Rural History and Culture Association » News

MEDIA EVENT GETS RAVE REVIEWS

Mike — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 04:56:23 +0000

Click here to view the embedded video.

No fanfare was spared at the media event held June 25 at the RCMP Heritage Centre to formally announce the details of the upcoming six Celebrate the NWMP Trail festivals. The media event attracted a crowd of nearly 50 people who received a sneak peak at what to expect the festivals that will take place at five Saskatchewan communities and Fort Walsh National Historic Site between July 1 and August 2 this summer. Finn Anderson, the Executive Director of the Saskatchewan History and Folklore Society, moderated the event and provided background o the SHFS’s efforts to mark the NWMP Trail that was in use by the NWMP between 1875 and 1912. Special guests included Tourism, Parks, Culture and Sport Minister Dustin Duncan and announced that his department was providing a $45,000 grant to support the festivals through the Building Pride Program. Historian and author, Garrett Wilson, provided a dramatic reading from his award-winning book Frontier Farewell: The 1870s and the end of the Old West and Saskatchewan singer/songwriter Tommy-John Ehman debuted a new song written especially for his appearances at the NWMP Trail events, aptly titled, North-West Mounted Police. Regina actor Geordie Grassick portrayed James Walsh of the NWMP and performed a small part of the “Spirit of the Trail” dramatic storytelling, which is a major aspect of each festival.

CTV television, CBC TV and the Leader Post were all represented at the media event. The television stories can be viewed to the right and look in the June 26 Leader Post for a picture from the media event. The Celebrate the NWMP Trail events were also featured in a Leader Post story in the June 22 edition, as well as in the most recent issue of Folklore Magazine, as well as the Museum Association of Saskatchewan’s Megaphone and Christopher Moore’s Canadian History Blog.

TOMMY-JOHN EHMAN DEBUTING NWMP SONG AT MEDIA EVENT

Mike — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 04:35:56 +0000

Craik’s Tommy-John Ehman will be debuting a new song at the media event being held tomorrow to promote the Celebrate the NWMP Trail festivals taking place in South West Saskatchewan July 1 to August 2, 2009. Ehman’s song, appropriately titled “North-West Mounted Police” was written especially for his upcoming concerts as part of the NWMP Trail events. The media event is 10:00 am, Thursday, June 25, 2009 at the RCMP Heritage Centre in Regina. The event is open to the public and will also include Regina actor Geordie Grassick portraying James Walsh and awarding-winning historian Garrett Wilson.

NWMP TRAIL MEDIA EVENT SET FOR JUNE 25

Mike — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 02:59:44 +0000

On Thursday, June 25, 2009, starting at 10:00 am at the RCMP Heritage Centre in Regina, the Rural History and Culture Association (RHCA) will be holding a media event to announce the details of six Celebrate the North-West Mounted Police Trail festivals that are being staged in South West Saskatchewan between July 1 and August 2, 2009. Highlights of the media event will include:

A short performance by Geordie Grassick as James Walsh from the dramatic presentation “Spirits of the Trail” that will be presented at each Festival.
A brief presentation by Garrett Wilson, noted historians and award-winning author of Frontier Farewell about the historical significance of the NWMP Trail.
Information about other Festival elements including Everett Baker’s Trail. Everett Baker, the founding president of the Saskatchewan History and Folklore Society was responsible for the historic marking of the NWMP Trail.

The media event is open to the public. Come out and learn about these awesome festivals!

EVERETT BAKER’S SLIDES OF NWMP TRAIL ADDED TO CELEBRATIONS

Mike — Mon, 18 May 2009 19:40:05 +0000

Everett Baker - SHFS Picture

Everett Baker, the first President of the Saskatchewan History and Folklore Society, was instrumental in marking the North-West Mounted Police Trail between Fort Walsh and Wood Mountain. In addition to his work with the SHFS, Baker is also renowned for the vast number of colour photographs that he took of Saskatchewan people and places during the 1940s, 50s and 60s. These pictures have been produced into slide shows by the SHFS, featured as museum exhibits, developed by SCN into TV vignettes and most recently the story of these pictures has been told in a popular book by Bill Waiser. This summer the slides that relate to the marking of the NWMP Trail will be featured in a special program created by the SHFS for the Celebrate the NWMP Trail events that are taking place in communities between Wood Mountain and Fort Walsh between July 1 and August 2, 2009. The slides will tell the story of how Everett Baker and the SHFS marked the Trail and give participants the chance to learn why Baker considered the marking of the Trail so important.

RHCA HIGHLIGHTED IN BEAVER HISTORY MAGAZINE STORY

Mike — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 23:17:17 +0000

Look for this issue at a news stand near you!

Some of the events and activities organized by the Rural History and Culture Association (RHCA) have received positive notice in Canada’s National History Magazine, The Beaver. The March-April edition, which has just hit the stands includes an article entitled “Local Historians Keep Grassroots History Alive,” by Christopher Moore. The story quotes RHCA President Mike Fedyk and includes information about RHCA events. The RHCA is mentioned along with other organizations in Canada that are promoting popular history and attracting a lot of attention and support for their work. This marks the fourth time that the RHCA has gained national attention for it work. In 2003, Tommy Douglas Vs Ross Thatcher: The Debate of the Century was referenced in Time Magazine, in 2006, The Celebration of Rural History and Culture was promoted on the Historica website and in 2008, CBC radio did a documentary of James Gardiner Vs the Ku Klux Klan: The Struggle for a Multicultural Future on its program Sunday Edition.