In remembrance of Alex Decoteau
Alex Decoteau became the first Aboriginal Police Officer in Canada when he joined the Edmonton Police Service in 1909. He was well known for his athleticism, as he was a spectacular long-distance runner.
He won most major western Canadian races between 1909 and 1916, and even earned a place on Canada’s Olympic team to compete in the 5000-metre race in Stockholm in 1912. In fact, Decoteau won races so frequently that he was eventually given the trophies to keep.
At the start of WWI in 1916, Decoteau enlisted in the Canadian Army. He first served with the 202nd Infantry Battalion, then later with the 49th Battalion. After arriving in France in 1917, Decoteau was killed in the Battle of Passchendaele.
The City named a park in honour of the passion he had for his community, and how he strived to serve it in any way he could. Alex Decoteau park is located on the northwest corner of 105 St & 102 Ave. Learn more about Alex Decoteau by a digital comic and two videos produced by the Edmonton Police Service at https://www.edmontonpolice.ca/AboutEPS/LegacyOfHeroes/Issue1
New murals pop up under river valley bridge
Edmontonians have a new mural piece to check out in the river valley. Some colourful murals have been painted under the James MacDonald Bridge, done by Vancouver artists Nelson Garcia and Xochitl Leal. The newest piece is a large cat, alongside wildlife found in the river valley, from beavers, magpies, and deer.
“We’ve taken a space that was very drab and not super attractive and made it kind of into a little feature,” said Natalie Bunting, treasurer with the Rossdale Community League. “You actually see people stop with their kids and talk about the different animals and take lots of pictures. Hopefully, Edmonton is enjoying it.”
The two-phase artwork is approximately 7,000-square-feet in size. The first phase was completed in 2019. See more at https://edmonton.ctvnews.ca/new-murals-pop-up-under-bridge-in-river-valley-1.5169381?cache=
Buffalo in the river valley
Buffalo helped make Fort Edmonton the most important trading post on the North Saskatchewan River. To the south and east enormous herds of plains buffalo provided the large quantities of meat and pemmican that were essential to those engaged in the trade. Edmonton became a major supply point for pemmican. The post itself consumed huge quantities of buffalo meat. The naturalist Dr. James Hector reported that 526 pounds of fresh meat were consumed daily by the 109 inhabitants in February 1858.
The buffalo normally sought shelter from the winter storms of the open plains in the parkland and the woodland fringe around Edmonton. The artist Paul Kane commented on the thousands of buffalo that ranged close to the fort, noting that several were shot within a few hundred yards of it, and in mid-December he found a herd of perhaps ten thousand along the river only ten miles from Edmonton.
Though the Blackfoot Indians traded at Edmonton and Rocky Mountain House, they did so erratically and unreliably. Because of the availability of buffalo, the Blackfoot tribes were remarkably successful in preserving their fierce independence of the fur trade.
City Ward 10 has been given the Blackfoot name Ipiihkoohkanipiaohtsi in honour of this history. This word reflects the traditional lands where the Blackfoot Nation performed Buffalo Rounds. It is known that bison would migrate up to 300 km north of the North Saskatchewan River to the safety of artesian wells to gather for the winter. Learn more at https://allaboutbison.com/natives/blackfeet/
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Sincerely yours,
Harvey Voogd
North Saskatchewan River Valley Conservation Society
nsrivervalley@gmail.com
https://www.edmontonrivervalley.org/
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