Category: Our Stories

cut knife cemetery gates
Our Stories

Cemeteries & Family Histories

Clayton McLain Memorial Museum

The Cut Knife Cemetery, like so many others in Saskatchewan, is over one hundred years old and, meandering through on a Sunday afternoon, it is easy to recognize the older graves. Lettering has eroded on many of the softer marble stones and names and dates on others have filled with mosses and lichens, both of which make the inscriptions difficult to read and the graves to identify. A few headstones have broken, a few plots have remained unmarked for reasons unknown. Perhaps, there are records that can fill in the gaps, perhaps not.

lichen covered grave marker

Cemetery records everywhere, especially the older ones, are notorious for being lost, or damaged, or destroyed in fire and flood. This makes it especially difficult for families who are searching, at a distance, for an ancestor. A grave connects a person to a place and provides a context; a grave marker records vital statistics. Sometimes, a marker can also shed light on a personality through the choice of epitaph, the presence of religious or association symbols, nicknames, etc. When both records are no longer accessible, a vital piece of family history is lost.

wooden cross

Many rural cemeteries are cared for by volunteers and are just not in a position, financially, to undertake large restoration projects. In addition, the volunteer hours required to clean, photograph and annotate a whole cemetery of headstones is probably not realistic, either. Maybe, a simpler approach would work . . . providing online accessibility to researchers. . . 24/7?

CanadianHeadstones.com is a volunteer-driven, not-for-profit organization that archives photos and text of cemetery grave markers submitted by individuals or cemetery committees. The CMMM has listed it on our Family Histories page as a genealogy resource. The Cut Knife Cemetery and the Carruthers Cemetery are already represented online with a number of photos to view for each.

The next time you’re wandering through your local cemetery with your phone or digital camera, consider digitizing your family’s headstones and sharing them online with those who may be searching for them. In all probability, if any part of the headstone is illegible, you or a family member would have the knowledge needed to record the correct information.

~ Debbie M.

archives files
Archives, Our Stories

Acquisitions: To Accept a Donation . . . or Not?

Clayton McLain Memorial Museum

On March 17, 2015, the Cut Knife Chamber of Commerce dissolved. The organization had been a part of the Town since, at least, the 1970s and had hosted some well loved community traditions including the May Long Weekend Garage Sale, Oktoberfest and the Canada Day Pancake Breakfast at the Museum. However, now that it had disbanded, the question arose: What was to become of its records?

The first box of materials – with signed Transfer of Ownership, to the right. The items will be organized along timelines, described, filed in archival boxes and stored.

The Clayton McLain Memorial Museum and Archives has established a set of guidelines that helps us to determine whether, or not, a potential donation fits our mandate. These criteria were designed to keep us on track. Our display space, our storage space and our volunteer resources are limited. By following our Significance Worksheet, we eliminate duplication and we maintain the museum’s focus on the stories directly relevant to the area.

Honestly, if it were up to the individuals of the Acquisitions Committee and the Board of Trustees, we’d probably take in everything that was offered to the Museum. Most of us have a weakness for collections, for antiques, for documents and books or for items of a sentimental nature but that approach is unworkable. So, we’ve set up a procedural based upon what other museums are doing and we work at creating a unique, manageable collection reflective of the people, events and history of the Cut Knife area.

The Archives is a climate and light controlled, dust and pest free area.

The records of the Cut Knife Chamber of Commerce will be accepted into the Archives because they fit – to a tee – the requirement for historical significance: “. . . collection [that] contributes to changing the course of local history or [has] an impact on development of community.” The boxes of materials will be processed and, in time, will be available to the public for viewing or research.

~ Debbie M.

prairie winter view
Our Stories

Bert Martin’s Cabin

Clayton McLain Memorial Museum

Homesteading in the early 20th century, on the wind-whipped stretches of prairie was no easy task for new immigrants. Often, they knew little about farming and, even if they had experience working the land, surviving a Saskatchewan winter would still be a bitter struggle. Much of their success would depend upon how well they were able to make preparations before the cold weather hit.

