History

Schools in Cochrane

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This old article recently came in CHAPS possession.  The original photo was taken by Ed Arrol, a teacher at the school.

This article was written during the Covid-19 pandemic so the resources of the Cochrane Historical Museum have not been available. Fortunately, CHAPS recently started using G SUITE which converts pdf files to text. This allowed me to convert the article “Schools in Cochrane” on page 127 in More Big Hill Country for use in this post.

In the late 1890s, James Quigley and Donald Bruce decided that a school was needed in the Hamlet of Cochrane. They had enough children between them of school age and there were some of the Hewitt children ready for school as well so the application was made for a school and a one-room building was erected in the east end of Cochrane. The first teacher was Mr. George Bevan. 

The school soon became too small so the school, formerly the saloon, from Mitford, was moved to Cochrane and placed on the Grayson/Bruce property on what is presently Centre Avenue. The building was placed facing north and south and became a school for the small children around 1900. This building was later bought by the Masonic Lodge and is currently their home. 

These two buildings appear to have served the hamlet until 1918 when a two-room Brick School was built on Main Street near the present Holy Spirit School. In 1926 a second storey with two more rooms was added to the Brick School and the little school was used as a gymnasium for the children. It is said that there were sets of boxing gloves hanging on the wall of this small gymnasium and many of the boys learned to box there. 

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This arrangement seemed to be fine for the population attending the Cochrane School until, as the population increased and roads were being built, it became necessary to have more room. In the late 1940s or early 1950s, a white clapboard sided one-room school was moved onto the property near the Brick School and this little school was used until about 1956. From 1957 to 1961 grades five and six were taught in the “white school” as it was called. It was later moved to the outdoor skating rink in Cochrane’s east end and was used for many years as the rink house. 

It was during this time that the number of children in the town was increasing and one-room schools were starting to close so some of the parents of the children and other citizens in Cochrane facilitated the building of a new elementary school on the Main Street site. Many children had to go to Calgary for high school as it was not being taught in Cochrane. These parents succeeded in getting a new school built to house all the students. At this time around 1955-1956, Mr. Grant was teaching grades nine and ten in the basement of the Community Hall. They used the upstairs for their gymnasium. 

The new Cochrane Elementary School was built in 1957 and it housed grades one to four. It had six rooms and a gymnasium and grades five and six were housed in the little white school. Grades seven, eight and nine were in the old Brick School and during this time the Cochrane School Board and the parents were working on plans for a larger school. In 1958 there were 250 students in grades one to twelve. 

The new Cochrane High School opened for the 1962-63 season and it offered grades nine, ten, eleven and twelve. By 1968-1969 construction began on a new elementary school addition to joining the Cochrane Elementary School. Construction was going along well on the new addition being added to the east end of the elementary school and the contractors had large propane tanks and their new construction area covered with tarps so that the cement would not freeze and work could continue through the colder months. One night a wind got up and blew the tarps onto the propane tanks and a large explosion took place. It did not damage the new building site but managed to move the old Brick School off its foundation. This then proved another problem, 

“Where do we put these students?”?

 The grade five and six classes were scheduled to move into the Brick School but that could not happen now as the old school had to be dismantled and removed from the site. These classes remained at Cochrane Elementary and in grade seven they were moved up to the High School. It was a scary thing to have to move up to that big school however they had a party at one of the homes where all the kids and a lot of parents gathered. Mr. Sly, a teacher from the High School came and they all got to know each other and support each other during this “BIG” move to the new big school up on the hill. 

The new elementary school was completed and officially opened in 1968-1970 with a new name, Andrew Sibbald Elementary School. The school was named after Andrew Sibbald, the first school teacher in Alberta who had come to Morleyville. The school now had a Library, a Science Room, a large double room, new administration offices and new entrances. It looked after students from grades one to six until Manachaban Middle School was opened in 1972. The name Manachaban was also chosen in a contest open to everyone, students, town and surrounding area residents. Manachaban means a hill of bows and arrows and is very fitting for that location. 

