Gladmar, Saskatchewan
Encyclopedia
Gladmar is a village
in the Canadian
province
of Saskatchewan
located 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) North of Highway 18
as it runs east from Highway 6
towards Lake Alma
. Gladmar is approximately 18.4 kilometres (11.4 mi) north of the International Boundary between Canada
and the United States
. It is one of two urban communities within the rural municipality
of Surprise Valley No. 9
, the other one being the village of Minton
. The area was settled around the turn of the 20th century, a period when a large number of Norwegians
migrated into Saskatchewan
from older settlements in the northern United States
. As a result, Norwegian-Canadians still represent a substantial proportion of the population in the area today.
Among the early settlers was J.E. Black who named the settlement Gladmar after his son Gladstone and his daughter Margaret.*
In 1910 the Eidness Brothers obtained a coal
lease on land in the Gladmar area from the government, with an annual rent of $1.00 per acre.
The first coal from Gladmar Mine was brought out in 1910, on a stone-boat
pulled by oxen. The price of coal was $1.75 per ton.* The mine was later sold to the Culberts and then to Ole Ekimo and Lorentz Petterson.*
In 1911 Mrs. J. E. Black was established as the settlement's first postmaster
and the first mail was brought to Gladmar by Lars Lunde on skis from a small school halfway to Radville
.*
In 1912 the first General Store was built by the Eidness brothers and the first church service was conducted by Mr. Hoffman in a new 14' by 18' (4.2 x 5.5 m) building in August 1912.*
The settlement began organizing a rural municipality and school district in 1912. This resulted in the rural municipality
of Surprise Valley
being created with Tom Warren as Reeve, J. E Black as councilor and Tom Black as secretary.*
In 1913 Violet Hammond was the first teacher of Gladmar's first School. It was located a few miles out of town and served Gladmar and the surrounding area.* This one-room school's official name was Ryeburn Valley and it was established within School District #4264.
The first recorded burial in the community-operated Gladmar Cemetery was in 1916.
In 1922 the Gladmar Hall was built and it was then regularly used for community gatherings.*
The Canadian Pacific Railway
reached Lake Alma
in 1926 and Minton
in 1929. Olaf Eidness loaded the first car of wheat in Gladmar. Grain elevator
s were built in Gladmar by Pool in 1929, and by Parish & Heimbecker in 1930. *
In 1944 a hospital was constructed to serve Gladmar and the municipalities of Surprise Valley
and Lake Alma
.*
In 1948 a new school was built within the town limits and the first teachers were Mrs. J. Ferguson and Mrs. John Onstad.*
s to the east. Gladmar is situated in the southern tip of Canada's grain belt, and due to a generally dry climate, soil erosion from strong gusting winds and rivers has long been a concern in the region. The area's natural resources include deposits of sodium sulphate and potassium sulphate, scattered oil pools
, coal fields
, and potash
& salt resources.
species. These species grow in the driest parts of North America's grasslands and usually consist of a single plant layer made up mostly of shallow-rooted bunch grasses that grow between 12 and 18 inches (30 to 46 cm) high.
Some plant species indigenous to the area include Western wheatgrass (Pascopyrum smithii), snowberry (Symphoricarpos)
, and silver sage.
Animal species that can be found in the area include: Golden Eagle
, pronghorn
, prairie rattlesnake (Crotalus viridis)
, sage grouse (Centrocercus), prairie falcon
s, bobcat
s, and porcupine
s.
Local fish in the area include: lake trout
, walleye
, northern pike
, and Arctic grayling
.
grocery store, and a local Citizens Club.
The Gladmar Regional High School has a gym
nasium.
The names of those who served are listed below.
Major crops in the area include barley
, canola
, durum
, flax seed
, oats
, spring wheat, and winter wheat
, with the most seeded acres dedicated to durum and spring wheat.
Local ranches raise various breeds of beef cattle
.
After the coal mine was closed many people were employed at the sodium sulphate plant outside of town. It was eventually purchased by Saskatchewan Minerals in 1981 only to be closed in 1984 in response to a shift in market conditions.
At present, there is an oilfield owned and operated by Northrock Resources Ltd. to the southeast of Gladmar and a Class II Industrial Oilfield Waste Disposal Facility operated by GAP Disposal 2001 Ltd. to the South.
