Kenaston in McCraney No. 282, Saskatchewan — The Prairie Region (North America)
Saskatchewan Valley Land Company
A Saskatchewan Historic Site
— Preserve Our Heritage —
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, July 20, 2022
1. Saskatchewan Valley Land Company Marker
Although the railway from Regina to Prince Albert was completed by 1890, the area between Saskatoon and the Qu’Appelle failed to attract large numbers of settlers.
In 1902, a syndicate was formed in Minneapolis. Incorporated as the Saskatchewan Valley Land Company, the ten members of the syndicate purchased 1,750,000 acres of land from the Dominion Government and the Qu’Appelle, Long Lake and Saskatchewan Railway Company. The prime movers of the operation were Colonel A.F. Davidson and Major-General McRae, both Canadian-born, and F.E. Kenaston of Minneapolis. The company was later reorganized under the name, Saskatchewan Valley and Manitoba Land Company, to sell an additional 4,000,000 acres of land belonging to the land grant of the Canadian Northern Railway.
In the period of the Great Saskatchewan land boom, which ended with the beginning of the first World War, the company sold over five and one-half million acres of agricultural land.
Erected by Saskatchewan Department of Natural Resources.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Railroads & Streetcars • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1902.
Location. 51° 29.956′ N, 106° 16.419′ W.
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 1 other marker is within 19 kilometers of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Hanley Fire Bell (approx. 18.3 kilometers away).
Regarding Saskatchewan Valley Land Company. The Saskatchewan Valley Land Company, a colonization company organized by midwestern capitalists, purchased over one million acres of land between Regina and Saskatoon. The settlement of land by the immigrants was vital to the community's growth. At the height of the boom in 1912, Saskatoon was Canada's fastest growing city, with an estimated population of 28,000. As Saskatoon's economy was dependent on the wheat economy, growth declined during World War I, the global recessions of the 1920s, and the Depression of the 1930s.
Also see . . .
1. Kenaston, Saskatchewan. Wikipedia entry:
First known as Bonnington Springs, in late 1905 when Saskatchewan became a province the name was changed to "Kenaston", honouring F.E. Kenaston, who was the Vice President of the Saskatchewan Valley Land Company. The railroad reached Bonnington in late 1889, but there is no record of any(Submitted on December 1, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)permanent residents until 1902. In that year the Saskatchewan Valley Land Company was formed made up of wealthy men from the United States. The president was Colonel Andrew Duncan Davidson and F. E. Kenaston was vice-president. By adopting spectacular methods of advertising and employing dozens of land agents, the wide-open spaces between Regina and Saskatoon were peopled with hundreds of settlers in the time between 1902 and 1910.Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, July 20, 20222. Old Kenaston Water Tower(marker is located beside the old water tower - just left of center)
2. Andrew Duncan Davidson. Dictionary of Canadian Biography website entry:
The Davidson brothers, joined by their partner Alexander Duncan McRae, arrived in Canada in 1902 to consummate one of the largest and most successful land transactions in Canadian history. Years earlier, the Qu’Appelle, Long Lake and Saskatchewan Railroad and Steamboat Company had obtained a charter to build a railway in the North-West Territories from Regina to Prince Albert (Sask.). The Davidson brothers and McRae, operating under the corporate identity of the Saskatchewan Valley Land Company, offered to purchase up to 1,250,000 acres of the land from the railway company and another 500,000 acres of homestead lands from the federal government; in return, they undertook to settle, within five years, a specified number of families in each township.(Submitted on December 1, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, July 20, 2022
3. Old Kenaston Water Tower
3. Saskatoon. Wikipedia entry
(Submitted on September 28, 2023, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.)
Credits. This page was last revised on September 28, 2023. It was originally submitted on December 1, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 155 times since then and 41 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on December 1, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