Shortly after Andrew Sibbald School opened portable classrooms had to be added to the north side for Mrs. Eddie Edge and Mr. Gunn to teach Math. Bruce Davies, Vice Principal and John Edwards taught science, Miss Armstrong, music, Mrs. Nu, Ed Errol and Jim Jenkins, Principal had classrooms in the new wing. The old wing was redecorated and Mrs. Otteson, Mrs. McPherson, Miss Bennett, Mrs. Scott, Mrs. Jones and Mrs. Elliot enjoyed the teacher’s lounge, the library and all the other up-to-date facilities. 

Many students passed through the doors of Andrew Sibbald Elementary School and the other Cochrane schools before it. More schools have been built as the town has grown adding Elizabeth Barrett, named after the first woman school teacher in Alberta who also came to Morleyville, an addition to Cochrane High School, Glenbow Elementary, Mitford School, Bow Valley High School and St. Timothy High School. Sadly. Andrew Sibbald School closed and was sold to the Catholic School System and is now Holy Spirit School. It is hoped that when a new school is built in Cochrane it will be named after Andrew Sibbald. As Andrew Sibbald taught in this area first it would be a great tribute to our history

Cochrane Legacy Statue

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March is Women’s History Month, Its October in Canada. In light of that, I thought I’d research the “Chicken Lady” statue on main street Cochrane. Certainly not a complete list, the friends and families of 40 women had their names added to the base of the statue.

The sculptors are Don & Shirley Begg and the statue cast by Studio West here in town.

A Project of the Cochrane Centennial Celebrations Society. Unveiled June 17, 2003.  On the occasion of Cochrane’s 100th Birthday

A tribute to the women of character and perseverance who have built and nurtured the social fabric of our community. Those whose names are inscribed in the base have been so honored by the contributions of their families and friends. They represent generations of women whose hard work laid the foundation for the life of this community.

The project was also made possible by the contributions of the Cochrane and District Community Foundation, Fred Whittle, and the Cochrane Rotary Club.

Sculptors Don & Shirley Begg created this bronze statue of a woman feeding chickens as a tribute to prairie farm women. The original statue, “Egg Money”, is in Fish Creek Provincial Park, Calgary, Alberta. It includes the figures of a boy and a girl. This statue, and a second one in Saskatoon, are based on Egg Money.

Names are impressed into the base of the statue:

Violet DesJardins

Rose McGonigle

Eleanor (McArthur) Berwick

Sarah (Ellis) Edge

Mabel Robena Turner

Gertrude Copithorne

Annabelle (Quigley) MacKay

Mildred Camden

Helen Scott

Mary Crowe

Edith (Callaway) Towers

Annie Beynon

Jemima "Mamie" Callaway

Lady Adela Cochrane

Janet (Johnston) Sibbald

Amy Begg

Letha Whittle

Susanna Nagy

Ethel Margaret (Munro) Crawford

Bertha Harbidge

Ida (Brodie) Edge

Christine Jacobs

Glendale Women's Institute est 1925

Winnie Wearmouth

Emily Lathwell

Yvonne Callaway

Sophia Beynon

Flora Garson

Vernice (Towers) Wearmouth

Marjorie Spicer

Ellen (Ullery) Bryant

Christina Smith MacKay

Jessie Louise Bateman

Isobel (Allan) Fenton

Alice Miriam Callaway

Betty (Hanes) Birchall

Claudia Edge

Nan Boothby

 

 

Cochrane Today has an article on the original model for the statue here.

Interested in more Cochrane History?

Copies of More Big Hill Country are still available. The original Big Hill Country is out of print.
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Cochrane 2003 Centennial Calendar

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One of the treasures we recently received from Edith Edge is a calendar from not too long ago.  It’s a calendar from Cochrane’s 100th anniversary. Produced by the Centennial Committee assisted by the Town Of Cochrane and CHAPS it contains some fascinating information about our history.

We’ll give an overview here and each month display the calendar from that month on our social media pages.

