On Monday July 31st Chestermere Historical Foundation member Kay Clarke will present the history of Chestermere starting with the earliest farm settlers, including the formation of the lake, the earliest plans for Chestermere and the Cabin Owners Association leading to the community that Chestermere is today. She will emphasize the interdependence of Calgary and Chestermere. Chestermere has been a home for many families since the late 1880’s. Their history will be part of the talk to be given on Chestermere’s History as a component of Historic Calgary Week. Kay, whose family has been in the community since 1909, will talk about these folks plus other facts which make this community unique. The Canadian Pacific Railway had land that needed to be settled, so irrigation was seen as a way to encourage settlers. Having a dream of turning the dry land into a fertile plain, visionaries like A.S Dawson, and William Pearce pushed the CPR to build an irrigation system. It was started in 1902 and in 1907 delivered the first water to a thirsty land east to Cluny, and northeast to as far as Rockyford. Thus began the history of this little lake as an agricultural necessity and then an ‘oasis’ for recreation both summer and winter. There were ideas of a magnificent residential development at Chestermere in the early 1900s, but what happened? Kay will tell us how the city of Chestermere has finally developed to the ‘swell’ community of those dreamers in the 1900s.
Join Kay at the Whitecapper’s Room, 201 West Chestermere Drive at 7pm for this FREE presentation. Everyone welcome, appropriate for all ages. For more information go to www.chestermerehistoricalfoundation.org and click on What’s Happening.
