The Term "Old Strathcona", Strathcona Oldtimers, Ernest Brown

A wide-ranging series of observations that transition from
The Term "Old Strathcona" to
A Strathcona old-timers reunion to
Zola Campbell to
A.A. Campbell to
Ernest Brown to
The term "Strathcona" to
Lord Strathcona to
Ernest Brown on charges of muckraking...

After the amalgamation of the cities of Strathcona and Edmonton in 1912, how long did it take for the term "Old Strathcona" to emerge?

By 1919 the Strathcona Hotel was known as the "Old Strathcona hotel" (such as in the Ed. Bull., June 19, 1919). iI had been the first building built in the railway centre that became the City of Strathcona, to discriminate between the railway centre and the already-20-year-old farming district on the southside of the river. This pre-existing farming district had been the homes of some families whose names have been immortalized in the naming of places in the city to this day - McKernan, Ottewell, Garneau, Walter (Walterdale). (see my blog "Short history of Old Strathcona")
 

But when did the term "Old Strathcona" first get used for the southside  area that had once been the City of Strathcona?
 

The earliest reference I can find is in 1923 and the "old" is in lower case.

A Edmonton Bulletin report of a gathering of old-timers in that year says "Mrs. A.A. Campbell read her poem on the pioneer spirit that prevailed in old Strathcona, 'It's Just the Thing the Country Needed,' and another rhyme she had written about the early days."

The article relates a historical and hysterical fun night - oh, to have been a fly on that wall that night, as you can see if you read the article reprinted below.
 

The term "Old Strathcona" came into general use in the 1970s as part of the campaign to save Strathcona's historic downtown centre from destruction at the hands of Edmonton city council to build a freeway.

"Old Strathcona" should be used to mean the old city of Strathcona which extended as far asouth as 68 Avenue and west to the river thus taking in the University of Alberta.

But the term is usually used just for a handful of blocks either side of  the Whyte Avenue and 104 Street (which had been Strathcona's Main Street) but has now been sort of sidetracked to mean the Old Strathcona Preservation area  (see below for an article where Old Strathcona is used in this way)

Information on "Mrs. A.A. Campbell"

Mrs. A.A. Campbell (Zola Isabell) (1880-1967) was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. D.L. Campbell.
Her husband "Archie had been responsible for the oversight of money matters for the City of Strathcona and became the assistant treasurer of the City of Edmonton after amalgamation of the two cities.
A political reformer in those days when progressive political change was not largely disregarded in Alberta, Archie had run as a candidate for the Independent Labour Party in the 1921 provincial election. The ILP slate also included Ernest Brown, the city's most prominent photographer. (look forward with expectancy to my upcoming book on this character!)

Zola was the author of "A Tale of the Early Years,  Dedicated to all South Edmonton Pioneers," a epic poem she published in 1938.
 

Wedding Anniversary of Mr. and Mrs. Campbell Honoured by Old-Timers
(Feb. 12, 1923 Edmonton Bulletin)

D. L. Campbell and wife celebrated their 45th wedding anniversary in 1923. The Edmonton Bulletin coverd the event at which many old-timers, some who had lived on the southside for 30 to 40 years, attended.

They were divided into groups by the year they had come and asked to share the funniest and most interesting event that they remembered occuring in that year. The Campbells themselves came 25 yeras ago.

The stories were exeedingly interesting and varied from the tale of the August snow to the adventures of crossing the river in the days before the bridges were built. Mr. Jack Jackson gave a very amusing account of the police court and how it was run in the early days in Strathcona.

It was indeed a reunion of the old-timers, and the evening passed away very pleasantly in talking of the old times and singing the old-time songs.