Click image for larger view

There are so many changes since 2003.  It’s also nice to place what used to exist with what exists now! The Murphy Hotel sat where the Royal Bank is now.

Click image for larger view

Cochrane became a village in 1903.

1908 A small pox epidemic caused isolation tents to be setup near the river.

1909 Davies house built that became first hospital.

2002 Population at census 12,074

 

Corral by Colin Low – NFB

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Darcy Scott found this NFB film and wonders if anyone recognizes locations.

Western ballads played on guitar are the only sounds used in this romantic portrait of a cowboy. He rounds up wild horses, lassoing one of the high-spirited animals …
— Read on www.nfb.ca/film/corral/

Recovering from the flood, Looking forward

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Our exhibits this summer are really coming together. We cant wait to show you.

All our exhibits will reflect how horses impacted the growth of our town. We’re certain well have some facts that you didn’t know.

This past year has been a challenge with 2 floods of the Cochrane Ranche. The Museum is put back together but we’re still working on restoring or replacing some of our exhibits. Here is a slide show that shows our progress.

 

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Famous Cochrane Horses

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Article by: Tim Collard & Mark Boothby

This article was published in the Cochrane Times March 4th, 2020

CHAPS exhibits at the Cochrane Historical Museum for the 2020 season will be on the impact of horses on the town and area. From the practical use of horses to horse racing, polo, steeplechase, rodeo and serving in World War 1 many famous horses were raised in the area. This article focuses on race horses and will be the first of several. Photos courtesy of the Glenbow Archives.

“The Dude”:

Owned by D.W. Kerfoot, The Dude won one of the first recorded horse races in Cochrane. In 1891, W.D. Kerfoot and his brother-in-law, William Bell-Irving, competed in a match race which Kerfoot won by a nose. The Dude was the first of many Kerfoot horses to win races in Cochrane.

“Konrad”:

Purported to be the first thoroughbred in the North West Territories (then comprising Alberta and Saskatchewan) Konrad (sometimes spelled Conrad) was imported from England by the Bow River Horse Ranch around 1886. Konrad and another horse called Moss Trooper were the first thoroughbred sires used in the Cochrane District.

“Dixie Land”:

Dixie Land was another Kerfoot horse. In 1895, Kerfoot won races at both the Cochrane and Mitford race meet and the Calgary race meet onboard Dixie Land. The horse would go on to win races across the continent, including in Winnipeg and San Francisco before eventually being sold and shipped to Australia where it continued to win races on the Australian racing circuit.

“Cyclone”

Cyclone was bred by G.E. Goddard of the Bow River Horse Ranch and was the offspring of another famous horse imported by the Bow River Horse Ranch, “Juryman” who had won the Belmont Stakes before being imported to the Cochrane area. Goddard raced Cyclone as a two-year-old before selling him to A.J. Murphy of Cochrane in the 1890s, Cyclone and Dixie Land were the most famous racehorses in the West. Cyclone won almost every race he entered, with victories in Cochrane, Calgary, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Grand Forks, ND, and Windsor. Sporting Murphy’s green and gold silks, Cyclone was one of the most successful horses to come out of the Cochrane area.

“Smokey”

Another famous Cochrane horse, Smokey, owned by D.P. McDonald, was famous for his jumping ability. In 1914, at the Calgary Horse Show, 17-year-old Smokey set a record for the highest jump by an Alberta bred horse when he cleared a seven-foot hurdle with Cochrane boy, Percy Sawtell, riding him. This was Smokey’s last public appearance and his record stood until 1925. Though Smokey rose to prominence under the ownership of D.P. McDonald, Smokey was bred on the Kerfoot ranch before being sold to D.P. McDonald.

Remembering Library Founders

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Once called the Nan Boothby Memorial Library, now the Cochrane Public Library, CHAPS held a meeting last night to gather information on the original volunteers who established and maintained the Library.

Thanks to Fay Lewis, David Beatty and Gordon Davies who gave their families history of how the library came into being, why it was so vital to a small community and how a group of volunteers gave it life. 

