Richard Fowler was born in Edson, Alberta in 1932. His parents were George Frederick of New Brunswick and Adeline Alice Gray, a Métis from Manitoba. Richard Fowler attended primary school in Rumsey, Alberta. In 1958, he moved with his wife Vera to St Albert. The couple had five children. In the early 1960s, Richard Fowler was a salesman of commercial heating, air conditioning and refrigeration. By 1963, he gained a seat on the council of St Albert and in 1965 he became mayor of St Albert. His first term as mayor ended in 1968 and in 1969 he began to work towards a Bachelor of Arts at the University of Alberta. By 1976, Richard Fowler obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Political Sciences and a LL.B. Following his schooling, from 1980 to 1989, Richard Fowler held the position of mayor of the City of St. Albert for three terms. Then, in 1989 he won an election for the position of Member of Legislative Assembly for the Province of Alberta under the Progressive Conservative Party. During his term as Member of Legislative Assembly, he served as Solicitor General, Minister of Municipal Affairs, Minister Responsible for Native Affairs and Justice Minister. He ran for a second term as Member of Legislative Assembly in 1993 but lost the election to Len Bracko. In December 1993, Fowler’s wife Vera Fowler died. In 1994 Richard Fowler became a family court judge. Various accomplishments during his lifetime include various public works such as Sturgeon General Hospital, St Albert’s provincial building, St Albert’s courthouse and Alberta Winter Games in St Albert during the 1970s. Richard Fowler’s second marriage was to Dawne Adeline Pusher. Richard Fowler died on July 8, 2012.
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.
Joyce Sharp grew up on a farm bordering St. Albert, now located between 156th Street and 149th Street.
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.
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.
Edward Jonas Callihoo (Callihoe) also known as Buck Jone, was born 18 Nov 1910 in Villeneuve, Alberta. His mother was Rosalie Campion, born on Turtleback Reservation in North Dakota, and his father was Adelaide St. Pierre Callihoo (nephew of Michel Callihoo). Nora Mae Borris was born 2 Dec 1914 to Annie Callihoo (daughter of Victoria Belcourt and Louis Jerome Callihoo) and Stoney Borris. Edward and Nora met at the Grey Nuns Convent in St. Albert and they were married on 10 May 1932 at St. Peter's Catholic Church in Villeneuve when Edward was 23 and Nora was 18 years old. They had six daughters: Evelyn Mary, Theresa Vivienne, Patricia, Loretta Germaine, Audrey Virginia, Linda Donna; and one son, Garry. Edward Callihoo passed away on 6 Dec 1978. Nora Callihoo died on 24 Jan 1993 from a heart condition. They are both buried in St. Peter's Catholic Cemetery in Villeneuve.
Maria Alina Łukaszewicz was born in 1925 in the village of Haciszcze Wielkie in Poland. Her parents were Antonina and Władysław Łukaszewicz. She was taken away to a camp in Siberia called Poldniewica with her family in February of 1940. At this camp in Siberia, Maria Łukaszewicz met her future husband Aleksander Romanko. After several years in an isolated forced labor camp, Łukaszewicz joined an exodus of Polish civilians through the southern USSR (including another stop of several months of forced labor in Uzbekistan) into Persia and southern Africa, where she lived in a Polish refugee camp in Rhodesia for several years, and the United Kingdom. In 1948 in the United Kingdom, she was reunited with Aleksander Romanko and they were married on April 30, 1949. In 1951, her first son was born, Bogumił, and in 1954 her second son was born, Lech Julian. She arrived in Canada in 1955 and the family lived at a friend’s place and rented a farm at Mystery Lake, Alberta. The family later moved to Edmonton where Maria Romanko studied education at the University of Alberta. In 1957, Maria Romanko was given a position as schoolteacher at Father Jan School in St. Albert, Alberta and she later taught at Vital Grandin School, St. Albert, Alberta. In 1960, she gave birth to a third son, Marek and in this same year, the family moved from Edmonton to St. Albert. While teaching, Romanko pursued a Bachelor of Education part-time and she earned the degree in 1968. In 1980, Romanko left Vital Grandin School and began teaching at Albert Lacombe School, St. Albert, Alberta. She retired in 1985.
Maria Romanko and her husband were actively involved in Polish Canadian community organizations. Some of the organizations in which Romanko participated included the Edmonton Polish Students Club, Polish Culture Society, Polish Academic Club, Polish Women’s Federation, St. Teresa Mission Circle, Sodality, and the Polish Combatants Association. The Romanko’s also played a key role in the development of a Polish Bilingual Program in Edmonton. During her teaching career, she would include Polish heritage in her students’ studies. To assist in her teachings on Polish heritage, Romanko wrote and published Polish Heritage in Alberta as well as an accompanying workbook. She had a unit on Polish heritage accepted as a Social Studies unit for Alberta Public Schools. In 1989, Romanko volunteered in the archives for the Polish community of Edmonton. After working on the archives for three years, she wrote an article in 1991 entitled “Opening of the Canadian Polish Congress Archives”, published in Heritage Links. In 1993, she worked in the archives for the Polish Holy Rosary Parish.
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.