Just When You Think You've Seen It All

I LIKE THAT my husband and I are both passionate about visiting museums. In every country we’ve ever lived in or visited over the past nine years, we have always made a point of discovering the history of the territory and visiting as many of the small towns as possible.

We left Cut Knife, Saskatchewan on August 8, 2012, headed east on Highway 40 and turned north on Highway 4. Crossing the North Saskatchewan River brings you to North Battleford and the Western Development Museum. Indoors, you can follow the timeline from 1905 to 2005 and outdoors you experience an agricultural support village by strolling down the boardwalks and slipping into the restored town buildings.

As we sauntered from building to building we caught the attention of folks who were preparing for the upcoming ‘Those Were The Days’ festival. It was Frank’s kilt that ignited Dan’s curiosity. He asked Frank if he was visiting from Scotland and was still satisfied to hear that we are both from Campbell River on the Vancouver Island.

“Is the elevator open?” Frank said.

“It sure is. I can give you a tour if you like,” Dan said.

The expert elevator operator touched on every aspect of the workings of the decommissioned wooden structure. Frank told the guide that he’d been around elevators most of his life but had never had the privilege of having a tour.

“What do you think of our museum?” asked Dan.

“Oh, just when you think you’ve seen it all, there’s more history to Saskatchewan than a person recognizes,” Frank said.

The truth is that you could spend nearly a lifetime exploring the small towns and museums in Canada. For a relatively young country, we’ve got a splendid and colourful history.

Red tractors and Red River Cart

History of North Battleford