 

David Beatty, Fay Lewis, Gordon Davies

Our goal is to put together a history for the Museum as well as to present the information to the Library Board in April.

Signage when called the Nan

Pat Hutchinson Interview

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CHAPS is searching for family histories before those memories are lost. We are attempting to record family stories in 5-10 minute videos.

If you’d like to participate please get in touch.

Pat has provided us with interesting photos of the Hutchinson and Perrenoud homesteads north of Cochrane. We’ll put this information in a video in the future.

Thresher at Perrenoud's
Steel wheeled tractor

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Cochrane Cafe

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I came across this menu from the Cafe on my desk this morning. The Cafe was such a Cochrane favourite that I want to share. I’ll also see if the Museum wants it as an artifact. The menu was from February 2015. Interesting that the directions are from Mackay’s.

Getting off the ranch for a meal, even one so close as ours was a real treat. I can’t imagine how many Ginger Beef and fried rice I had.

Grand Valley Steeplechase

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It is written about on page 54 of the Big Hill Country.  We are interested in more details of the steeplechase,  but also would like to see if we can get the “Presidents Trophy” for inclusion in the equine exhibit next summer.
 
We’ve heard the “Presidents Trophy” may be held by Tim Lawrence who was once living on a ranch east of Red Deer.  
 
If you have a story about the Grand Valley Steeplechase or know of the whereabouts of the Trophy, please give us a call at 587-777-6926 
Steeplechase at Cochrane - photo courtesey Glenbow Archives

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Cochrane Lions Rodeo History

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Cochrane Lions and CHAPS held a joint event at the Cochrane History Museum last night. The topic was about the history of the Cochrane Lions Rodeo which has been a local favourite since the mid-60s.

Thanks to Ted Westerson and Keith Garner for their wonderful stories of the rodeo and Cochrane.

Cochrane Lions have allowed us to copy the photos used. Ask if you’d like to take a closer look.

Team Roping

Cochrane Ranche Photo Gallery

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Larry Want received some photos of the Cochrane Ranche and area from the Stockmen’s. We had them on display at our Christmas celebration. We’ve scanned them and made them available here.

The feature photo is one of the few I’ve seen of the Cochrane Ranche herd. (1882/83)

All photos courtesy of Glenbow Archives.

The photos are:

  1. Bow River Ranch Dining Room
  2. John Beams 12 miles north of Cochrane
  3.  Grand Stand 
  4. Howard Chapman’s General Store 1904
  5. Rev. Wood Sam Wigmire Morley late 1800’s
  6. Picnic Grand Valley Kerfoots mounted
  7. Main Street 1890
  8. Cochrane no year listed

We’re all in this together – Ellen Perrault

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Ellen mentions the small-town character of Cochrane and her memories of Milt, Hugh Wearmouth and I believe she meant Mildred Camden.

Has Harry become a “Remittance Man?”

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Of course not. Although, the current headlines made me smile when I jokingly drew the similarity to earlier times. There was a time before W.W. 1 when British families sent wayward sons to Canada and paid them a monthly stipend.

Remittance Man, a term once widely used, especially in the West before WWI, for an immigrant living in Canada on funds remitted by his family in England, usually to ensure that he would not return home and become a source of embarrassment.

John Colombo - The Canadian Enclycopedia Tweet

I remember stories from Dad about local remittance men. It sounded as though they led very interesting lives. 

The following poem confirms that some of their lives were better for it.