Some five trucking companies operate out of the Gladmar area servicing the surrounding region's agriculture and oil sectors.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
in the Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
province
Province
A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.-Etymology:The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province," which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia," which referred to...
of Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
located 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) North of Highway 18
Saskatchewan Highway 18
Highway 18 is a highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It runs from Highway 13 near Robsart to the Manitoba border near Gainsborough, where it becomes Highway 3. Highway 18 is about 714 km long.-Communities along the route:...
as it runs east from Highway 6
Saskatchewan Highway 6
Highway 6 is a paved undivided major provincial highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It runs from Montana Highway 16 at the Saskatchewan border with the US near the Canada customs port of Regway to Highway 55 near Choiceland. Highway 6 is about long. The CanAm Highway comprises ...
towards Lake Alma
Lake Alma, Saskatchewan
-External links:*******-Footnotes:...
. Gladmar is approximately 18.4 kilometres (11.4 mi) north of the International Boundary between Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is one of two urban communities within the rural municipality
Rural municipality
A rural municipality, often abbreviated RM, is a form of municipality in the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, perhaps best comparable to counties or townships in the western United States...
of Surprise Valley No. 9
Surprise Valley No. 9, Saskatchewan
Surprise Valley No. 9 is a rural municipality in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It is located in southeastern Saskatchewan and is within SARM Division No. 2 and Census Division No. 2. Its population was 199 as of the 2006 Census.-Statistics:...
, the other one being the village of Minton
Minton, Saskatchewan
-External links:********-Footnotes:...
. The area was settled around the turn of the 20th century, a period when a large number of Norwegians
Norwegians
Norwegians constitute both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway. They share a common culture and speak the Norwegian language. Norwegian people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in United States, Canada and Brazil.-History:Towards the end of the 3rd...
migrated into Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
from older settlements in the northern United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. As a result, Norwegian-Canadians still represent a substantial proportion of the population in the area today.
History (1909-1948)
The original village of Gladmar was founded a few miles north of its present location in 1909.*Among the early settlers was J.E. Black who named the settlement Gladmar after his son Gladstone and his daughter Margaret.*
In 1910 the Eidness Brothers obtained a coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
lease on land in the Gladmar area from the government, with an annual rent of $1.00 per acre.
The first coal from Gladmar Mine was brought out in 1910, on a stone-boat
Stone-boat
A stone-boat is a device for moving heavy objects such as stones or hay bales. It was used with horses or oxen by the settlers of the Western United States, and is still sometimes used with tractors today....
pulled by oxen. The price of coal was $1.75 per ton.* The mine was later sold to the Culberts and then to Ole Ekimo and Lorentz Petterson.*
In 1911 Mrs. J. E. Black was established as the settlement's first postmaster
Postmaster
A postmaster is the head of an individual post office. Postmistress is not used anymore in the United States, as the "master" component of the word refers to a person of authority and has no gender quality...
and the first mail was brought to Gladmar by Lars Lunde on skis from a small school halfway to Radville
Radville, Saskatchewan
Radville is a small valley town in southern Saskatchewan, Canada. A small river, Long Creek runs through the north end of the town providing fishing and recreation to the local children and parents...
.*
In 1912 the first General Store was built by the Eidness brothers and the first church service was conducted by Mr. Hoffman in a new 14' by 18' (4.2 x 5.5 m) building in August 1912.*
The settlement began organizing a rural municipality and school district in 1912. This resulted in the rural municipality
Rural municipality
A rural municipality, often abbreviated RM, is a form of municipality in the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, perhaps best comparable to counties or townships in the western United States...
of Surprise Valley
Surprise Valley No. 9, Saskatchewan
Surprise Valley No. 9 is a rural municipality in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It is located in southeastern Saskatchewan and is within SARM Division No. 2 and Census Division No. 2. Its population was 199 as of the 2006 Census.-Statistics:...
being created with Tom Warren as Reeve, J. E Black as councilor and Tom Black as secretary.*
In 1913 Violet Hammond was the first teacher of Gladmar's first School. It was located a few miles out of town and served Gladmar and the surrounding area.* This one-room school's official name was Ryeburn Valley and it was established within School District #4264.
The first recorded burial in the community-operated Gladmar Cemetery was in 1916.
