Heritage Park

Probably the most frequently visited park this month was Heritage Park.  We started doing it the right way where we focus on just one decade for the day and really learn about it.  Of course, we always end up on the Midway in the end and have to go on the train, but it's been really interesting learning about different aspects of Canadian History.  For example:
 
Sam Livingston had FOURTEEN children living in the little house they had there.  And if they had a guest, the boys slept in the barn and gave up their room.

Father Lacombe actually started a little settlement just south of Calgary for French Settlers.  It was just north of the River (now in Downtown Calgary).  His work was so extensive that he started an orphanage and a Seniors Residence down here in Midnapore.  The water tower that went with the orphanage still stands high and my kids call it "Rapunzel's Tower" as it is all enclosed to avoid freezing in the winter.  The Seniors Center was still there until it burned down recently.  It has recently been rebuilt with great historical accuracy.  The weird part was that Father Lacombe wanted to be buried in Edmonton (as that was where he was from), but he wanted his heart to go to Calgary, because that's where it belonged.  So they have his heart in a jar at this retirement home.  It is now buried under the monument that was built for him.  Perhaps the rivalry of Calgary and Edmonton was existent even way back then.

 We learned how "First Nation" people make fried bread and bead pouches.

Did you know that voyageurs worked for 18 hours a day, were not allowed to bathe for months at a time (so as to keep the black flies and other pests away), they sang to pass the time as well as keep the rowing in time with the others and they measured the distance they went by "pipes".  We get our "15 minute smoke break" in our culture from them.  They also are where we get "pot luck" dinners from.  They would all go do a little trapping and whatever they caught (aka, what "luck" they had) went into the pot for that nights stew.  You also couldn't be a voyageur if you were over 5'5".  There's so much more too.

The RCMP were, of course, doing law enforcement, but they would also deliver the mail to the settlers as they were making their rounds to see how things were going.  The traveling judge would come around every 6 weeks or so to put on trial any criminals and depending on the severity of the crime, would either be charged a fine or executed or taken to the county jail.  This means that if you were caught right after the judge left, you could be in their "jail" (aka a chair in the corner of the RCMP office with a foot chain attached) for 6 weeks until he came around again.

in a 1960's car at the "drive in"

 We also learned how to do our laundry.  Benson really got into the agitate part of the cycle.  He wouldn't let go of the plunger and just wanted to lift it up and down over and over again.  The lady who worked there commented on how a family just left where their six year old could barely pick it up, but Benson could do it and wouldn't even stop.  It was quite funny!

We've learned so much on our trips.  It really is fascinating if you take your time to really sit down and learn.

(Benson was scared to sit on the seat, but if he saw on the floor in between the seats he was as happy as a clam)