There's a four-pronged buck a-swinging in the shadow of my cabin, And it roamed the velvet valley till to-day; But I tracked it by the river, and I trailed it in the cover, And I killed it on the mountain miles away. Now I've had my lazy supper, and the level sun is gleaming On the water where the silver salmon play; And I light my little corn-cob, and I linger, softly dreaming, In the twilight, of a land that's far away. Far away, so faint and far, is flaming London, fevered Paris, That I fancy I have gained another star; Far away the din and hurry, far away the sin and worry, Far away — God knows they cannot be too far. Gilded galley-slaves of Mammon — how my purse-proud brothers taunt me! I might have been as well-to-do as they Had I clutched like them my chances, learned their wisdom, crushed my fancies, Starved my soul and gone to business every day. Well, the cherry bends with blossom and the vivid grass is springing, And the star-like lily nestles in the green; And the frogs their joys are singing, and my heart in tune is ringing, And it doesn't matter what I might have been. While above the scented pine-gloom, piling heights of golden glory, The sun-god paints his canvas in the west, I can couch me deep in clover, I can listen to the story Of the lazy, lapping water — it is best. While the trout leaps in the river, and the blue grouse thrills the cover, And the frozen snow betrays the panther's track, And the robin greets the dayspring with the rapture of a lover, I am happy, and I'll nevermore go back. For I know I'd just be longing for the little old log cabin, With the morning-glory clinging to the door, Till I loathed the city places, cursed the care on all the faces, Turned my back on lazar London evermore. So send me far from Lombard Street, and write me down a failure; Put a little in my purse and leave me free. Say: "He turned from Fortune's offering to follow up a pale lure, He is one of us no longer — let him be." I am one of you no longer; by the trails my feet have broken, The dizzy peaks I've scaled, the camp-fire's glow; By the lonely seas I've sailed in — yea, the final word is spoken, I am signed and sealed to nature. Be it so.
Robert W. Service
The Rhyme of the Remittance Man

Children and Art – Ursula Reynolds

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Ursula Reynolds talks about teaching in small town Cochrane during the 70’s and a acquiring a special painting of the Cochrane Rodeo.

This video is from our 100 Stories for 100 Years series by Barry Thorson.

What stories would you to to see?

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Intro to Cochrane Ranche Archaeology

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Through our collaboration with the Stockmen’s Association we came across photos of the archaeological dig at the Ranche summer of 1977.

It’s very exciting to see these photos. We’ll dig deeper into the results in a future blog. For now, here are just a small sample.

The Ranche was nearly 4 Townships in size

Cochrane Ranche is an important historic site in Western Canada. As the first attempt at a large-scale ranching operation, the ranch may have provided only modest returns for its investors; but for Western Canada the experimentation and developments encouraged more ranching that was to provide a foundation for the future. -

Roderick Heitzmann​ - Author of Study Tweet
The bunkhouse and Managers residence were studied

Cellar Roof

Recovering artifacts

Thousands of artifacts were recovered. The dig was summarized in the following document.

Fancy plate Relics

Wash pan relic from Bunkhouse

Read the entire study here

A True Story – Cathy Thompson

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Why do people immigrate to Canada? Cathy Thompson relates a story of the Donnelly’s travels and reasons for. Be aware the details are pretty grim.

Another video in the 100 Stories for 100 Years series.

Miss Bell-Irving – Cathy Thompson

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Cathy Thompson remembers Miss Bell-Irving in the first of her videos from 100 Stories for 100 Years. This video series was produced by Barry Thorson back in 2005.

 The Bell-Irving home mentioned is on William St.

Luggage Cart Renos complete

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This year CHAPS received what we suspect is a luggage cart that was used at the Cochrane CPR Train Station. Wayne Hilland ran a garage that was just across the street from the train station and likely rescued the cart before the station was demolished.

CHAPS members Mike Taylor and Lonnie Basiuk took on the task of restoration.

We will be placing the cart outside of the museum sometime in May or June.

Lonnie Basiuk & Mike Taylor (L-R)

When we looked at the cart back in November, we figured it was original because the wood was worn and there was lichen growing on the deck but it wasn't. We know it wasn't the original because of the hardware and the screws that were used,

Mike Taylor Tweet

The 4 by 4’s are hardwood and likely from Eastern Canada. We believe they are original.

Approximately 100 hours of restoration were required to take the cart apart, sand blast the original parts, replace and rebuild the cart. Many of the original parts were re-used. The wheels, lower undercarriage and trim are original. 

