Estuary is a

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

in RM of Deer Forks No. 232 in the Canadian province of

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a province in western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dak ...

. Very little remains of the former village of 800, other than a private residence and a

pioneer Pioneer commonly refers to a settler who migrates to previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited land. In the United States pioneer commonly refers to an American pioneer, a person in American history who migrated west to join in settling and de ...

cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...

on a small hill known as Cemetery Hill, overlooking the

South Saskatchewan River The South Saskatchewan River is a major river in Canada that flows through the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. For the first half of the 20th century, the South Saskatchewan would completely freeze over during winter, creating spectacular ...

History

The development of a townsite was registered on April 19, 1914 along the future site of the Canadian Pacific Railway

branch line A branch line is a phrase used in railway terminology to denote a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line. Industrial spur An industr ...

between

Leader, Saskatchewan Leader is a town in southwestern Saskatchewan, Canada, located approximately directly east of Calgary, Alberta and is near the border between Saskatchewan and Alberta. It has a population of 863 as of 2016. History Before settlement, the Lea ...

and

Empress, Alberta Empress is a village in southern Alberta, Canada that is adjacent to the provincial boundary between Alberta and Saskatchewan. It is north of Medicine Hat. The village was named, in 1913, for Queen Victoria, who was also Empress of India. In the ...

. With the railway came a flood of

settler A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established a permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. A settler who migrates to an area previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited may be described as a pioneer. Settl ...

s to the area, most of whom were

Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

. By the time

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

began the growth of the new community of Estuary swelled from a few hardy pioneers to a booming 800 citizens. From 1914 to 1954 Estuary had some 163 businesses, including its own power plant, a weekly newspaper, a

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

, six

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such as gates, gr ...

shops, 10 livery barns, six rooming houses, six hardware stores, 10 cafes/restaurants, 13 service stations, 23 grocery stores including a

department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store made a dramatic app ...

, and seven grain elevators.

The decline

Throughout Estuary's short history there have been many mysterious fires, two of which were devastating to the town. One in 1917 destroyed 18 properties and another in 1928. Several other minor fires which were just as mysterious were set. Because of Estuary's serious decline after the end of World War I it was believed that the fires were deliberately set in order to collect

insurance Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to hedge ...

. In 1919 the town was hit hardest when the Canadian Pacific Railway decided to go ahead with plans to build a branch line from Leader to the new town of Burstall, causing a reduction of grain coming into town. Feeling betrayed by the railway company many residents picked up and left never to come back, taking everything with them including their homes and businesses. The 1930s brought another blow to the once prosperous village, starting with the restructuring of the community's village status to a

in 1930. By 1951 the fuel dealership shut its doors, soon after in 1966 the community's last store was closed. The railway station was bought and moved away in 1970. The last remaining businesses, the three remaining grain elevators, were closed and demolished in 1982.

References

{{authority control Deer Forks No. 232, Saskatchewan Former villages in Saskatchewan Unincorporated communities in Saskatchewan Populated places established in 1914 Populated places on the South Saskatchewan River 1930 disestablishments in Canada Ghost towns in Saskatchewan 1914 establishments in Saskatchewan

History

The decline

See also

References