Mrs. Jack Jackson presided at the piano just as she used to do in the old Ross hall and sang very delightfuly once more the real old songs of “Mary of Argyle” and 'I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Hall.' Mr. Jackson too contributed his favourite 'Rocked in the Cardle of the Deep', while Arthur Davies sang his two songs that used to be a regular feature of the entertainments in Ross Hall, 'Sister Mary' and 'I'm Off to Philadelphia in the Morning.'...Mrs. A.A. Campbell read her poem on the pioneer spirit that prevailed in old Strathcona, 'It's Just the Thing the Country Needed' and another rhyme she had written about the early days.

The program was quite impromptu and wholly delightful and entertaining.”

Names of those in attendance, in addition to Mr. and Mrs. D.L. Campbell, included:

Mr. and Mrs. Jack Jackson

Mr. and Mrs. John McKenzie

Mr. and Mrs. F.A. Peel

Mr. and Mrs. W.J. Scott

Mrs. Margaret Martin [whose house still stands at 84 Avenue and 106 Street]

Mr. and Mrs. Hennessey

Mrs. Duguid

Mr. and Mrs. Tookey

Mrs. Robert Douglas [brother of James Douglas, Strathcona MP, 1909-1921]

Mrs. Christie

Mr. Atkins

Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Davies

Mr. and Mrs. George Thomson

Mr and Mrs. Radford

Mr. and Mrs. Carmichael

Mr. and Mrs. Bob Turnbull

Miss Emily Campbell and Master Duncan Campbell

(Feb. 12, 1923 Ed. Bull.)

(Information on many of these named here can be found in my book "Old Strathcona - Edmonton 's Southside Roots", available at Alhambra Books, Edmonton or through ABEBOOKS.com)

"Old Strathcona" to mean a very small portion of the Old City of Strathcona
Old Strathcona Provincial Historic Area
(with my comments following)

Old Strathcona Provincial Historic Area is situated in the City of Edmonton on the south side of the North Saskatchewan River. Encompassing roughly 5 city blocks stretching from 85 Avenue south to 80 Avenue and from 102 Street west to 106 Street, the district is the historic centre of Strathcona's commercial life. Among the commercial, cultural, and public resources that contribute to the district's heritage value are buildings constructed between 1891 and 1914, including the Strathcona Hotel, the Gainers Block, the Orange Hall, the Canadian Pacific Railway Station, the South Side Post Office, the Douglas Block, and the Princess Theatre.

Heritage Value
The heritage value of the Old Strathcona Provincial Historic Area lies in its representation of the pre-World War One commercial and social development of one of Alberta's most significant early communities. The district also possesses heritage value for the architectural richness and integrity of its historic buildings.

Like many provincial towns and cities, the early history of Strathcona was inextricably tied to the railways. In 1891, the Calgary &Edmonton Railway Company laid track from Calgary to a site opposite Edmonton on the south side of the North Saskatchewan River. The company subdivided the unincorporated Town of South Edmonton and largely directed early development in the community by grading roads and erecting some of the first buildings, among them the Strathcona Hotel, built in 1891. The railway company's activities helped the fledgling settlement to grow and in 1899 South Edmonton was incorporated as a Town and renamed Strathcona; eight years later, the City of Strathcona was incorporated. The economic and cultural development of the community between 1899 and 1907 is embodied in the Gainers Block constructed in 1902 and the Orange Hall built in 1903. The years between 1907 and 1912 represented a period of dynamic and robust growth in Strathcona, as the population swelled and business expanded. The rapid development in these years is embodied in the Canadian Pacific Railway Station constructed in 1907 to serve as the Northern Alberta terminus of the company's rail network and in the South Side Post Office, built between 1911 and 1913 to provide federal services to the burgeoning population. Though the years from 1891 to 1912 had witnessed appreciable growth in Strathcona, it nonetheless continued to lag behind the pace of commercial development set by its cross-river rival, the City of Edmonton. In 1912, Strathcona amalgamated with Edmonton, marking the end of the district's independent development. The Strathcona Public Library was paid for and built by the newly expanded City of Edmonton in 1913, thus reflecting the shift in civic authority in the district. [my comment: Construction of the library had been approved by Strathcona electors before amalgamation and as Strathcona had not had a debt and Edmoton had had one before amalgamation it is a bit of a stretch to say that Edmonton paid for the library.]

