Map showing Strathcona Park island in circa 1910 with bridge from Dominion Street and street layout on the island -- ESPLANADE ARCHIVES PHOTO
We have our very own resort island here in the Hat, Strathcona Island, except that it’s not an island anymore.
Before the settlement period, the island was visited by bands of Blackfoot and sometimes deceased band members were placed on platforms in the cottonwood trees. Most legends of the origin of the city’s name take place in the river adjacent to the island.
John James Lait immigrated to Canada from England in 1889 at age 20 and farmed near Winnipeg for 10 years before moving to Medicine Hat where he homesteaded on the island around 1899. However, in 1911, he was in arrears of his taxes ($52.67) and his land was sold for tax recovery. Lait became a house mover and later was involved in fur farming.
“Strathcona Park” became a private city subdivision in June 1911, when 50 acres were listed for sale. Strathcona was used to name many sites across the country, after Scottish-Canadian financier Sir Donald A. Smith was appointed Baron Strathcona and Mount Royal for his business, political and philanthropic activities in 1897. To create access to lots on Niagara Crescent in the new subdivision, the developers built a bridge from Dominion Street over a sandbar to the island in 1913.
Boy Scouts used the island for a camp and by 1913, there was a soccer pitch on the island. After the games, fans of opposing sides would duke it out. By 1914, at least four houses were inhabited on the island.
In 1916, ice blockages caused flooding and the small wooden bridge was carried away, leaving 10 residents marooned. A ladder was extended across the ice so they could evacuate. Council refused the residents’ petition for bridge repair. With only tenuous access by boat or footbridge, all residents had left by 1917. Contractor A.P. Burns arranged for the houses to be moved off the island.
In 1945, the Kinsmen proposed to lease the island for a Stampede grounds but the city determined that access was not practical. Two years later, flood waters filled the channel again. Various proposals were put to council to acquire or develop the island, including a poultry farm and an elk farm. In 1949, the end of Second Street was filled in to enable a scenic drive around the island. After Lions Park was developed in 1951, a fire burned over the island in 1955.
The island was retained for public use and in 1983, the Heritage Pavilion with its skating and boating pond was created. More recently, a boat launch and flood berm have become features of the island and Strathcona is now a major asset of the city’s park system. Guess we should drop the “Island” from the name however…
Malcolm Sissons is former member of the Heritage Resources Committee of the City of Medicine Hat.