In 1922 the Gladmar Hall was built and it was then regularly used for community gatherings.*
The Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
reached Lake Alma
Lake Alma, Saskatchewan
-External links:*******-Footnotes:...
in 1926 and Minton
Minton, Saskatchewan
-External links:********-Footnotes:...
in 1929. Olaf Eidness loaded the first car of wheat in Gladmar. Grain elevator
Grain elevator
A grain elevator is a tower containing a bucket elevator, which scoops up, elevates, and then uses gravity to deposit grain in a silo or other storage facility...
s were built in Gladmar by Pool in 1929, and by Parish & Heimbecker in 1930. *
In 1944 a hospital was constructed to serve Gladmar and the municipalities of Surprise Valley
Surprise Valley No. 9, Saskatchewan
Surprise Valley No. 9 is a rural municipality in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It is located in southeastern Saskatchewan and is within SARM Division No. 2 and Census Division No. 2. Its population was 199 as of the 2006 Census.-Statistics:...
and Lake Alma
Lake Alma, Saskatchewan
-External links:*******-Footnotes:...
.*
In 1948 a new school was built within the town limits and the first teachers were Mrs. J. Ferguson and Mrs. John Onstad.*
-
- Historical data are from "History of Gladmar", which was compiled by the Gladmar Community Club in 1955. This was later republished within the book "Homesteading in Surprise Valley" also by the Gladmar Community Club in 1970.
Geography
Geology
The area surrounding Gladmar consists of rolling hills and valleys which flatten out into Salt lakeSalt lake
A salt lake or saline lake is a landlocked body of water which has a concentration of salts and other dissolved minerals significantly higher than most lakes . In some cases, salt lakes have a higher concentration of salt than sea water, but such lakes would also be termed hypersaline lakes...
s to the east. Gladmar is situated in the southern tip of Canada's grain belt, and due to a generally dry climate, soil erosion from strong gusting winds and rivers has long been a concern in the region. The area's natural resources include deposits of sodium sulphate and potassium sulphate, scattered oil pools
Oil
An oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....
, coal fields
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
, and potash
Potash
Potash is the common name for various mined and manufactured salts that contain potassium in water-soluble form. In some rare cases, potash can be formed with traces of organic materials such as plant remains, and this was the major historical source for it before the industrial era...
& salt resources.
Flora and Fauna
The plant life surrounding Gladmar consists of shortgrass prairieShortgrass prairie
The shortgrass prairie ecosystem of the North American Great Plains is a prairie that includes lands from the eastern foothills of the Rocky Mountains east to Nebraska and Saskatchewan, including rangelands in Alberta, Wyoming, Montana, North, South Dakota, and Kansas, and extending to the south...
species. These species grow in the driest parts of North America's grasslands and usually consist of a single plant layer made up mostly of shallow-rooted bunch grasses that grow between 12 and 18 inches (30 to 46 cm) high.
Some plant species indigenous to the area include Western wheatgrass (Pascopyrum smithii), snowberry (Symphoricarpos)
Symphoricarpos
Symphoricarpos, with common names in English of Snowberry, Waxberry or Ghostberry, is a small genus of about 15 species of deciduous shrubs in the honeysuckle family, Caprifoliaceae. All species are natives of North and Central America, except one native to western China...
, and silver sage.
Animal species that can be found in the area include: Golden Eagle
Golden Eagle
The Golden Eagle is one of the best known birds of prey in the Northern Hemisphere. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. Once widespread across the Holarctic, it has disappeared from many of the more heavily populated areas...
, pronghorn
Pronghorn
The pronghorn is a species of artiodactyl mammal endemic to interior western and central North America. Though not an antelope, it is often known colloquially in North America as the prong buck, pronghorn antelope, or simply antelope, as it closely resembles the true antelopes of the Old World and...
, prairie rattlesnake (Crotalus viridis)
Crotalus viridis
Crotalus viridis is a venomous pitviper species native to the western United States, southwestern Canada, and northern Mexico. Currently, nine subspecies are recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here.-Description:...
