by Beverley Tallon & Ryan Kessler

This Hudson’s Bay Company trade item was popular with hunters of western Canada during the last half of the nineteenth century. Often called a buffalo knife or chief’s knife, it was described as “extremely heavy… a sort of butcher’s cleaver with a point instead of squared-off end.” This well-designed specimen, made by Jukes Coulson, Stokes & Co. Ltd. of London, England, was found to be equally versatile as a light hatchet, cleaver, skinning knife, or deadly weapon.

90 Years Ago

Santa travels by dogsled

Santa Claus made a most interesting appearance in Edmonton — even for him. The January 1923 issue features the story of Santa’s arrival by dogsled at the HBC retail store. Santa headlined a Christmas parade that also included mounted police, clowns, and others. So many families came to see Santa that the meet-and-greet at the toy store had to be cancelled, as there wasn’t enough room for all of his fans.

60 Years Ago

First flight

Fascinating images of early airplanes adorned the pages of a March 1953 article by Frank H. Ellis. “Flash-in-the-Sky Boy” is about William Gibson, who designed the first Canadian-made aircraft engine. The Scottish immigrant made his first plane in 1910. It travelled sixty-one metres, a long flight for its time. After crashing his second experiment in 1911, he retired from flying for his own safety and returned to working in the mines.

30 Years Ago

Wilderness painting

In 1983, artist Don Cardinal lived like it was 1883. Lanny Cooke’s article “Don Cardinal: Bush Painter of the North” tells the story of how Cardinal moved to the Northwest Territories and lived in a log cabin with no plumbing or electricity. Cardinal made the move in order to “live the life” he painted. His subjects were the things in his environment, including sled dogs, wildlife, and Inuit elders. Examples of his work are included with the article.