Reconstruction took place in the Want Quonset during November and December. Mike was hopeful Reno’s would have taken a week but it required striping down and replacing parts. They were hopeful we could sand the trim but we had to sandblast at a place called Consolidated Compressor. We completed the sandblasting in 2.5 hours.

We did find a number on there, 2414.

Lonnie Basiuk Tweet

The metal was primed then  painted with “Tuscany Red”. This colour closely matches the original. 

We think that baggage carts for CP and CN were constructed by the same manufacturer. We’ve tried to track down these numbers. When you think of it every station had one of these carts. We think the cart came from the late 1800’s, early 1900’s due to the square bolts used. We need to get into places like Heritage Park to do more research.

Mike figures with all the construction materials the cart weighs in a three quarters of a ton and yet when you pick it up it moves just beautifully. It’s got big wide wheels so it doesn’t fall into cracks. It’s extremely well designed.

Cost of renovations was just under $1000.00

Chain hanging is part of braking system
Hitch can be locked in upright position

The Cart was offered to CHAPS by the family of Wayne Hilland. We are grateful for this addition to our exhibit. We are planning on placing the cart outside of the Cochrane Historical Museum, spring of 2020. We will let you know the date of the dedication.

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Uncle Vincent & the Dynamite Yarns

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Don Hutchinson remembers when dynamite was advertised in the Western Producer and was used on the Perrenoud Ranch. He has a handful of “dynamite” stories.

He continues with stories about his Uncle Vincent.

This is Don’s second video recorded in 100 Stories for 100 Years by Barry Thorson.

Turner for the Worst – Don Hutchinson

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We have a couple of videos in our 100 Stories for 100 Years collection where Don talks about his child hood heroes Bobby Turner and Dennis Wearmouth.

This tale is about the mischief Don and Bobby Turner got into.

Merry Christmas 2019

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CHAPS Christmas Party 2019 was a wonderful get together with friends, supporters and members.

As people walked in Larry had displayed some photos we received from the Stockman’s.  I’d never seen most of them before. We’ll create a couple of posts from these very interesting photos of the Cochrane Ranche bunk house and manager’s home.  Most of the remaining photos were from the 1890’s of residents and main street.

 

Shirley Thomas and Della Boothby welcomed everyone
Building on Main pre 1900, details to follow
Kerfoot outing pre 1900
George and Lonnie telling stories
Wally Irons had some amusing stories
CHAPS wishes everyone a safe, happy Christmas

Poets, Painters, Authors, Musicians & Athletes

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While creating our YouTube channel to store our 100 Stories for 100 Years collection by Barry Thorson I learned of the wide range of renowned Cochrane residents. I hope to flesh out that list in a future post.

While flipping through More Big Hill Country I discovered this poem by Bobby Turner and followed up by reading  their family history

The Eagle and I

As I ride in the storm I am not alone

It seems to me I am just coming home.

Ernie Thompson’s pack-saddle sits on old buck,

Gord Davies hobbles on the neck of Chuck.

Frank Hutchinson said, “don’t leave any rope slack.”

Carl’s brand on the fly that covers one pack.

From my father, Frank Newsome, and many others,

I learned ways of the wilderness: I didn’t have brothers.

From three older sisters I learned much of course,

Because each one of them was good with a horse.

With Wearmouths or Bowhays, some of the best 

There were many a time our skills were put to the test.

Audley Richards was the first one I’d ever seen

Put a pack on a horse, and since then I have been keen.

To learn from each packer, a new trick or two

And from watching real close I learned quite a few;

Respect for the horse from Dr. Don Moore

Be careful in rivers, Hayward taught me for sure.

With all these teachers I won’t have a fear

To ride in the mountains with a packstring this year.

And somehow packing horse will be much more fun

I can teach a few tricks to some of my sons

The chill of the wind will not bother me

For just like the eagle; I’m wild and free.

If not in the flesh, then in spirit and mind.

And when I must leave this real world behind

With my good wide Sunni right by my side

Together on the wings of the eagle we’ll fly.

So don’t shed a tear for me my good friend

I have rode with the wind: I will ride again.

Bobby Turner - January 1996

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