The economic slowdown in Strathcona following amalgamation helped to preserve the architectural variety and integrity of the community's early buildings and their embodiment of the area's historic evolution. Early constructions in Strathcona's commercial core were simple wood-frame [my comment: some of the early buildings on Whyte Avenue were log cabin buildings, such as the first school.]

buildings like the Strathcona Hotel and the Orange Hall.

In 1902, mindful of the destruction visited upon other Prairie communities by fires, Town Council passed a bylaw mandating the construction of non-wood buildings along Whyte Avenue. Buildings like the stately red-brick Gainers Block reflect this legislative change. The buildings erected in the Old Strathcona District after the turn of the century differed from their predecessors not only in materials, but also in style. The false-fronted frontier architecture of the 1890s gave way after the turn of the century to more ornate constructions, a reflection of the growth of business capital and entrepreneurial confidence within Strathcona.
Commercial buildings often exhibited a strong classical influence to project an image of stability, permanence, and prestige. Examples of the increasing sophistication of architecture in the Strathcona district are the elegant Princess Theatre, which boasted the first marble-fronted facade west of Winnipeg, and the Douglas Block, which featured a diachromatic design of brick and stone and a crowning cornice, parapet, and pediment. Non-commercial buildings like the South Side Post Office and the Strathcona Public Library also reflected the increasing sophistication of architecture in the community in the post-1900 period while also embodying the success and importance of the district.

Source: Alberta Culture and Community Spirit, Historic Resources Management Branch (File: Des. 86)


Character-Defining Elements
The character-defining elements of the Old Strathcona Provincial Historic Area include such features as:
- the grid-like arrangement of streets and avenues;
- the width of Whyte Avenue and 104 Street reflecting their prominence as early transportation routes and the first graded roads in Strathcona;
- spatial relationship between railway station, commercial district, and non-commercial area situated north of 83 Avenue along 104 Street;
- simple wood-frame architecture of Strathcona Hotel and Orange Hall;
- the predominance of brick structures dating from between 1902 and 1914;
- the predominance of commercial businesses along Whyte Avenue between Gateway Boulevard and 105 Street;
- the scale of the buildings, with the vast majority being three storeys in height or less;
- buildings in commercial area built to the property line;
- sight lines to significant contributing resource elements, including South Side Post Office clock tower and painted signs on commercial buildings;
- use of traditional materials, including painted wood, red and orange brick, and cast stone;
- general design of commercial buildings, including recessed entries, windowed storefront level, sign band area, and upper floors with balanced fenestration;
- pedestrian scale to signage;
- the strong classical architectural influence evident in the South Side Post Office, the Strathcona Public Library, the Douglas Block, the Gainers Block, and the Princess Theatre;
- the standard station design of the Canadian Pacific Railway Station, constructed in the Queen Anne style and incorporating elements from French and Scottish architectural sources.

My comments on the above article: Old Strathcona Provincial Historic Area

"Old Strathcona Provincial Historic Area is situated in the City of Edmonton on the south side of the North Saskatchewan River. Encompassing roughly 5 city blocks stretching from 85 Avenue south to 80 Avenue and from 102 Street west to 106 Street..."

How an area that is five blocks north-south and four blocks east-west can be only five city blocks eludes me. the number should be 20 or so.

the district is the historic centre of Strathcona's commercial life. Among the commercial, cultural, and public resources that contribute to the district's heritage value are buildings constructed between 1891 and 1914, including the Strathcona Hotel, the Gainers Block, the Orange Hall, the Canadian Pacific Railway Station, the South Side Post Office, the Douglas Block, and the Princess Theatre.

The Princess Theatre opened in 1915.

