Carol Baldwin
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Wakaw Recorder
The Prud’homme Multicultural Providence Museum, in collaboration with the Association Communautaire Fransaskoise de la Trinité (AFCT) and the Societé Historique de la Saskatchewan, has been granted funds from Library and Archives Canada (LAC) through the Documentary Heritage Communities Program (DHCP) to properly catalogue and preserve the museum’s many historical documents and photographs.
For the last ten years, museum summer staff and volunteers have been sorting through dozens of boxes of materials inherited with the museum building, and those given to the museum. The findings were remarkable, with much of what was found being of important historical significance, not only to Prud’homme and the region but also to the province and the country.
Some examples include pieces of Monseigneur Baudoux’s correspondence regarding the establishment of Radio Francaise in Saskatchewan, which later became Radio Canada; Monseigneur Bourdel’s handwritten journal of his voyage from France to what is now Prud’homme; family trees; birth, baptism and death records of early settlers in the area; church records from St. John the Baptist, Queen of Peace and St. Laszlo churches; correspondence with former Governor General Jeanne Sauve who was born in Prud’homme; and minutes from local regional one-room schools. Each box that was opened and examined further advanced the recognition of the importance of these materials.
Since the creation of the DHCP in 2015, LAC has provided $16.395 million in support of 407 documentary heritage community projects. This year, archives, museums, and documentary heritage institutions will share $1.425 million to fund 37 selected projects under Library and Archives Canada’s Documentary Heritage Communities Program, including one in 2023-24 to Archives de Bellevue.
These projects were chosen for their potential significant impact on the preservation of documentary heritage and community access. LAC funding enables local organizations to allocate vital resources toward initiatives that enhance awareness and accessibility of their collections, while also strengthening their ability to protect Canada’s documentary heritage.
“My heartfelt congratulations to all the recipients,” Leslie Weir, Librarian and Archivist of Canada, said at the announcement on June 4. “Your dedication to documenting and preserving your community’s history is truly commendable. It brings me much joy to see how LAC is able to support amazing projects like yours through yearly funding. Now, more than ever, it’s essential for LAC and communities across Canada to stay committed to making our shared stories accessible to everyone.”
Housed in Prud’homme’s old Catholic Rectory, which was inhabited by the remaining Sisters of Providence previously, the building has been a museum since the 1990s. Father Constant Jean-Baptiste Bourdel, in 1904, decided to emigrate to Canada with his nephew. They settled in Saskatchewan in the area that would later become Prud’homme. After three years of saying Mass in a tent and other makeshift facilities, Father Bourdel built a church in 1907 and later had the Daughters of Providence (aka Sisters of Providence) open a school to meet the needs of rural families. The Sisters of Providence established boarding schools for girls in Prud’homme, St. Louis, St. Brieux and Prince Albert in the early 1900s. Exhibits and historical artifacts display the contribution of Father Bourdel, the Sisters of Providence, as well as early French, Hungarian, Ukrainian and other settlers.
The museum board have been deliberating for several years on how to preserve and protect these documents. Receiving this funding will allow the museum to begin this important process and will support the Prud’homme Multicultural Providence Museum to respond to the many requests from visitors for information about their family or community history and to organize and preserve the collection.
The Board is also looking at reprinting the 1981 History Book because people continue to be interested in buying copies, and there are very few copies left. A digital copy exists in the archives at the University of Calgary, which will make producing new copies much easier. Additionally, the Board would like to add a preface summarizing major events since 1981. For this, they need the broader community’s help. Below is an outline of some significant events since 1981, but it is far from complete.
1984
Jeanne Sauvé, born in Prud’homme, is appointed Canada’s first female Governor General.
1984
Governor General Jeanne Sauvé visits Prud’homme during a snowstorm, lots of news coverage.
1987
CFB Dana, a source of local employment, closed.
1988
Death of Monseigneur Baudoux, Archbishop of Saint Boniface, former priest of Prud’homme and “father of French Radio” in Saskatchewan.
1991
The last of the Sisters of Providence leaves Prud’homme. The community takes over the Rectory Building as a Museum
1991
The fire department gets a new firetruck built locally by Sagehill Industries, located at the former CFB Dana.
1993
A major train derailment blocks Government Road for several days
1993
Death of Governor General Jeanne Sauvé.
1995
La Caisse Populaire de Prud’homme Savings and Credit Union amalgamates with Bruno Savings and Credit Union Ltd.
1995
Fred and Olga Hryniuk celebrate 59 years at the Prud’homme Hotel.
1999
The last grain elevator in Prud’homme is torn down.
1997 – 1998
Grades 10, 11 and 12 are removed from Prud’homme School.
1998 – 1999
Grades 7, 8, and 9 are removed from Prud’homme School.
1999 – 2000
Last Class of Prud’homme School/Prud’homme School Closes.
2007 – 2008
Due to heavy rains and overuse, Highway 27 totally disintegrates
2007 – 2008
Due to heavy rain, Prud’homme’s sewage lagoon floods and no longer functions properly.
2009
Death of Cora Poilièvre, Founder of Prud’homme Museum.
2011
Death of Steve Sopotyk, former Prud’homme mayor and renowned as the oldest mayor in Canada.
2012
A semi-truck rolled into the front of the Historic Town Jail, which was located on the south side of Railway Avenue. The front is destroyed.
2013
With help from the SK Disaster Assistance Program, the new sewage lagoon was built with a $2 million price tag. The village must borrow money to finance the project.
2013
CTV features Prud’homme in its “Hometown Tour” series. Big crowds.
2014
Explosion and fire at the Trans Gas Natural Gas Cavern near Prud’homme. It’s several weeks before the fire can be extinguished. The event makes the national news.
2016
With help from the Saskatchewan Heritage Foundation, local donations and volunteers, the Town Jail was moved to its current location and repaired.
2017
The historic Schmidt Barn celebrates 100 years
2018
A major project is undertaken at the museum building to reconstruct a sagging basement wall, replace windows, and complete other improvements.
2022
The community celebrates the 100th anniversary of the name Prud’homme (village previously named Howell) and the birth of Jeanne Sauvé in the village.
They need your help! Is something missing or incorrect? Let them know at (306) 280-4871 or pmpmuseum@gmail.com.
