Holden Historical Society Museum
4928 - 50 Avenue T0B 2C0 Holden, AB, Canada

This photograph, circa 1910, shows Bernt Chetney and Ed Logan hauling the first telephone poles to the Holden district from Wetaskawin. I wonder what they would have thought of the advent of wireless communication?

St. Mary's Catechism class with Fathers Kominatsky & Sawchuk posed for this photograph back in 1942

This photo of the Keggers is circa 1982. See anyone you recognize?

The October 10th, 1917 edition of "The Holden Herald" carried this announcement from the Military Service Branch regarding an exemption for farmers. This would have allowed some of them to stay home rather than fighting in the trenches of WW1.

Remember party lines? Here's a page from the Rural Telephone Co's long distance toll record. This is a record of Line # 4-5 from 1953. See any names you recognize?

Historical Society Members have noted tonight that you too, could be "Young at Heart" with Estelle Getty! Fun finds down at the museum

Featured today are long time Holden residents John and Anna Romanission - who are sorely missed by their friends and family. Pictured on the parade float is Anna in 1999. This float went from the Lodge and down main street. Also pictured is the home on 50th ave that Anna and John lived in, which they purchased in 1968. Next, we have John and Anna holding their grandchild, Tracy Jones. Next, we have three of their great-grandchildren posing underneath the "Welcome to Holden" s...Continue reading

For the Fallen BY LAURENCE BINYON With proud thanksgiving, a mother for her children,... England mourns for her dead across the sea. Flesh of her flesh they were, spirit of her spirit, Fallen in the cause of the free. Solemn the drums thrill; Death august and royal Sings sorrow up into immortal spheres, There is music in the midst of desolation And a glory that shines upon our tears. They went with songs to the battle, they were young, Straight of limb, true of eye, steady and aglow. They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted; They fell with their faces to the foe. They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning We will remember them. They mingle not with their laughing comrades again; They sit no more at familiar tables of home; They have no lot in our labour of the day-time; They sleep beyond England's foam. But where our desires are and our hopes profound, Felt as a well-spring that is hidden from sight, To the innermost heart of their own land they are known As the stars are known to the Night; As the stars that shall be bright when we are dust, Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain; As the stars that are starry in the time of our darkness, To the end, to the end, they remain. Source: The London Times (1914) https://youtu.be/a2b6S0hIjJk

Pictured here is Oscar Burnstad and his canine companion, "Ghost of Russia".

On July 24th, 1969 a fire started in the Alberta Wheat Pool elevator in Holden. It was a complete loss.

Holden Elementary students and staff posing in 1936 or 37. See anyone you know?

How many young ones can fit on the back of a horse? These Talbot school kids were determined to find out!

Here we see members of the Holden School staff from the late 1950's. Do you recognize your teacher?

If you had picked up a copy of "The Holden Herald" 102 years ago this month, you might have been tempted to pick up some "Old Dutch Cleanser" to scour your pots and pans. -From the September 12th, 1918 edition

BOYS’ CHAMPS Holden Junior High recently won the County of Beaver boys’ volleyball championship. Back row, left to right are, Coach John Emerson, Neil Shihinski..., Neil Dewari, Marcel Zowtuk, Wayne Ogrodnick, and Pat Kawalilak. Front row, from left, Jack Ducharme, Leonard Kawalilak, Darrell Malick, Clayton Jeffrey, and John Marcinkoski. This image appeared in The Tofield Mercury dated Nov. 27, 1975.

Jacob Ritland built the first blacksmith shop in Holden in 1912. He faithfully served the people of Holden and the surrounding area until he passed away in 1936, except for a few years when he lived near Ryley.

Pleasant Ridge School: 1905 This was the first school in Holden. It was located 1/4 mile north of the present school site. This photo was donated by Kathleen Hurum.