The Alberta Register of Historic Places (ARHP): Old Strathcona info. as excerpted in Wikipedia has many errors:
Old Strathcona is Alberta's second Provincial Historic Area (downtown Fort Macleod being the first), and contains a number of historic buildings.
The designation as a Provincial Historic Area applies to roughly 5 square blocks (see my remark above)

that formed the commercial hub of the former city of Strathcona. It runs from 85 Avenue south to 80 Avenue and from 102 Street west to 106 Street. Within this area are many of the most significant buildings built during Strathcona's early boom from the arrival of the Calgary and Edmonton Railway in 1891 to the Edmonton (should say, and Strathcona)

 real estate crash of 1913–14. Heritage buildings within this area include the Strathcona Hotel, the Gainers Block, the Orange Hall, the Canadian Pacific Railway Station, the South Side Post Office, the Douglas Block, the Princess Theatre, Strathcona Public Library, the Connaught Armoury and Old Scona Academic High School.

My comments: The Connaught Armoury is outside the preservation area, being north of 86 Avenue.
And
The Princess Theatre opened in 1915, despite of and after the real estate crash of 1913-1914.

And the "City of Edmonton Map Utility" as quoted by Wikipedia "Strathcona, Edmonton" has a strange way to answer the question who was the Lord Strathcona that Strathcona was named after:
It says : "Strathcona was named for Lord Strathcona, Hudson's Bay Company Governor (1889–1914) and the man chosen to drive the "last spike" of the CPR transcontinental railway."

I have tried to change the Wikpedia entry to correct this strange wording on the Wikipedia entry but each time it gets changed back (apparently by someone who believes everything someone in authority tells them)

Here's what I would say:
Strathcona was named for Lord Strathcona (Sir Donald Smith) (1820-1914), HBC and CPR magnate  who played in important role in financing the building of the CPR. Lord Strathcona had the honour in 1885 of driving the "Last Spike" at Craigellachie to finish construction of the CPR transcontinental line.

To fill out the story, I want to say:
A Scottish immigrant, Donald Smith worked his way up the ranks of the HBC and helped shepherd the CPR as it worked its way west and east to Craigellachie.

Randy Lawrence in his "Metis Strathcona", a part of "Old Strathcona - Edmonton's Southside Roots" says that "Lord Strathcona's entire career was spent not only "looking out for number one" but in dedicated service to at least portions of the Canadian Establishment and to the British Empire. He helped create a new western Canda, tended over time to more and more identify Canada's, HBC's and the CPR's interests with his own and seemingly had no sruples. Examples of his lack of scruples include his betrayal of HBC "wintering partners"... and some of its institutions such as Fort Edmonton. The railway he and his cousin owned, the CPR, was used to defeat Riel in 1885..He drove the Last Spike only days before Riel was hung in Regina....

If you think this is muckracking I would quote Ernest Brown who did extensive research on the political and economic questions of his day - still very much the same questions today. not like whether to build a pipeline across Native land or to risk wholesale pollution on the West Coast but on why these questions arise - from the capitalist control of the economy. (A low-consumption lifestyle, if widely adhered to, would make the pipeline and oil tankers unnecessary. Alberta is wholesale selling its resources despite ecological risks, to try to ensure that oil company executives are millionaires, oil workers make $100,000-plus incomes (while they are working), and the Conservative Party gets power (to help their friends) and enormous campaign coffers. Why? because they want to and THEY control the economy and the politics of our day... For now anyway.

Here's what Ernest Brown wrote in regards charges of muckraking:

 

In his 30 or 40 years of research he wrote he had come across "things that ought not to have occured in public life."

Some people, he wrote, tell him to "write only of the nice things that people have done", but he wrote "if a perpetrator of some crooked deal knows he is going to be exposed it will give him pause."

On the subject of public swindles, Brown wrote of "the swindle by the chairman and others of one of Canada's largest insurance companies who manipuated funds paid in by policy holders to the tune of $200 M and which was exposed by J.J. Harpell, chairman of the policy holders' committee. - Surely, Harpell did a public service although no monument will be erected in Canada to perpetuate his name."

 

 

THE END