Fort Edmonton

We took a day trip to Fort Edmonton, a Hudson Bay Trading Company fort established for the fur trade, which later became the general site for the city of Edmonton. We had some difficulty getting there because of construction and a bit of wayward navigation on my part.

The Wade Farm sisters are purchasing tickets for entry into the historical park:

There are three main parts of the park representing three different time periods. We board a restored train to get to the furthest part of the park – 1864.

 

Here we are.

We saw this old fashioned farm building on the way:

It is time to get off of good old car 304:

  

Here we are at Fort Edmonton, circa 1846:

Here are some views of the outside of the fort:

 

Any of the men (except the chief factor)  who were married were married to native woman as life in the fort was generally regarded as too rugged for European women. A guide told us a number of interesting things about life in the Fort in 1846.

There were a number of interesting items in the multiple occupancy married men’s room:

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The unmarried men’s quarters contained a couple of carpentry jigs.

Of course, the trading post was where all of the action was at. The main objective of the company was to trade for fur, particularly beaver. Here you can see a selection of furs and trade goods. One interesting exchange rate: 14 prime beaver pelts for one firelock musket.

  

Here are some example trade goods sold to the Indians and trappers:

Here is what the company was after:

 

Here is a shot of one of the guard posts from the inside of the fort. The design of the fort is known very well since some American spies mapped it out very well when contemplating an invasion of Canada in the 1830’s.

Here is a rather austere chapel:

   

Chuck is checking out the sundial. When we were there it was accurate to about 15 minutes.

This is the big house where the chief factor lived. It pretty much dwarfed the rest of the living quarters of the other 50-75 people living at the fort at the time. To  compensate, it was the coldest place in the fort. High ceilings and general open plan construction made it very difficult to heat.

As you can see above, it had a number of glass windows (the only house in the region to have them). The panes were shipped individually in barrels of molasses from the East.

Here are a few of the more interesting items in the chief factor’s house:

 

Here is a view of the ramparts from the chief factor’s quarters:

Bachelors’ Quarters:

There was some rather quaint labelling of the rest rooms>

We got a look at the shell of a boat that was used to ferry supplies and furs up and down the Northern Saskatchewan River;

 

N. Saskatchewan River

There was a small Indian camp set up for our benefit:

 

 

There was even a vegetable garden growing vegetables typical of the time period:

From 1846 we moved on to 1885.

Here are a few interesting carts/vehicles of the times:

 

Here is an old time shoe store:

Here is the inside of a school room:

  

This is a replica of a 1905 carpenter’s work place:

  

No 1885 rural community was without a blacksmith:

               

The town is now big enough for more than one fur trader:

The name says it all.

It now has its own bakery and delivery system:

The Mounties still have a presence.

Here is the government office in charge of handling land claims.

Here are some prospective settlers on the move.

Well, we have finally arrived at 1905.

The main street is dominated by the railway.

 

There is the ever present general store:

There are new fangled ways of amusement.

 

One new advance is the street car to take us back to the main entrance and amusement ride area.

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