International Museum Day

At 4:10 in the morning on April 29, 1903, 110 million tonnes of rock fell from Turtle Mountain and destroyed a portion of the sleeping town of Frank. Today, 117 years later, we are remembering those who were lost in Canada's deadliest rockslide. #MuseumFromHome

Memories of Holden Ezra Eberhart Hemstitches and Hackamores, p. 294-295... "Born in the Martins district I naturally became a member of the Holden community. Growing up on the family farm I was fortunate to receive the grand total of eight grades of school. The school being on the home half section, most of the transportation was by walking, except in extreme weather when someone would take us to and from school. I had about four years of 4-H work in the grain division, and recall someone trying to impress on us, that we try to leave the community in as good, or better, state than we found it. I had the opportunity as a youngster to spend some days on the road with Father who was the road maintenance man. It was a kind of picnic for a kid, as we would stop at a water hole to feed and water the horses and have our lunch. The time came when I took over some of this work. I will never forget the day when I caught my first R.C.M.P. I had crossed a deep mud hole, and filled it nice and level with dry dirt. It wasn't far till I made my turn, working my way back, when I heard a motor behind me. I turned off the road and an R.C.M.P. drove by, turning down his window he said, "Thanks Mac", and made a speedy departure. The first thought that entered my mind was "I'll catch you in that mud hole". Surely over that hill there sat my R.C.M.P. up to the motor in mud, an innocent trap, but it sure worked. Of course I had to pull him out and direct him to a better road. Nineteen years later I recall being caught by my first R.C.M.P. for a minor traffic infraction. ...The farming that I do now, I do because I have the privilege of loving the work. It is mostly with cattle and horses, and of course there must be a friendly dog. So now, sixty years behind the times I'm trying to win the confidence of a pair of three year old Percherons to do my winter chores."

http://www.prairie-towns.com/holden-images.html

This wonderful undated photo submission of the west side of main street was sent to us by Marilynn Ratke! Thanks Marilynn for the great photo! If you have any historic photos or stories about Holden and the surrounding area, we'd love to hear from you!

Auction Sales were frequently held down at the Holden G.T.P. stockyards. The stockyards were located to the west of the old town elevator site, and directly south of the old train station. This allowed for efficient loading and unloading of stock.

Memories of Holden, by Orlough Paul Thomas "My first stay in Holden was when I was a teacher at Palmer School. I think the two most embarrassing times I can remember were the first day I taught there and at the end of the year. I started in 1924. That was a bad year for farming, from the standpoint of prices. As I had not been paid for some months before this I had not been able to buy any new clothes. The suit I had was getting pretty thin in spots and was not too safe. Abou...t ten minutes before the bell in the morning, I saw a paper in the aisle and reached down to pick it up. As I did this I felt the seat of my pants disintegrate. For the rest of the day I had to write on the board with my back to the board and try to get it across my shoulder. It was an excruciating day. Believe me, it was some way to start out in a new school! ...There was quite a bit of moonshine around this district while prohibition was in effect so a lot of people made their own brew and sold it. Most of it was liquor that was very clear, like vodka, made from wheat and potatoes. Those who wanted to drink would buy a bottle or two of this, which was usually in pop bottles and sold for a dollar or two dollars a bottle. One day Bob Morrison, a policeman from Tofield, was making a call at a house in this area where a lady was making moonshine. She had a new brew in a pail inside the door of the kitchen, when she looked out and saw the policeman coming in at the gate. Very resourcefully, she put the mop in the pail and when he got to the door she was scrubbing the floor. With the smell so evident, he said nothing after looking around, and was amused to see her wasting good moonshine, however she missed a costly trip before the magistrate." If you have the Holden history book, "Hemstitches and Hackamores", you can read more about Orlough Paul Thomas and his memories of Holden on page 168.

News Release Library and Archives Canada’s major acquisition of the declassified journals and military records of Canadian supersoldier James "Logan" Howlett A...pril 1, 2016 Gatineau, Quebec Library and Archives Canada (LAC) Logan was born in 1882 in Cold Lake, Alberta, Canada, to wealthy landowner Elizabeth Howlett and her grounds-keeper Thomas Logan. Logan’s journals provide valuable insight into his early life in Canada, including work as a miner in a British Columbia stone quarry, a fur trader for the Hudson's Bay Company, and a homesteader in the Canadian Rockies. His military career spanned multiple conflicts, making his personnel records an unprecedented study in Canadian military history. Logan was gravely wounded in action many times, and gained a reputation as a gritty survivor. Quick Facts WWI: captain in the Canadian Armed Forces (Devil's Brigade). Fought at Ypres in 1915. Wounded by a sword through the chest. WWII: Returned to the Devil’s Brigade in the Second World War, as an allied spy and paratrooper for the 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion during the Normandy landings on D-Day. Cold War: based in Ottawa and Calgary, worked for both CSIS and the CIA. Logan later changed his operative name to ‘Wolverine’, and worked with various NGOs. Canadian Armed Forces Canadian Heritage 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion Canadian Security Intelligence Service Canadian War Museum Canadian Museum of History