Hit the road this summer to explore the life of Alberta’s pioneers
I work my way southeast, down rut-riddled back roads, past umpteen canola fields exploding in yellow blooms, beside abandoned homesteads beaten and broken by a thousand prairie storms, and, eventually, four hours later, roll into the gravel parking lot at the Etzikom Museum and Historic Windmill Centre.
Like most of the roads I’ve travelled down to get here, I’ve got this quiet, understated place to myself. Strolling the grounds, photographing the decades-old windmills that pepper the property, I’m immersed in the Prairies’ past. And, like all of Alberta’s heritage museums, I leave with a powerful impression of what life was like for the early pioneers who set sail for the west.
The Etzikom Museum — one of dozens of heritage museums in Alberta — is both interesting and educational. Like all of these museums and cultural sites that delve into the pioneering days, there are lessons that can be learned. Living simply, living locally, living thriftily, living communally. The list goes on and on.
Our colourful and compelling western Canadian history is a rich and rewarding thing to explore ... any time of year. And taking a drive to visit a rural Alberta museum, such as Etzikom, is a great way to do this.
Located on the Red Coat Trail in the far southeast corner of Alberta, the many windmills on display at Etzikom represent an important element when it came to surviving on the merciless Prairies. The wood or metal blades of the windmills were a life-giving power source that drew water from the hand-dug wells for lives and livestock, gardens and fields. Without the windmills, homesteading would have been next to impossible. “It wasn’t the gun that settled the west,” says curator June Mitzel. “It was the windmill.” The many different shapes and styles of the historic windmills are the focus at Etzikom, with the show-stopper being a massive wooden gristmill that was originally built and transplanted piece by piece from Martha’s Vineyard. The museum is also home to reproductions of a general store, blacksmith shop, schoolhouse and more. For more information on this museum, including hours, costs and special events, you can visit its Facebook page at facebook.com/etzikommuseum.
Obviously, the vast collection of heritage museums in Alberta comes in many different shapes and sizes.
From the sprawling grounds of Heritage Park in Calgary to tiny, small-town museums dotting rural regions, there are numerous options. The Alberta Museum Association, museums.ab.ca, lists more than 200 registered museums in the province.
While most of them, in some way shape or form, focus on our pioneering past, many delve deeper into other aspects and activities that have shaped us. Mining, ranching, aboriginal history, railroading, paleontology, automobiles, the fur trade, oil and gas, aviation and many other topics can be explored.
However, if it is purely pioneering history you’re interested in, here are a few excellent options:
1 Bar U Ranch National His
toric Site, Longview The working ranch, which is owned and operated by Parks Canada, is a living testament to our illustrious ranching history. Live demonstrations highlight a visit to one of the top tourist attractions in southern Alberta.
2 Heritage Acres Farm Museum,
Pincher Creek Boasting numerous heritage buildings and thousands of artifacts, this 180-acre museum is Alberta’s largest independent agricultural museum. Visit heritageacres.org.
3 Homestead Antique Museum,
Drumheller True, when visiting the Drumheller Valley the Royal Tyrrell Museum and the Atlas Coal Mine are musts. However, if cool antiques and artifacts interest you, this museum hits it out of the park. No website.
4
Pioneer Acres, Irricana This 50-acre site boasts a massive collection of agricultural equipment, vehicles and artifacts. This weekend, Aug. 5 to 7, is Pioneer Acres’ annual show and reunion, its biggest event of the year. Visit pioneeracres.ab.ca.
5 Stony Plain & Parkland Pioneer
Museum, Stony Plain Charming country museum with more than 7,000 artifacts. Strolling the tidy grounds and viewing the many displays and antiques epitomizes what visiting a smalltown museum is all about. Visit pioneermuseum.ca.
Of course, this is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to museums that document the early ways of the tough-as-nails settlers.
Regardless of where you go, the journey to get there — even if the roads are bumpy! — is half the fun. Andrew Penner is a freelance writer and photographer based in Calgary. You can follow him at facebook.com/ andrew penn er photography.