From the Archives of Western Newspapers

By Samantha Johnson
For Southern Alberta Newspapers

February 6, 1884 – The Calgary Weekly Herald

Col. McLeod only received one tender for building the bridge across the Elbow River and it is generally thought those plans are on too expensive a scale. He has asked for plans of a bridge costing less money and, once received, a meeting of the contributors will be called and a contract awarded. We think no time should be lost in the matter as, not only can the bridge be built for less money now than when the ice breaks up, but during the breaking up, the river will be almost impassable.

Apropos of the removal of the post office, we understand two parties are applying for the position of mail carrier thinking, no doubt, that businessmen will be glad to pay extra for the delivery of their letters rather than spending the time going so far after them. The people should not be so inconvenienced just to promote the personal interests of the Postmaster.

The report of Dr. Henderson in another column regarding several cases of typhoid fever in Medicine Hat and the alarming ravages of the same disease in Winnipeg makes us think we are singularly fortunate people here in Calgary. A great many people are living in homes they would have deemed insufficient, even as summer abodes, in Ontario, yet no sickness to any extent prevails.

February 6, 1908 – The Frank Paper

A two-month manhunt extending across Western Canada and into the USA for Mike Phillips, the man believed to be responsible for the brutal murder of Monte Lewis, ended Friday last. Phillips was apprehended at the house of his wife near Edmonton, which the Mounted Police had on surveillance based on information from Seargent Haslett of the Frank detachment. Monte Lewis was the keeper of a house of ill repute and the motive for her murder is thought to be robbery as it is believed she had a large sum of cash on her person at the time of her death.

Mr. A. Smith, formerly the mine inspector for Alberta, recently returned from a 75-mile trip up the Saskatchewan River to the Goose encampment where he witnessed a fire in a coal seam that had not been opened up. The seam outcrops onto a river and ignited due to a forest fire burning in the area. Mr. Smith was to determine the best way of extinguishing the fire but determined it would cost more to put it out than the cost of damage the fire would cause. He predicts it would only burn five feet of the seam each year and the burnt area can be cut out when the seam is opened.

The provincial government intends to supplement the Village Act to provide more workable regulations regarding sanitary affairs. Presently, enforcement under the current act is difficult. The pollution of streams will be investigated under the new act and the chief sanitary inspector for the province will soon be visiting the Pass.

February 2, 1911 – The Bow Valley Call

The CPR train No. 1 was very late reaching Gleichen on Tuesday evening and when the usual crowd of passengers rushed to meet it, they were surprised to see no passenger car on the train. As the train came to a standstill, the baggage car door slid back revealing a crowd of people within, some with heads and hands bound up and splattered with blood. A trunk was conveniently placed to allow them to alight onto the platform. The accident occurred about 18 miles east of Gleichen where a large snowdrift, about 10 feet high, saved three of the four cars from overturning. Two first class passenger cars, the dining car and a Pullman all went off the tracks, with one of the passenger cars overturning on its side.

The Edmonton Land Office will throw open 1.4 million acres of land, or sixty townships, for homestead purposes next month. It is expected this will be followed by the greatest rush for land ever witnessed in Alberta’s northern capital.

A well-dressed man created a scene in the Bank of England recently, giving the detectives a serious fight before he was overpowered. The bank detectives had their attention diverted to this individual, who was behaving suspiciously as he mingled with the crowd in the vicinity of the teller’s windows. Noticing the officers approaching, he attempted to escape and made a desperate fight when seized. A fully loaded revolver was taken from his pocket when he was overcome. The man claims to be the son of Queen Victoria and only wanted to withdraw some money. He is currently under observation at hospital.