Coaldale in Lethbridge County, Alberta — Canada’s Prairie Region (North America)

Mennonite Settlement

Alberta's History

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, June 27, 2022

1. Mennonite Settlement Marker

Inscription.

Mennonite Settlement. Alberta's History. , Mennonites have been moving to Alberta for well over a century. Mennonite settlement stretches back to 1894 when Mennonites from Waterloo County, Ontario, established a settlement at Didsbury. Didsbury’s first building was a narrow log immigrant shed built to give the new arrivals a place to stay until they could move to their homesteads. Over the next 20 years more families came from Ontario and Manitoba, and from American states including Iowa, Nebraska, Indiana and Pennsylvania. Some settled in Didsbury but others went to other parts of the province including the Tofield and Carstairs areas. , In the 1920s some Mennonites left their homes in the Soviet Union and came to Canada. In Alberta, these families settled near Didsbury, Linden, Rosedale, and Coaldale. Settlers in the Coaldale area told of sleeping in granaries and weeding beet fields to get their start in their new home. Many had come as part of a Canadian Pacific Railway colonization scheme, and took up irrigated land in the area. The new settlers established churches, a bible school, a library, cheese factory, and a hospital. They tried to keep the German language alive by starting the Society for the Preservation of the German Language, and by holding German school on Saturdays. , Settlement spread to the Peace River area of northern Alberta in the 1930s when Mennonites from Saskatchewan moved west. Tales of difficult journeys on snowy trails and night skies lit by forest fires are part of many families’ lore. Along with farming, many trapped furs in their early days in Alberta’s north. Mennonite immigrants have continued to arrive in Alberta coming from many places including Mexico, South America, and other parts of Canada. , While Mennonite congregations differ on many aspects of religious and cultural life, they share a belief in pacifism and an understanding of the challenges immigrants face. Today, through organizations and outreach, Mennonites help others make the transition to life in Canada.

Mennonites have been moving to Alberta for well over a century. Mennonite settlement stretches back to 1894 when Mennonites from Waterloo County, Ontario, established a settlement at Didsbury. Didsbury’s first building was a narrow log immigrant shed built to give the new arrivals a place to stay until they could move to their homesteads. Over the next 20 years more families came from Ontario and Manitoba, and from American states including Iowa, Nebraska, Indiana and Pennsylvania. Some settled in Didsbury but others went to other parts of the province including the Tofield and Carstairs areas.

In the 1920s some Mennonites left their homes in the Soviet Union and came to Canada. In Alberta, these families settled near Didsbury, Linden, Rosedale, and Coaldale. Settlers in the Coaldale area told of sleeping in granaries and weeding beet fields to get their start in their new home. Many had come as part of a Canadian Pacific Railway colonization scheme, and took up irrigated land in the area. The new settlers established churches, a bible school, a library, cheese factory, and a hospital. They tried to keep the German language alive by starting the Society for the Preservation of the German Language, and by holding German school on Saturdays.

Settlement spread to the Peace River area of northern Alberta in the 1930s when

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Mennonites from Saskatchewan moved west. Tales of difficult journeys on snowy trails and night skies lit by forest fires are part of many families’ lore. Along with farming, many trapped furs in their early days in Alberta’s north. Mennonite immigrants have continued to arrive in Alberta coming from many places including Mexico, South America, and other parts of Canada.

While Mennonite congregations differ on many aspects of religious and cultural life, they share a belief in pacifism and an understanding of the challenges immigrants face. Today, through organizations and outreach, Mennonites help others make the transition to life in Canada.

Erected by Alberta Historical Resources Foundation.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Agriculture • Churches & Religion • Railroads & Streetcars • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1894.

Location. 49° 44.275′ N, 112° 34.043′ W. Marker is in Coaldale, Alberta, in Lethbridge County. Marker is on Crowsnest Highway (Provincial Highway 3) 0.8 kilometers west of Range Road 195, on the right when traveling west. Marker is located in the rest area on the north side of the highway. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Coaldale AB T0K 0R0, Canada. Touch for directions.

Also see . . . Mennonite Settlement in Alberta.

Marker detail: The Mennonite community in Rosemary built this hospital in late 1939 image. Click for full size.

Royal Alberta Museum, Cultural Communities Collection, PH 75.1.27

2. Marker detail: The Mennonite community in Rosemary built this hospital in late 1939

East of Edmonton, Mennonites live in towns such as Tofield and Stettler, and in central Alberta there are large numbers of Mennonites in towns and villages such as Beiseker, Didsbury, and Linden. Other localities with large concentrations of Mennonites can be found in southwestern Alberta (e.g., in Lethbridge, Pincher Creek, Coaldale, Taber, and north to Vauxhall) and southeastern Alberta (Medicine Hat and north to Duchess, Rosemary, and Gem).

(Submitted on July 11, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

Marker detail: Graduating class, Alberta Mennonite High School, Coaldale, 1950 image. Click for full size.

Courtesy Glenbow Archives, Calgary, PA-3703-6

3. Marker detail: Graduating class, Alberta Mennonite High School, Coaldale, 1950

The high school operated from 1946 until July 1964.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, June 27, 2022

4. Mennonite Settlement Marker

(looking north from highway rest area)

Credits. This page was last revised on July 11, 2022. It was originally submitted on July 11, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 285 times since then and 53 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on July 11, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.