The entry reads:
"A Canadian Pacific Railway station was established here in 1921 and was named after Colonel J.A. Hesketh, Assistant Division Engineer of the C.P.R. in Winnipeg. He was a graduate of the Royal Military College in Kingston in 1883. The post office operated from 1 December 1921 through 14 May 1969."
Hesketh is in a very narrow little valley with a steep road providing access on either side. A few people still live here. The community hall is still being used. The school is on someone’s property and has seen better days. There really is not much to see here and I did not see much evidence of a rail line or rail buildings. Not all excursions are winners. For pictures I posted the only interesting stuff. There are a few modern houses out of picture view that I did not include as some people still live here year round.
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| March 1, 2015. I think this is, or was, a garage. |
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| Schoolhouse. There is a modern house where someone lives just behind this building. |
One wonders how long those buildings will last due to the effects of weather there in Alberta. Great stuff.
ReplyDeleteMakes you wonder what the people left there do for a living. When Hubby and I traveled around through little towns, we would pick up the local newspaper. Some towns were so small it was only plublished once a week. Wish I had kept them all.
ReplyDeleteI went to school in Hesketh back in 1956-57.
ReplyDeleteWe immigrated from Germany and my Dad worked on the section there.
Raised on a nearby farm, I walked and biked to Hesketh School in 1945-1948 and rodee a school bus there in 1953-54. My mother also attended t in earrlier years. Originally built as a one room elementary school, a seond classroom was created in the basement for high school students. The little hamlet once had a number of businesses, including general store/post office, hotel, lumber yard, cafe, 3 grain elevators, Orange Lodge, pool hall, blacksmith, bank CPR section house, and CPR station house. It was the center of many social and sports activities, including dances, cards, sleigh riding, skating ad swimming at the creek, hockey, baseball, tennis and soccer. Lots of great memories here!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment and the history. Much appreciated.
DeleteI attended grade 1 in Hesketh in 1969,the last year the school was open. Loved it. Mrs. Peterson was a wonderful teacher and we had fabulous gym and recess time, playing outside. Wonderful memories.
ReplyDeleteWow, just for the fun of it I googled Hesketh, Alberta and saw this page. I spent the first 16 years of my life in Hesketh and went to school there from grade 1-8 so that would have been approx 1957-64 and then Carbon and Drumheller. Mrs Peterson was my mother and I am John. Unfortunately both her and dad just passed a few weeks ago in Grand Prairie. Please feel free to reach out to me to my email
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