Looking Back: Rosetown Co-op Grocery Store
With David McIver
100 years ago - Oct. 29, 1925
Fire destroyed a house on Charles Bechard’s farm east of town on Oct. 24. Bechard had moved it there to adjoin his new house. Mrs. Bechard was in the old house when she heard the dogs barking and went to investigate. She broke a window to escape. The two dogs died in the fire, possibly caused by overheated stove pipes. The house, worth about $1,500, wasn’t insured.
A federal election resulted in Progressive party candidate John Evans winning in the Rosetown constituency. Evans, a retired farmer living in Saskatoon, got 2,974 votes; Liberal candidate A. W. Mooney, 2,474 votes; Conservative W. W. Miller, 2,454 votes; and independent Progressive E. B. Gifford, 146 votes. Gifford, a farmer in the Piche district northeast of Valley Centre, had nomination papers signed by 16 electors, 14 of them Farmers’ Union members.
80 years ago - Oct. 25, 1945
For the fifth consecutive time a Rosetown High School student had won the Governor-General’s Medal in the Rosetown-Biggar-West Saskatoon district. Margaret Isobel Slorance had a 91 average with her highest mark a 98 in geometry-trigonometry. Her family had moved from Bassano, Alta., in 1940 to go into business here.
Two Royal Canadian Air Force members got home from overseas: Cpl. R. D. Nicholson had been at a radar station in southern England detecting enemy aircraft on raids. Elmer Smith had been stationed in England and saw action in Italy.
70 years ago - Oct. 27, 1955
The Rosetown Lions Club planned “to spearhead the organization of an old folks home for Rosetown and district,” said Rosetown Lions president Gordon Gardner at a Lions zone meeting.
Lloyd Clarke and Glen Thrasher were re-elected and Bill Wilson was elected to Rosetown council, all by acclamation.
50 years ago - Oct. 29, 1975
Two Delisle-district men died when the single-engine Ercoupe airplane crashed on the hillside of Eagle Creek at about 1 p.m. on Oct. 23 about seven miles north and a mile east of town. Rosetown RCMP and Ministry of Transport officials continued to investigate. The men wee Barry R. Mikituk and Marlon R. Miller, both 23.
An article profiled Ron Piercy in his work as Sask. Power Corp. district operator since 1948. A 1956 snowstorm “snapped power poles like toothpicks,” affecting an area from here to Saskatoon, said Piercy. Up to 125 men worked to restore power, including private contractors and Saskatoon city staff, he said. Piercy himself worked from when it happened, a Monday near midnight, until Thursday night without sleep, he said.
30 years ago - Oct. 23, 1995
Twenty years before, the Rosetown Co-op grocery store, when being renovated, burned to the ground. The $2-million mortgage on the replacement store had been paid off and $360,000 in dividends would be paid out to members, said president Brian Morris.
20 years ago - Oct. 24, 2005
The Rosetown Rewound Homecoming held in July made a profit of over $11,000. The homecoming committee decided to reserve $5,000 of that for future celebrations such as the town’s 100th anniversary in 2009. Rec director Brian Marlowe said he’d like to see $1,000 set aside to help start a community theatre group.
Former Saskatchewan premier Grant Devine spoke at Rosetown Central High School as a speaker for centennial celebrations.
Grade 9 student Dalton Belanger asked Devine how farmers are supposed to survive on low grain prices. “A lot of them don’t,” replied Devine. Grade 11 student Taylor Marlowe asked about the province’s debt. High interest rates put people in financial trouble and every province, including Saskatchewan, into debt trying to do something about that, said Devine.