Population of Sask in 1921: 757,510
Population of Sask in 1931: 921,785 (third-largest in the Dominion)
The 1920s were boom years for Saskatchewan. It was widely believed that railways were as essential as rain and sun to progressive settlement of the Canadian Prairies; this outlook was the driving force behind the great burst of branch line construction across the Prairie provinces.
The year 1923 was a time of great excitement throughout Saskatchewan and, in particular, our home region. That year, the Canadian Pacific Railway revealed plans for a branch line to be built from the Amulet junction to Cardross. Sask Wheat Pool was in on the plan, with grain elevators set to be constructed over the next few years at the new delivery points of Bures, Edgeworth, Dahinda, Kayville, Wheatstone, Ormiston, Crane Valley and Cardross. New townsites were situated at these delivery points and old post offices moved to the new locations along the line.
Adding to the 1923 excitement, a camp of engineers and surveyors assembled near the proposed new townsite of Ormiston. The team was testing Horse Shoe Lake for mineral content. Their findings led to the development of a plant later in the decade, known to us as Ormiston Mining and Smelting.
This railway era was the beginning of the structured communities we call home. The grain companies, the mine site, the main streets, and the farmers and ranchers stayed and prospered because of the tracks. The railway also added to the economy and the growth of the new villages, with train station agents, elevator agents, section foremen and rail gangs.
The branch line boom was not a long era (by 1977, the line was recommended for abandonment), but it was a good era. It was the time of our parents and grandparents. Now, 100 years later, we want to celebrate this period, and get together with all who lived in the orbit of that rail line. We look forward to seeing you at the Ormiston & Friends Reunion taking place July 15th and 16th, 2023.
REGISTER at Ormistonreunion.com
Cheers,
The Reunion Committe
