From the Archives of Western Newspapers

By Samantha Johnson
Southern Alberta Newspapers
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

January 2, 1883 – The Brandon Daily Mail

A slight earthquake was felt in the southern part of Halifax just before midnight on New Year’s Eve. The watch night services were taking place at the time in the city churches causing something close to panic when the buildings started to shake.

Sixteen large bags of mail were received at the post office yesterday.

The train from out west was two hours late yesterday owing to an obstruction near Barrows station caused by several cars on the westbound freight jumping the tracks.

New Year’s celebrations far exceeded any previous efforts of giving a hearty welcome to the upcoming year. Lower Broadway was jammed with people, rich and poor, strangers and residents. Many came with noise makers and drums and were used with abandon, the consequence being that those who came to hear the bells of Trinity Church went away disappointed as, along with the crowd, the bells, steam whistles and horns of factories and steamboats made too much of a racket.

January 1, 1908 – The Gleichen Call

The Bow River is at last frozen over sufficiently for teams to cross and farmers from the Arrowwood Creeks and Queenstown are coming in daily with grain.

The Call promises 1908 will be a banner year and this paper will be better than ever. The paper is a day early this week as we like to start the New Year on time, but throughout the next year, we promise it will come out regularly on a Thursday. We’ve made some enemies in the past year, but we freely forgive them, and if they can do the same, we will be pleased.

This year I resolve to not drink unless I am dry, very dry. I will let people mind their own business and assist them all I can. That I will forgive my enemies, especially those I can’t whip. That I will strive to be in love and chatty with my neighbour if I see I shall need him to back me in some pursuit in the coming year.

January 7, 1910 – The Cowley Chronicle and
Lundbreck Advertiser

It’s been frosty in Cowley, with the thermometer hovering around 20 degrees below zero. The cold weather did nothing to stop the Alberta Hotel, one of the oldest and largest buildings in town, from burning to the ground, taking Parkers butcher shop along with it. There were no injuries and all occupants of the hotel, including seven children, managed to get out in time. The fire was started when one of the children dropped a lit match on a carpet. The hotel was owned by Mrs. Drew of Coleman and managed by F. W. Doubt. He and his family escaped with only the light clothing they were wearing. A bucket brigade spent the night watching the embers of the two buildings until morning as the high winds kept them bright and flying. The Chronicle building was saved due to the hard work of the firefighters. Many others had narrow escapes from the flying timber and buckets during the effort to contain the fire.

E.R. Benns, witnessed by E. B. Thompson, has issued a public challenge to the six men who are alleged to have drunk 22 four-gallon kegs of beer at Coleman on Christmas Day 1909, to come to Cowley and perform the same feat. The loser is to pay for the beer along with a side bet of $100.