Historica+Fair+Reports

 __The Battle of the Belly River__ by Jayden, Travis and Cody In 1870 the Blackfoot and Cree fought at Belly River which is now the Old Man River. They fought over land because land meant power. Many Cree and Blackfoot people died that day. Today this battle site is known as Indian **B**attle Park.
 * We participated in the Historica Fair program this year. A Historica Fair is like a science fair only the focus is Canadian History. In groups students created three dimensional projects on local history topics. They also wrote reports, sharing what they had learned. Check out some of these reports below. Remember your comments are appreciated. **

The Blackfoot were a more powerful group because they had had the Bloods and the Peigans. Whenthe Cree came they thoughtit would be easy to win the land because many Blackfoot died of smallpox. However, the Blackfoot had repeating rifles as well as many warriors with spears and arrows. Many more Cree died than Blackfootand so they did not get the land or win the battle.

The Blackfoot people lived in southern Alberta and part of the United States. The Cree people lived further north in Alberta and in Saskatchewan. Both groups lived in similar ways. Both lived in tipis, both depended on the buffalo for food and wore clothing made from the hides of animals. They were a lot alike but they both wanted the land where Indian Battle Parkis today. At the time of the battle the area was dry prairie. There were some trees where the warriors hid from each other. Of course there were no houses like today!

N ow the area is a park with many trees and paved roads. There is a Fort Whoop Up and other tourists sites. Many people use Indian Battle Park for picnics, walking and tours. Indian Battle Park is a very historic area that is visited by many people. Next time you arein the park close your eyes and imagine the fierce battle that took place where you are standing. Remember how many peopledied. Knowing this might make your visit more exciting.
 * // __Coalhurst Mine Disaster__ //**
 * // by Erikah, Justine and Brady //**

**// It all started way back in 1910. The Coalhurst Mine was built in that year and a lot of people came to town to work in the mine. Coal mining was important but dangerous work back in that time. //**

**// The explosion happened on December, 9, 1935 at around 4:30 p.m. It was shift change time. Some miners were just leaving the mine and others were just coming to work when there was a huge explosion. Some miners escaped but 16 miners were killed. //**

**// Everyone in town heard the explosion and many camerunning to the mine to find out what happened. Rescue workers made 8 trips into the mine to try to save miners who might be trapped. They didn’t find any of the missing miners alive. //**

**// Investigators tried to find out what caused the explosion. They think it was caused by methane gas. The miners called it firedamp.It is an invisible gas that does not smell that can kill miners. It is caused by rotting materials and will explode if it is exposed to a spark. The investigators aren’t sure but they thought maybe a mine worker dropped his safety lamp causing the spark which caused the explosion. //**

**// What happened after the disaster? Well, Coalhurst became almost a ghost town. The mine stayed open for 6 months after the explosion then closed. The Coalhurst mine disaster caused lot of damage and lost jobs so many people moved away. //**

**// The funeral for the miners who died was on December, 13, 1935. There were a lot of people that came to the funeral which was held in Lethbridge. About 5000 people came including miners from other mines in Alberta and B.C.A procession followed the bodies of the miners through the streets. //**

**// Coal mining was very important in western Canada during these times.During the early 1900’s southern Alberta was Canada’s largest coal producing area. Miners would start the day by getting into their pit clothes, getting their lamps and equipment including a pick axe and then going down into the mine.Their job was to dig the coal and place it in small coal cars that would transport the coal back up to the surface.The work was dark, dirty and dangerous. //**

**// The Coalhurst mine disaster changed our town.Even today, people remember what happened and think about the miners who lost their lives back when coal was king. //**

Fort Whoop Up

by Jessica W., Dylan and Amber Have you ever been to Fort Whoop-Up? Well, Fort Whoop-Up was a fort built for trading and selling goods back in the 1800’s. The goods they traded were: blankets, calico cloth, hats, clothing, pots and pans, knives, hatchets, hoop iron, flour, salt, sugar, tea bells, beads, guns, tobacco, rifles, cartridges, ammunition, powder and whiskey.

I bet you didn’t know that Fort Whoop-Up was built in 1869. It was built by Americans in Canada.At first it was called Fort Hamilton.The first people to run the fort were John and Thomas Healy and Alfred B. Hamilton. The fort was named after Alfred B. Hamilton. It was originally built for trading with the Indians.

The first fort was destroyed by fire. Then they built it again. When they built it again, they made it bigger. They made it from square cottonwood logs. There were buildings on three sides and a gate at the front for protection. The buildings included sleeping rooms, a kitchen, stores, a trade room, a gun room, a workshop, a saloon and a blacksmith forge. They did most of their trading in the winter because the robes and hides had thicker fur during the cold months of the year. It was hard for the people living there because of the cold and the rough conditions.

The walls of the fort were 12-16 feet high. There were bastions in each of the front corners. One bastion was for the rifle men and the other one had a three pound cannon.Despite these protections, the fort was never attacked although a group of other traders tried to take over the fort in 1872.

Goods were transported to and from the fort in bull trains. A bull train is a group of three wagons hitched together and pulled by oxen. Each bull train could carry 10 tons of freight. You can still see the ruts from the trains in places along the trail between Fort Whoop-Up and Fort Benton in the United States. The trip took 2-3 weeks.

The N.W.M.P. came in 1874 and after that things changed for Fort Whoop-Up. The Mounties brought an end to the illegal whiskey trade and law and order was brought to the area. In 1876 the buffalo robe trade changed and hides were not in high demand.

Alfred B. Hamilton ran the fort until he got elected to the Montana government. After him Donald Davis managed the fort and then he was elected to the Canadian parliament. Next David Akers bought the fort and kept it open until the arrival of the railway. Akers was shot in 1893 because of a argument over cattle. After his death the fort wasn’t maintained and it started to fall apart. In 1915 all that was left was a pile of stones.

The fort was rebuilt in 1967. The original fort was farther up the river near where the Lethbridge airport is now. When they made a replica they put it closer to the city center in Indian Battle Park.

A few years after being rebuilt in 1967 they made the fort into the museum. This allowed everybody to see it on the weekends. There you can learn how they fought over cattle. You can also learn how they traded a lot and where they got their name. Where would we be without Fort Whoop Up? 