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Alberta Online Encyclopedia

Early Settlement


Federal Land Office

On April 10, 1909, the dream of a Métis colony was abandoned, and St-Paul-des-Métis was officially opened to outside settlers. Potential homesteaders had lined up all morning at the Dominion Government Land Office, hoping to get first crack at the area’s rich farm land. Many small businesses also emerged, aiming to capitalize on the arrival of new customers, and the tiny town of St-Paul-des-Métis began to take shape as a developing western settlement. Hotels, a lumberyard, a post office and telegraph office, and supply stores were among the first enterprises to line the streets of St-Paul-des-Métis.

The first eastern settler

Many of the new arrivals at the Land Agency were French settlers from the surrounding areas and Québec, however, homesteaders from all backgrounds, including Ukraine and the United Kingdom, were also eager to stake their claim. Over the next decade, the town blossomed. By the roaring Twenties, there was a town council, and, in 1936,  St. Paul was officially granted village status.

 
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