, sage grouse (Centrocercus), prairie falcon
Prairie Falcon
The Prairie Falcon is a medium-sized falcon of western North America.It is about the size of a Peregrine Falcon or a crow, with an average length of 40 cm , wingspan of 1 metre , and weight of 720 g...
s, bobcat
Bobcat
The bobcat is a North American mammal of the cat family Felidae, appearing during the Irvingtonian stage of around 1.8 million years ago . With twelve recognized subspecies, it ranges from southern Canada to northern Mexico, including most of the continental United States...
s, and porcupine
Porcupine
Porcupines are rodents with a coat of sharp spines, or quills, that defend or camouflage them from predators. They are indigenous to the Americas, southern Asia, and Africa. Porcupines are the third largest of the rodents, behind the capybara and the beaver. Most porcupines are about long, with...
s.
Local fish in the area include: lake trout
Lake trout
Lake trout is a freshwater char living mainly in lakes in northern North America. Other names for it include mackinaw, lake char , touladi, togue, and grey trout. In Lake Superior, they can also be variously known as siscowet, paperbellies and leans...
, walleye
Walleye
Walleye is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the northern United States. It is a North American close relative of the European pikeperch...
, northern pike
Northern Pike
The northern pike , is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus Esox...
, and Arctic grayling
Arctic grayling
Arctic grayling is a species of freshwater fish in the salmon family of order Salmoniformes. It comprises five subspecies native to the Nearctic and Palearctic ecozones. T. a. arcticus is widespread throughout the Arctic and Pacific drainages in Canada, Alaska, and Siberia, as well as the upper...
.
Attractions
Gladmar has a two-lane bowling alley, a cooperativeCooperative
A cooperative is a business organization owned and operated by a group of individuals for their mutual benefit...
grocery store, and a local Citizens Club.
The Gladmar Regional High School has a gym
Gym
The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, that mean a locality for both physical and intellectual education of young men...
nasium.
Demographics
Military History
Citizens of Gladmar answered the call and served for their country in each of the World Wars.The names of those who served are listed below.
World War I:
|
World War II:
|
Education
Gladmar Regional School which operates within the South East Cornerstone School Division is located in Gladmar. The school teaches students from Kindergarten to Grade 12 and enrollment as of September 30, 2006 was 111 students.Farming & Ranching
The majority of work within Gladmar and the surrounding area takes place on family-owned farms and ranches.Major crops in the area include barley
Barley
Barley is a major cereal grain, a member of the grass family. It serves as a major animal fodder, as a base malt for beer and certain distilled beverages, and as a component of various health foods...
, canola
Canola
Canola refers to a cultivar of either Rapeseed or Field Mustard . Its seeds are used to produce edible oil suitable for consumption by humans and livestock. The oil is also suitable for use as biodiesel.Originally, Canola was bred naturally from rapeseed in Canada by Keith Downey and Baldur R...
, durum
Durum
Durum wheat or macaroni wheat is the only tetraploid species of wheat of commercial importance that is widely cultivated today...
, flax seed
Flax
Flax is a member of the genus Linum in the family Linaceae. It is native to the region extending from the eastern Mediterranean to India and was probably first domesticated in the Fertile Crescent...
, oats
OATS
OATS - Open Source Assistive Technology Software - is a source code repository or "forge" for assistive technology software. It was launched in 2006 with the goal to provide a one-stop “shop” for end users, clinicians and open-source developers to promote and develop open source assistive...
, spring wheat, and winter wheat
Winter wheat
Winter wheat is a type of wheat that is planted from September to December in the Northern Hemisphere. Winter wheat sprouts before freezing occurs, then becomes dormant until the soil warms in the spring. Winter wheat needs a few weeks of cold before being able to flower, however persistent snow...
, with the most seeded acres dedicated to durum and spring wheat.
Local ranches raise various breeds of beef cattle
Beef cattle
Beef cattle are cattle raised for meat production . The meat of cattle is known as beef. When raised in a feedlot cattle are known as feeder cattle. Many such feeder cattle are born in cow-calf operations specifically designed to produce beef calves...
.
Industry
In the town's early beginnings many of its citizens were employed by the town's coal mine.After the coal mine was closed many people were employed at the sodium sulphate plant outside of town. It was eventually purchased by Saskatchewan Minerals in 1981 only to be closed in 1984 in response to a shift in market conditions.
At present, there is an oilfield owned and operated by Northrock Resources Ltd. to the southeast of Gladmar and a Class II Industrial Oilfield Waste Disposal Facility operated by GAP Disposal 2001 Ltd. to the South.
Some five trucking companies operate out of the Gladmar area servicing the surrounding region's agriculture and oil sectors.