Showing 117 results

Authority record

Pratt, Edmond

  • Person

Joseph Edmond Pratt was born in St. Vincent de Paul, Quebec in 1890. He studied in Ottawa at Sacré-Coeur Juniorat and continued his studies at St. Joseph's, Edmonton in 1917. In May 1918 at St. Joachim in Edmonton, Edmond Pratt was ordained a Roman Catholic priest for the order of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate. Father Pratt taught at the St. Jean Juniorat in Edmonton, AB (1918-1919), then served as a missionary in Fort Resolution, NWT (1919-1920) and was a teacher again at St. Jean Juniorat (1920-1922). He worked as a missionary in North Battleford, SK (1922), Saddle Lake, AB (1922-1929), Onion Lake, SK (1929-1930) and Le Goff, Cold Lake, AB (1930-1934). Father Pratt was principal of Onion Lake's residential school, St.Anthony's, (1934-1938) and Hobbema's residential school (1938-1939). He was treasurer of the Blue Quills residential school in St. Paul, AB (1939-1941) and returned to North Battleford (1941-1942). From 1942-1970 he was priest at Rivière-qui-Barre also known as St. Alexander Mission. During this time, he also was the chaplain of the jail in Fort Saskatchewan. Father Pratt died in 1970 and is buried at the oblate cemetery in St. Albert, AB.

Post, Victor

  • 2012.02
  • Person
  • 12 May, 1953 - May, 2001

Victor Post was born on May 12, 1953 in Port Colbourne, Ontario. His parents were Lena and Jack Post. Lena Post was born in Cudworth, Saskatchewan and Jack Post was from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Victor Post’s father was in the air force as a fighter pilot during World War II. After the war, the couple moved to Ontario. They had two children, Jack Jr. and Victor. In 1968, the family moved from Port Colbourne, Ontario to St. Albert, Alberta.

During his childhood, Victor Post was interested in and experimented with electronics. At age seven, he first made the news when smoke coming from one of his experiments brought the fire department to his home. From 1967 to 1971, Victor Post participated in various science fairs at local, national and international levels. He was particularly interested in holography and lasers. In 1969, Post participated in the 9th Annual Edmonton Regional Science Fair where he won third place. That same year he competed in the Canada-Wide Science Fair where he won first place. This win placed him in an international competition, the International Youth Science Fortnight in London, England where he presented helium-neon lasers for holography. During this trip he met with Dennis Gabor, a Jewish-Hungarian physicist who won a Nobel Peace Prize for his work in holography. Victor Post and Dennis Gabor corresponded for two years after meeting. While in London, Victor Post also had the opportunity to audit courses in Science and Arts at Cambridge University. In 1970, Victor Post participated in the Edmonton Regional 10th Annual Science Fair as well as the Canada-Wide Science Fair. In 1971, Victor Post participated in the Edmonton Regional Science Fair. Because of his interest in science, Victor Post began undergraduate work at the University of Alberta in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. He was able to attend courses at the university in the years 1971 and 1972 but due to health issues, he discontinued his studies.

Victor Post’s interest in photography also began at an early age. In the years 1965 to 1967 Victor Post studied portrait photography and black and white production of prints under photographer C. Healy in Ontario. In 1968, while attending Paul Kane High School in St. Albert, Victor Post worked as a part-time freelance photographer for the St. Albert Gazette. He worked for the St. Albert Gazette until 1971 when he gained employment by the Government of Alberta to photograph 4-H club and Junior Forest Warden Program activities until 1972. In 1972, he established Victor Post Photography.

From 1972 to 1986 the work at Victor Post Photography was done in the basement of Lena and Jack Post’s home. In 1986, Victor Post opened a photography studio on 8 Perron Street in St. Albert. Lena Post ran the business aspects of the studio and Victor Post managed the lab work. He hired people to help with taking photographs and lab work. The studio produced wedding and portrait photography. When on Perron Street, the studio had larger equipment than other local photographers on which to create oversize prints; this equipment included a large roller feed film processor and a large paper processor which produced 60 x 40 inch prints.

The Province of Alberta gave Victor Post many assignments to photograph dignitaries, official visits and events. His work as official photographer for the Provincial Government include:

  • 1978 – Royal visit of Queen Elizabeth II and the Commonwealth Games
  • 1983 – Royal visit of The Prince and Princess of Wales and the Universiade Games
  • 1984 – Papal visit of Pope John Paul II
  • 1985 – Royal visit of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother
  • 1987 – Royal visit of The Duke and Duchess of York
  • 1987 – Papal stopover of Pope John Paul II
  • 1988 – 1988 Winter Olympic Games
  • 1989 – Royal visit of King Hussein and Queen Noor of Jordan
  • 1990 – Royal visit of Queen Elizabeth II

In addition to his appointments by the Government of Alberta, Victor Post created scenic photography, Kirilian photography, aerial photography, and architectural photography. Included in his repertoire are photographs of famous people and politicians.

He was involved with various photographic professional organizations including the Royal Photographic Society of England, the Alberta Professional Photographers Association, and the Professional Photographers of Canada. He served on the board of the National Gallery of Canada and the Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography.

