Home on the range

Letters home: Letters from Douglas to his wife Catherine back in Pilot Mound
give us a glimpse into the homesteading experience on the Canadian prairies.

Starting in 1909, Douglas Fraser, Sr. and sons Doug and Pete homesteaded near Elrose, Saskatchewan on a parcel of land described as Part NW, Section 12, Township 26, Range 16, Meridian W3. The hardship was eased by the steady stream of correspondence between Pilot Mound and the homestead in Saskatchewan. Some of Doug Sr.'s letters to his wife Catherine are included in this blog.

Catherine (Hay) and Douglas Fraser, Sr.

These hearty types made the best of it, and adhered to the rules set down by the Dominion Lands Policy.

To encourage settlement in the west the Dominion Government offered a free homestead of 160 acres for a $10 registration fee. In order to receive the patent for the land the settler had to be a male 21 years of age or a woman who was the sole support of her family. Before being granted a patent the applicant had to be a British subject or a naturalized British subject.

Proving the land:

• Settlers had to live on their homesteads for six months of the year for three years, cultivate at least 30 acres, and erect a house worth at least $300.
• They had an option to purchase the quarter section next to theirs as a pre-emption, by paying the market price of the time which was about $2.00 / acre. Even-numbered sections were reserved for homesteads and pre-emptions, while odd-numbered sections were sold.
• Upon receiving the Dominion Land Grant patent for a quarter section, the homesteader could apply for a pre-emption. This entitled him to purchase an additional 80 acres adjacent to the homestead at the rate of one dollar per acre [later the rate changed to three dollars per acre]

Various Dominion Land Acts:

• The Dominion Government made an agreement with the Hudson Bay Company for land take over. The HBC were to receive 1/20 of fertile land so for every fifth township, all section 8 and 3/4 of section 26 were set aside as HBC lands. The Dominion Lands Act of 1872 provided that the Company should receive all of section 8 in each township, all of section 26 in each township with a number divisible by 5, and the southern half and the northwest quarter of section 26 in all other townships. In some townships HBC land was in sections other than 8 or 26. This happened if, for example, the Dominion Government required these sections for its own purposes.
• Provisions were made that Sections 11 and 29 of each township were school sections.
• Railway grants gave odd-numbered sections to the C.P.R. for 24 miles on either side of the railroad. Later the sale of the remaining odd-numbered sections were used to build the Hudson Bay Railroad.
• Grazing land could be obtained for 1 cent an acre for two years and gave up to 100,000 acres.
• The Soldier Settlement Act gave a free quarter section to veterans.

Measurements

• 160 acres = Quarter Section = Homestead = 1/2 mile x 1/2 mile
• 1 acre = 4,840 square yards
• 1 mile = 1,760 yards
• 1 kilometre = 0.621 mile

Info sources:
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cansk/Saskatchewan/homestead.html

http://www.saskhomesteads.com/home.asp

Photos:
Rosetown Centennial Library Archive
Saskatchewan Archival Information Network (SAIN)
http://sain.scaa.sk.ca/items/index.php