River Lot 1 at the western end of the Shaftesbury Trail and was a familiar figure in the White Swan and Griffith Creek Districts. He was reputed to have been a good farmer and a supporter of education. To the latter end, his children attended school the Anglican Christ Church Mission on Shaftesbury Trail.

His farming enterprise included a large herd of horses, which is said to have supplied the equine needs of many area settlers.

The Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre invites readers to provide it with any more information or photographs you may have of Duncan Testawits and his family. The Museum may be reached at (780) 624-4261 and e-mail: museum@peaceriver.net

Source: Brick’s Hill, Berwyn and Beyond, a history of Berwyn and District; On the North Trail, the Treaty 8 Diary of O.C. Edwards

Aboriginal Pioneers of the Peace - The St. Germains

2008-09-16T16:04:00.002-06:00

Joseph Simon St.Germain and Charles St. Germain

PRMA 75.655.001 - (L) Joseph (Joe) and (r) Charles (Charlie). Date and place of photograph unknown.

Joseph [1874 – 1959] and Charles St. Germain [1874 – 1958], twin sons of Charles and Angelique (Lafournaise) St. Germain, settled with their family along Shaftesbury Trail on River Lot 39 in 1894.

Charles Sr. was among the last of the buffalo hunters whose expeditions took him into Montana and Minnesota. He was also reported to have been quite a rum-runner in his time.
The St. Germain family raised livestock, crops and a huge garden. The farm was a well-known Stopping Place for weary travellers.
The tradition of hosting a mocchigan – food, good fellowship, music and dancing – provided ample opportunities for Charles and his brother to learn to play musical instruments.

Joseph

Joseph, known by some as “Little Smilin’ Joe” because of his easy-going manner and kind disposition, married Elizabeth Louise McKenzie, daughter of Alex McKenzie at the St. Augustine Mission Chapel in 1903.
In the winter months of 1907 to 1910, Joseph hauled freight for Revillion Freres, but eventually he and Elizabeth settled in West Peace on their land grant property.
The Joseph St. Germains had eight children. Only four lived to adulthood – Edmond, Thomas, Philomene Riley and Ruth Gardner
Joseph was a fine fiddler and played for many dances and parties in the Shaftesbury and Strong Creek districts.

Charles

Charles married Maria McAllister in 1895. They had 15 children of which nine lived to adulthood.
Charles, known for his log-building skills, built the church at Dunvegan, as well as the surrounding buildings. The family farmed in the area later known as St. Germain Lakes in the Chinook Valley area and Shaftesbury.

Source: I Remember, Peace River and Adjacent Districts – 1800s-1913 (Part 1); Peace River Remembers; Caron Riley

Aboriginal Pioneers of the Peace - Angelique IsKwesis

2008-09-15T16:07:00.002-06:00

For those of you who missed out on our wonderful articles published in the Record Gazette, they will be re-posted here for your enjoyment. We will be posting one every day this week:

The "Aboriginal Pioneers of the Peace" is a feature written by Beth Wilkins, Curatorial Assistant and Researcher, in conjunction with the Museum's Treaty 8 Exhibit on display until the end of August. The articles have also been published on the Community Page of the Peace River Record-Gazette.

Angelique IsKwesis (Chickalee) – “A Real Friend”

PRMA 73.531.071

Chickalee was familiar to the people of Peace River. This short, determined Beaver Indian woman was often seen walking along Peace River streets wearing a long black dress, tied at the waist by a cord, a black hat and moccasins. She was in town on her way to purchase her meagre supplies from J.D. Levesque’s store. After her purchases and talking to J.D., who spoke Cree, one would see her sitting in front of his store smoking a pipe.

She was a mysterious soul, who suffered ridicule and harassment. With all of the disrespect shown her, she also commanded the friendship of others. “I forget how you say ‘real friend’ in Cree, but Chickalee did have a lot of them in the Peace River Country,” says columnist R.C. Colmer in an April 1984 newspaper article.

Angelique (Chickalee) was Number 28 to accept Treaty (8) with the Peace River Crossing Band in July 1899. There is speculation regarding the origin of the name Chickalee – some say it is a derivative of Pi-chickleese – good-natured – jolly, while others suggest it means “tiny one”.

Regardless, she was a woman of character.

She was married twice – first to Guillaume Bell in the mid-1800s – then, as his widow, married Jean Baptiste (Johnny) LePretre, July 5, 1914, at St. Augustine Mission, Shaftesbury Trail, about which there was a recollection of an auspicious occasion at which people from all over came by various means of transportation. There was even a gun salute and “much merry-making.”
Johnny died in 1923.

Chickalee, as far as is known bore only one child – Louise in 1893 – the first student to attend St. Augustine Mission School.

Angelique (Chickalee) IsKwesis Bell Le Pretre died at Hotel Dieu Hospital, Whitelaw, Dec. 23, 1958 – age 108. She rests in Peace River’s Mount Pleasant Cemetery.

Sources: Peace River Remembers; Caron Riley; Record-Gazette