Outside of photography and science, Victor Post had other interests. He received PADI certification for scuba diving, attended private and commercial aviation schools, studied classical guitar, and served as an auxiliary constable for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Another interest of Victor Post included ham radio. A friend, Dave Gervais, had peaked Victor Post’s interest in amateur radio in the mid 1980s. By 1986, Victor Post acquired a license for ham radio. He was a member of the Northern Alberta Radio Club, Amateur Radio Emergency Services, Amateur Radio League of Alberta and Canadian Radio Relay League. In 1989 when he discovered King Hussein of Jordan also was a ham radio operator, Victor Post hosted a reception for the king and acquired a Canadian amateur radio license for the king.

With regards to his personal life, Victor Post married Kathryn Brown in 1981. When Victor Post was an auxiliary member of the RCMP, Kathy was working for the RCMP and they had met through Victor Post’s father. Victor Post struggled with Crohn’s disease throughout his life and died from the disease in 2001.

Plain, Richard

  • MHM
  • Person
  • fl. 1974 - 2004

Richard Plain served as mayor of St. Albert for two terms in 1974-1977 and in 2001-2004. Plain holds a doctorate and taught at the University of Alberta as an associate professor until his retirement in 2001. In 1979-1981, Plain was the chairman for the St. Albert Citizens Committee opposing Edmonton's proposal to annex St. Albert. For his work in this committee, Plain was named St. Albert's 1981 Citizen of the Year. Plain is married to Margaret Plain.

Plain, Margaret

  • MHM
  • Person
  • 30 Jun. 1941 - 30 Sept. 2021

Margaret Plain played a very significant role in the community of St. Albert where she lived since 1972. Plain helped found St. Albert Stop Abuse in Families (SAIF). She also served on the boards of various agencies and organizations including the St. Albert Historical Society, the Museum and Heritage Sites Board, Sturgeon General Hospital Board, and Capital Health Authority Health Board. Plain was also involved in the organization of many community events such as Celebrate 125, Homecoming 88, 1994 Alberta Winter Games, and Rendezvous 2011. She served on St. Albert City Council for 5 terms: 1986-1989 with Mayor Richard Fowler, 1989-1992 with Mayor Anita Ratchinsky, 1992-1995 with Mayor Anita Ratchinsky, 1995-1998 with Mayor Anita Ratchinsky, and 1998-2001 with Mayor Paul Chalifoux. In 2010, Plain was named St. Albert Volunteer Citizen of the Decade. Margaret Plain was married to Richard Plain.

Ouimet family

  • MHM
  • Family
  • 1869 -

Leda Provost, born on January 6, 1869, was from St. Charles, Quebec. She has 13 siblings and she was the eleventh child. In 1891 she married Joseph Adelard Ouimet at St. Rose Conte in Laval, Quebec. In 1892, the family moved to St. Albert, Alberta and farmed in Ray, also known as Glengarry or the Villeneuve district. The couple had eleven children including Emile Ouimet (1891-1891), Marie Bertha Emelda Ouimet (1892-1892), Joseph Roul Willie Ouimet (1893-1975), Yvonne Adele Ouimet (1896-1974), Marie Angelina Florina Ouimet (1897-1930), Filex Alfred (1899-1982), Marie Lina Ida Ouimet (1902-1979), Marie Leda Ouimet (1903-1903), Joseph Adelard Emile Alexis Ouimet (1904-1967), Marie Blanche Alice Ouimet (1905-1905) and Joseph Amede Simon Ouimet (1908-1978). Joseph Adelard Ouimet died July 1920 from a heart attack and Leda Ouimet died on February 1, 1930 from lung cancer.
WIlliam Ouimet married Ruth McDonnell on January 9, 1939, The couple had two children, Anita and Ralph.
Adele Ouimet married Theodore Comeau in November 1916. The couple had no children and lived in Legal and Villeneuve.
Florina Ouimet married Joseph Savoie in 1916 and had five children: Ed, Armand, Jeanne, Edith and Alice. She died at the age of 34.
Alfred Ouimet married Jeanne Monpetit of Legal in June 1924 and they had seven children. They owned a store and hotel in Pickardville and retired to Vancouver in the 1950s.
Lena Ouimet married Euclid Blais in April 1929. They farmed in the Pickardville area and then moved to Edmonton.
Alexis Ouimet married Lucile Mireault in July 17, 1928. The couple had six children: Adelard, Hubert, Alexia, Bernadette, Laurier and Denis. The family farmed north of Villeneuve and named their farm the River Dale Farm.
Simon Ouimet married Julia Verstraete on July 5, 1939. They farmed on Leda and Adelard's homestead. Their four children included Simone, Mona, Linda and Paul.

