The site of the River’s Edge condominium in Prince Albert is a place of historical significance.
Where the condominium sits was once the site of the Prince Albert Lumber Company Sawmill. To signify the site a committee from the condominium has installed pieces of art to recognize what stood there until 1918.
Committee member Frank Brooks said that when River’s Edge was being constructed the workers hit a large chunk of concrete that was from the original Saw Mill site. It is believed the concrete is what the logs were tied onto
Brooks said Rick Schultz had known about the saw mill and investigated further. That led to the art installation, which includes a sawblade on display in the foyer.
“We started talking and Rick said we should do this because they have got a condo in the old Bay store in Saskatoon and that’s what they did in there, put all these murals up,” Brooks explained.
Brooks then went to the Prince Albert Historical Society and visited with Ken Guedo from the Bill Smiley Archives. Guedo located the photos and two people from the committee selected the picture for the display.
Lynne MacDonald joined Schultz in choosing the pictures for the mural. She said it was a fun project to be a part of.
“I think all of us at one time or another read through the histories that we got from the Museum, and then Frank asked if I would just do a summary of it,” she explained.
There is a summary of the project by the elevator in the lobby.
Condominium board president Glen Bitz said the organizing and fundraising was a simple project.
“Somebody had the idea and everybody donated money,” Bitz said. “The condo doesn’t pay for anything. Everybody threw in and was very generous.”
Guedo said the Lumber Company had their own water system for fire suppression. The reason the Lumber Company closed and moved to The Pas, Manitoba was that they ran out of supply.
“It’s almost like the pulp mill,” he explained. “When the pulp mill shut down, they had to go farther and farther and farther to get to get the product. In today’s terms, they cut down all the easy stuff and then all of a sudden it wasn’t economical for them to go farther afield from here.”
When the North Saskatchewan Rivers flooded in 1915 the mill sustained damage and was never restored to the original capacity. In 1918 the company closed down production, dismantled the mill and moved it to The Pas.
“Basically by 1918 it wasn’t economical,” Guedo said.
Logs came from Waskesiu and the Sturgeon Lake area for the Lumber Company. The company had a spur rail line linking it with the Hudson Bay company. The site was around 300 acres, Guedo said.
“I just read the other day the buildings were not close together for a reason and the reason was fire,” he explained. “If there was a fire over in this area, it’d be easier to contain. If they’re all bunched together the whole works could go.”
The land also included housing for workers including small houses and a large rooming house with 40 rooms.
“A lot of the people who came to work here were also farmers or people that had bought land,” Guedo said. “They would come to work in the winter, and a lot of them would take their pay in lumber, bring it home, and build a barn or house.”
The company yards extended through much of what is today known as Riverview.
Guedo said the nice part about the project and the generosity of the people in Rivers Edge is that it keeps history alive.
“Most people wouldn’t know that this thing used to be here unless it was something like this (art work, and have enough people who are actually interested in saying ‘this is what used to be here,’” he said. “We’re older, but our younger generation doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of interest in stuff like that. I find it sad, but that’s the way it is.”
The murals include two spaces on the fourth floor and one on each other floor, and a display of the original map in the common area on the first floor. There is also a display explaining the project in the lobby along with pictures.
The entire project cost $5,000 with donations from the 23 residents of River’s Edge.
The concept came from a conversation at coffee about three years ago and the pictures have been up for about six months
“Once it took hold it didn’t take long,” Bitz said.
The pictures were constructed by Cowan Graphics in Saskatoon. The graphics were not expensive to create but the expense rose from having them installed.
The celebration on Friday included a presentation by Guedo, some light food and a performance by Larry Krause.
The tables all included histories of the site. Brooks joked that at 5 p.m. there would be a test for everyone in attendance.
“Today’s plan is just basically to introduce people to it and then just kind of celebrate it a little bit, get the full story,” he said.
MacDonald is hopeful that the concept will help keep history alive.
“I’m hopeful that that when our younger, like kids and grandkids come here and see this, they realise how valuable all of this is and how we think it’s important. Then maybe that will pass it along together,” MacDonald said.
michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca
