Local History Book TOC: Spitzee Days by Bert Sheppard - High River - Foothills Contributed for use in Alberta Digital Archives by Leslie Yeager For "LOOKUPS" please visit the Alberta GenWeb lookup page for this county. http://www.rootsweb.com/~canab/lookup.html *************************************************************************** ALBERTA DIGITAL ARCHIVES NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed Alberta Digital archivist with proof of this consent. The submitter has given permission to the Alberta Digital Archives to store the file permanently for free access. *************************************************************************** Foreward- pg. 3 The word Spitzee was derived from the Blackfoot word Isptisi meaning high. The Blackfoot called this section of the country Ispitsi due to the tall Cottonwood or Balm of Gilead trees that grew along the river bottoms, and the fact that near the present town when the river overflowed its banks, some of the water ran down the Little Bow. So it came to pass that the river became known as High River, or Highwood River, and the town, that was originally referred to as The Crossing, due to the fact that the Macleod Trail crossed the river at that point, became High River. The first section of Spitzee Days gives a brief rundown of the High River country, the Stony Indians, the ranching industry, the growth of the town and the changing countryside due to the great influx of settlers during some of the early years of the century, also the experiences of Dr. Stanley and Bob Edwards when they arrived in High River, when it was still an unadulterated "Cow Town". The second section is made up of short stories of the people that hung around, how they lived, worked and played; happenings and viewpoints gleaned from early issues of the High River Times and stories of the advent of the automobile, the airplane, the radio,and the decline of horse power as a mode of transportation, and motive power. A few of these happenings I saw take place, other events were related to me through the years by old time residents of the district, people that I knew to be reliable. The illustrations were done by the budding cowboy artist, Rich Roenisch. The photographs were obtained from many sources. The composite of both sections, an insight into a bygone and distant age. Contents: page 5 Dedication 1 Foreward 3 Introduction 8 High River Pioneers 11 The Stony Indians 12 Early High River 19 The Prairie Fire of 1901 25 May Storm of 1903 25 Doctor Stanley 25 Bob Edwards 27 Reverie 39 The Great Influx 42 Bob Edwards Soliloquizes 53 Life at Cottonwood 53 North West Mounted Police 58 Old Ridge in the River 59 High River Trading Co. 60 Dr. Stanley Reminisces 62 Thomas Baird 67 The Way It Was 69 Chinook Wind Theories 71 The Lineham Lumber Co. 71 The 15th Light Horse 94 The Drag is Fascinated 96 The Drag Salutes the Bloods 99 The Band 99 Trapper Hill 100 The Blacksmith Shops 103 The Fires of 1910 105 Mr. Usher Shot Valuable Dog 110 The High River Club 112 The Old West 116 The First Car 118 Has No Use for Motors 126 The First Speeding Ticket 127 Buying Broncos 127 The 1912 Stampede 128 Wakes Slough 134 Great Dissolution Sale 137 Fun and Games 141 The Circus 141 The Town Herd 143 Sleigh Bells 146 Police Court 146 An Impudent Jap 149 He Should be Punished 152 Pig Tails 152 The Wildcats 153 Polo 156 Herbie Jones 159 Mrs. Rankin 164 Gambling 165 Jack Freeman & His Turkey Shoot 167 History Repeats Itself 170 The Fire Brigade 175 Comet Disappointed Us 178 Dave's Water Tower 178 A Serious Offence 181 The Boy Scouts 181 Mrs. Boole 190 Wybrow Shoots up the Court 191 Murder 191 Several Were Fined 192 The Pest House 194 Getting after the Gypsies 195 The Fish Wardens 199 Prohibition 200 D Company 137th Battalion C.E.F. 205 The Hard Winter of 1919-20 215 Shakerley's Shires 217 The English Corner 222 Our Neighbour Many Rabbits Brown 223 Edward Prince of Wales 229 St. Aidans 241 High River Airport 249 High River Hockey Club 249 The Appendicitis Epidemic 252 The Rodeo Boys 259 The Threshing Crews 259 High River Agriculture Society 262 The Highwood Trail 277 The Great Changeover 278 Page 8- Introduction Bert Sheppard was born on a Spitzee Ranch, when cattle ranching was Southern Alberta's main industry. His parents were early pioneers, and Bert received his early schooling in High River, and his higher education from the back of a horse. Spitzee country was peopled with many top cattlemen and horsemen, and at every opportunity young Bert worked with and for those men, acquiring skills that made him one of the best bronco-busters and cowboys in the country. In 1924, he bought some Hereford breeding stock, and soon his fine Herefords were recognized from east to west. At the time of his father's death in 1934, he bought the Riverbend place. In 1939, along with R.M. Patterson of the Buffalo Head Ranch and the Bews brothers of the Y Cross Ranch, The TL Ranch on Sullivan Creek was purchased, Bert acquiring the central part where the buildings were situated. In 1950 when Kink Roenisch and Bill Ardern bought the OH Ranch, Bert was hired to manage it. In 1957, he sold the TL and his cattle. 1961 found him as a partner in the OH, Bert and Doug Kingsford buying out Mr. Roenisch. In 1963, he retired from active management. A quiet, sensitive person, Bert has made a practice of observing, listening and remembering. He has taken time from his ranch life to put these stories down on paper, unvarnished and unabridged. The High River Historical Committee