Onion Lake, SK

Earlier called “Wehahuskooseya Sakayekun” (Stinking Grass Lake), the Onion Lake area was a popular meeting place in the 1700s and 1800s as wild onions grew there which were desired after a winter diet of meat. The area was also a popular meeting place as it was located on the Fort Carlton to Fort Edmonton trail. Onion Lake is under Treaty 6 which was signed by Chief Seekaskootch and Chief Makaoo in 1896. A Roman Catholic presence existed in Onion Lake as early as 1866 with the first mass conducted by Father Mérer. Father Marchand, who founded the mission in 1884, wanted to open a day school in 1885; however, a day school was not granted until 1888 when the mission was under Father Vachon. In 1891, the first three sisters to arrive to work at the mission included Sister St. Ignace, Sister St. Stainlas and Sister St. Patrice from the Sisters of the Assumption. With the arrival of the sisters, the first residential school was open in 1891 and was named St. Anthony’s. The first residential school was a 30’ x 18’ frame building which replaced the previous day school. The school was destroyed by fire in 1894 and a three-floor building, 35’ x 45’, was made in its place. The ground floor consisted of a classroom as well as the girls’ workroom and the second story was used as the dormitory with the girls and boys’ sections divided. The building served as the school until 1927 or 1928 when the building was destroyed by fire. A larger school, at a different site, referred to as ‘Le Chateau’ or ‘the White Castle’ by the nuns was opened in 1928 and closed in 1968.

Musée Héritage Museum

  • Musée Héritage Museum
  • Corporate body
  • 1984 -

The Musée Héritage Museum is the first civic museum in St. Albert. It opened on May 31, 1984 in St. Albert Place with the mission of preserving the history of St. Albert and area. It opened its permanent exhibit in 1988. The collections were originally artifacts from the St. Albert Historical Society, but the Museum has continued to collect both artifacts and archival material. Services include exhibits on St. Albert history, especially Métis history, travelling exhibits, guided tours, education programs, special events, information and reference services, publications, and lending travelling exhibits and kits. The Musée Héritage Museum also functions as the St. Albert archives. In addition to artifacts and archives, the Museum also manages historic sites: the Little White School, the St. Albert Grain Elevators, and the Father Lacombe Chapel. The Museum is funded by the City of St. Albert under the Arts and Heritage Foundation of St. Albert, and it is managed by an independent board. The Museum's first Curator was Michael Tymchuk, followed by Acting Curator Peggy Fortier, then James Tirrul-Jones as Director, followed by Karen Korchinki, Alexandra Hatcher, and Ann Ramsden. The current Director of the Museum is Shari Strachan.

McDonald family

  • Family
  • 1917 - 2011

Alexander McDonald was born on May 2, 1869 in Ontario. His father was Angus McDonald and his mother was Catherine McPherson. He married Sarah McDonald on July 1, 1984. In 1895, Alexander McDonald purchased River Lot 8 in St. Albert, where he built the family house and barn. Alexander’s brother, Duncan George McDonald, also moved to St. Albert and purchased River Lot 9. Alexander and Sarah McDonald had four children: Christina (Tena) Catherine, Romeo (Romey) Alexander, Jeannette Anne, and Angus. Alexander McDonald passed away on December 28, 1940 and Sarah McDonald passed away on March 24, 1945—both are buried in the St. Albert Cemetery.

Christina (Tena) McDonald was born on July 18, 1896. She worked as a nurse at the Innisfail Hospital in the 1940’s and worked as a nurse’s aide at the St. Albert Youville Home in the 1950’s. She also worked for a short time for the Sisters of the Assumption in Battleford, Saskatchewan. She retired to the Youville Home in 1979, and passed away on October 1, 1983.

Romeo (Romey) McDonald was born May 8, 1898. On July 11, 1934, he married Kathleen McDaniel, born on July 2, 1907 in Belfast, Ireland, to Patrick and Bridget McDaniel. They had eight children: Patrick Alexander (b. 1935), Brian Donald (b. 1936), Desmond Joseph (b. 1938), Frank Anthony (b. 1939), Jeannette Bridget (b. 1942), Kevin Emmet (b. 1944), Sarah Alexandra (b. 1946), and John Gerald (1947). The family lived on River Lot 8. Romeo McDonald passed away on February 17, 1982 and Kathleen McDaniel passed away on April 11, 1983.

Sister Jeannette McDonald was born August 31, 1902. In 1923, she entered the novitiate of the Sisters of the Assumption at Nicolet, Quebec, and became known as Sister Marguerite d’Ecosse. She taught in in schools around Alberta and Saskatchewan from 1926 to 1968. In 1977, Sister Jeannette retired to the convent in St. Paul, but entered the Youville Home in St. Albert following a stroke. She passed away on March 2, 1983.

Angus James McDonald James was born June 7, 1905. He married Cecile Veness in February 1938 and they had two children, Joan and Donald. Cecile Veness was born on July 13, 1909 to Walter Veness and Rose Anna Leonard. Both were involved in the St. Albert community. Angus McDonald was a member of the Lions Club and the Knights of Columbus. Starting in 1958, he also served as a trustee for the St. Albert School District No. 3, and he later became chairman of the Board of Trustees until 1961. Cecile Veness belonged to the Women’s Institute, the Altar Society, the Catholic Women’s League, and the St. Albert 4-H Clothing Club.

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