It’s under wraps for reasons unknown, a strange Boler cocoon – will a butterfly emerge? But we can guess what’s going on here…mostly likely it’s leaking windows. It happens, a common problem in fact, old gaskets rotting out and cracking, allowing moisture in. They’re probably original, so darn old. It’s...
Stop the presses folks…we’ve reached a milestone here. This post, which you’ll soon be enjoying, is the 1000th here at BIGDoer.com. Yes, our society has produced that many pieces and in only five years to boot! Not 1000 simple photo essays, but rather painstakingly researched history write ups, in-depth articles...
These are the words oftentimes heard when describing long forgotten places…”if these walls could talk”. It’s a catch all phrase really, some might say an overused one at that, when one’s thought are overwhelmed – “this empty old farm house…if these walls could talk”. Still, more often than not, it...
This is one easy hike, really just a lazy walk through the forest with some scenic views of surrounding hills and ridges to boot. Pretty nice, but hardly worth a long drive and best done if you’re already in the area. In our case we were doing some trail scouting...
All eyes on this strange empty building found in some industrial park in small town Alberta. Cold and sterile, yet at the same time all those odd and varied angles give it a kind of weird character, with a real bunker-like quality to boot. I know, it’s right out of...
It looks like any other pasture or field, something you might expect to see cows or horses living in. Nothing seems out of the ordinary. Yet, mostly hidden from view by tall grass, there’s danger underfoot. Scattered here and there, randomly and numbering in the dozens if not more, are...
It’s that close to being a guarantee, a rock-solid one at that. That’s how confident we are. When driving down the streets of near any random town of any reasonable size out west here, there’s more than a good chance one will come across a Boler. It happens all the...
We’ve been eyeing up the Strawberry Hills for some time now. These, a series of bumps, treed on the lower slopes, but with open tops mostly of grass, can be found in South Kananaskis, one of the least visited sections of that vast recreation area. Seems we know others who...
Twilight: that most magic time of day. The sun’s last and final hurrah, that warm golden glow enveloping the world dark shadows and a deep blue in stark contrast. It’s serene, peaceful, something damn powerful and words alone don’t seem enough. Then, add a train, a tour train taking in...
In the 1970s pinball was king. You couldn’t swing a dead cat, to use that always chuckle-worthy adage, and not hit one. They were everywhere…your local arcade, back when there was arcades, the corner store, the mall, the neighbourhood watering hole, pool hall, anywhere one could be plopped down. And...
Not a lot of years separate these two photos but in that time the change has been dramatic. The trains are no more and the row of elevators has been reduced to one.
Down by the tracks in Arrowwood Alberta, 1997 and 2015. Interestingly the then photo is from us and this a rare case of Team BIGDoer shooting both. It was captured by Chris back when he was doing oilfield hotshot.
The last elevator standing is a former Alberta Wheat Pool facility and dates from the 1970s. That's it's fairly modern is perhaps the reason it survived into today and it's now used by a local farmer for grain storage.
Check the comments to know more 👇
Exploring history with Off the Beaten Path with Chris & Connie. Posted by Connie.
Spotted while documenting The Great Beater Challenge, 2021 edition! Here, it's a little diversion into the near ghost town of Orkney Saskatchewan to look at a disused Patterson Grain Elevator. The structure dates from the 1970s and was built with features foreshadowing those used in high throughput grain terminals of today. Fast load systems and the like.
Check out that vintage yield sign and we doubt it's really needed any more. There's no traffic on these streets.
BTW, we got to chase the Beater Challenge 2023 and we'll post about it soon.
Exploring history with Off the Beaten Path with Chris & Connie. Photo: 2021. Posted by Connie.
After we drop off a couple rolls for processing, we'll call home! A little corner pharmacy, in a nondescript Calgary strip mall, and it's sort of lost in time. Shot in 2016 and we find anachronisms like this fascinating!
Exploring history with Off the Beaten Path with Chris & Connie. Posted by Connie.
St Francis in the Woods out in BC's East Kootenay region dates back over a century. It's sort of hidden away down a little backroad and is far removed from the modern world. While no longer used in a spiritual capacity, it still hosts community functions from time to time. Otherwise, silence rules.
Know more about this subject in a link posted to the comments.
Exploring history with Off the Beaten Path with Chris & Connie. Photo: 2023. Posted by Connie.
The same stone house about a century apart and from almost the same angle. It came close to being a proper Then & Now, but interestingly, we didn't know of the old photo when we captured ours.
The house was only lived in for a few decades, starting about 1910 and abandoned on account of arid conditions.
A family of twelve (yes, two parents plus TEN kids) lived in this modest-sized dwelling. Those early pioneers were hardcore. A house in the middle of nowhere, farming conditions that at best were marginal, brutal winters, few neighbours, little of anything and a bus load of children to raise in a house the size of a garage. Give them credit!
Know more via a link in the comments.
Exploring history with Off the Beaten Path with Chris & Connie. Photo: 2015. Posted by Connie.
The Fort Motel in Fort MacLeod Alberta, seen in an old postcard circa 1960 and again on a quiet evening late in 2023. It's one of many old style motor-court motels in this historic town and as you can see it's little changed over time. Too bad about that sign, though. The Fort Motel first makes mention in phone directories in the early fifties.
To know about our subject scroll down to a link in the comments. Hey Lethbridge Historical Society, thought you'd like this!
Exploring history with Off the Beaten Path with Chris & Connie. Posted by Connie.
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