First shelters were often considered temporary, constructed quickly with whatever materials a settler could afford or could find on the land. Tents and caves, sod or tar paper shacks were common, replaced by log, frame or stone houses as the homesteader’s fortunes improved. Severe weather events like droughts, floods and cyclones were widespread as were their consequences – fire, insects, mud, and hailstones.

Bert Martin’s Cabin, circa 1920

Winter would be the worst. Blizzards with extreme temperatures and wind chills, little visibility and drifting snow could shut down an entire area. A settler needed a supply of food and firewood to survive until the roads were passable, again. He would need wool blankets and quilts, lamp fuel and something to occupy the long days of solitude and isolation.

bert martin's cabin, rear wall

Imagine living in a shelter like Bert Martin’s: A log cabin, plastered with mud to keep out the wind, a small wood stove for heat and a few small, windows to let in the weak winter sun. There’s a dirt floor, a single bed, a table and chair, a few pictures to decorate the walls but it’s a simple dwelling. Could you imagine living like that for a year or two? It’s humbling to think about how many homesteaders did.

~ Debbie M.

Archives, Our Stories

SK Archives Week 2015

Clayton McLain Memorial Museum

CMMM DEBUTS ONLINE EXHIBITS

The Clayton McLain Memorial Museum and Archives will celebrate Saskatchewan Archives Week 2015 with the presentation of two online events at cmmmcutknife.ca.

At noon on Wednesday, February 4th, “The History of the Cut Knife Downtown Business District” will make its website debut. This page will feature the research put together by CMMM volunteers for the Town of Cut Knife’s Centennial celebrations in 2012.

Information was sourced from the CMMM Archives, the Highway 40 Courier, local history books and local residents with long memories. The signage was originally displayed outdoors over the 2012 summer season. By uploading these documents to our website, we are pleased to be able to contribute to Saskatchewan’s online documentary heritage.

The second event, at noon on Friday, February 6th, will introduce a Genealogy Resource page for all those working on family histories. This should be considered a work-in-progress as the addition of relevant website links will be ongoing.

Please note the Museum Administration and Archives Centre (MAAC) is closed for the winter. These are online events at: cmmmcutknife.ca.

For more information, call (306) 398-2345 or email cmmmcutknife@gmail.com.

archives week 2015 poster
2015 Archives Week poster

~ Debbie M.

Archives, Our Stories

Ancient Trail Mapped

Clayton McLain Memorial Museum

FROM EAGLE HILLS TO MANITOU LAKE

manitou lake battleford trail by lloyd how
By Lloyd How

Lloyd How’s interest in local history and archaeology is reflected in a new acquisition to our archives.

Ancient trails crisscrossed this country mapping the routes that were used by the First Nations, the European explorers, the North West Mounted Police and then the immigrants that followed. One such trail crossed the lands that Lloyd and his wife, Noreen, lived on before they retired to the town of Cut Knife. They both grew up seeing the evidence of the trail as indentations in the prairie soil and recognizing that it is disappearing.

This ancient trail was used by the local River Cree as they traveled from the area where the Battle and Saskatchewan Rivers joined at the Eagle Hills (Battleford) to Manitou Lake, Sounding Lake and further into Alberta. These lakes are considered sacred by the First Nations and were often visited via the trail.

Anthony Henday used this trail in 1745 as he made his way through what is now Western Canada.

Along the trail are many areas that were used for centuries for camping, hunting and trapping. Lloyd consulted local Cree elder, Wally Simaganis, written historical accounts, and locals who remembered seeing the trail. Then he spent countless hours exploring and mapping.

Thank you, Lloyd and Wally, for all of your work in the mapping of this ancient trail to keep alive stories of this corridor and the fading memories of those who walked or rode along it.

~ Lucille B.