Rural art of a sort

Spotted an old building and I quite liked the look of this door.

Surprise Cemetery

Abandoned cemetery in rural Saskatchewan located here: 50.339107, -109.968631

There must have been some more people here at one time. There is a farm not too far from this cemetery. Otherwise there is miles of empty space in every direction. There is no town anywhere close to here. The most recent burial I saw was 1943. There are a lot of unmarked burials.

Apparently the first church here was in 1924 and the last service was in 1956. The church was moved to Scandia, Alberta. 

Quick take: Koppernick Church

This is east of Camrose, Alberta. I wanted to spend a few minutes to take a few photos. The problem was the clouds of mosquitoes in the air. So a quick snap, one and done. Will visit another day.

Road trip

Maybe. The post cupboard does need replenishing. If it happens it would be a short one since I am off to visit mom on Sunday.

Old truck as farm yard art

Spotted this in a farm yard. The owner let me take a few photos.

Late night fake

This looks like a former one room schoolhouse. It kind of is a one room schoolhouse. It is a piece from a Canadian television show built for the show. Someone I know bought it when the show was over and moved it to their property.

The importance of agriculture

Further to my earlier post . . .

I should have consulted with Jason Paul Sailer, who occasionally contributes to this site, since he knows a fair amount about southern Alberta and southern Saskatchewan history. He was kind enough to message me the following:

"The separate church and cemetery down the road from the church on the corner was when the original church congregation split. A rift in the congregation in 1921 caused it to split, a large element of Russian / German descent settlers called ‘Kongregesers’ left and formed a new church half a mile west of the Zion church and was called the Evangelical United Church. The minority of the original congregation (the Brueder’s) remained in charge of the original church and cemetery. Horsham had a fair bit of stuff, but the town disappeared when the railway left and the grain elevators closed. The last bits were cleaned up in the 1980's/early 1990's."

Abandoned Evangelical Cemetery, rural Saskatchewan

Southwest of Horsham, Saskatchewan. I do not know if there ever was anything at Horsham, there certainly is nothing of note now. This is kind of interesting in that there is another abandoned cemetery and the remains of a church just less than one kilometre down the road. This is one of those "middle of nowhere" places so you wonder why there would be two churches relatively close together.

There once was a church here. You can make out the foundation in the middle of the photo.

Off in the corner is a fenced off area with some headstones.

No idea how many burials there are here. This is the most readable headstone I could find and I suspect it is the most recent burial.

Ditched

A black '59 Oldsmobile in a snow filled ditch.

All steel...no "plastic chrome" on this baby!

Tail fins were on the way out but not quite gone.

Photographed near Fidelity, Alberta on February 21, 2020.

- Michael Truman

Past Presence Website

Laura, Saskatchewan

From Dale and Lynn Redekopp

"Laura is a hamlet located southwest of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan on Highway 7.  Once a bustling community with commercial establishments, it now consists of mostly abandoned buildings. The elevator was burned by the owners years ago.  The primary reason people would stop in Laura more recently was to photograph the old church which is now gone."

Church photos taken in 2010. Photo taken in 2014.

Remaining photo taken in 2014.

Estuary Ferry, Saskatchewan

Located at: 50.944869, -109.802879

I had to fit in at least one ride on a rural ferry this year. With COVID rules you are not allowed to get out of your vehicle while on the ferry. That takes a lot of the fun out of taking a ferry.

Blumenfeld Church

This is about 15km south of Prelate, Saskatchewan. The church was built in 1915 and ceased regular services in 1962. These days it is a heritage site.

A tree grows in Saskatchewan

Well, to be fair, more than one tree grows in Saskatchewan. Sometimes you like to have a little fun with your provincial neighbour.

Cactus Lake, Saskatchewan elevator

I have posted this one on a prior visit a few years ago. There used to be rail line running past this elevator. Cactus Lake is one of those population challenged places.

Road trip?

Not this weekend. Unfortunately personal responsibilities are a priority.

Aspen School 1910 - 1944

Former one room school sitting abandoned in a field behind a barb wire fence. The windows on the other side are boarded up. I could see that side going along the fenceline looking through the trees. I could not get a decent photo of the other side without walking onto the propery.

East of Wainwright, Alberta.

Antelope

Saw a few hundred of these last weekend in Saskatchewan. A few will even hang around long enough to take their photo.

East of Wainwright, Alberta

If they park a train and then leave then it is an open invitation to take a few photos.