Amber Valley: Settlements in northern Alberta are seeing a surge in visitors interested in black history

I feel like I’m not going anywhere. In the remote countryside, if you’re not looking for it, you can easily blow it away. But it retains an important history of Alberta’s past.

Amber Valley, about a two-hour drive north of Edmonton, is a single-lane highway crowded with large rigs that quickly become unfriendly when it snows and the wind blows. But 115 years ago, when the first black settlers arrived in the area, there were no roads at all.

“When they arrived in Edmonton, they had to form a wagon train,” said Mryna Wisdom, who grew up in Amber Valley and was part of the first person his grandparents took root here. Told.

“They would have to use a makeshift bridge to cross the body of water. It was very rewarding.”

In the early 1900s, up to 400 African Americans fled apartheid-like situations in places such as Oklahoma and Mississippi. Gilbert Williams’ father was one of them. He looked and shook his head, then took a breath and explained why his father left.

“He heard a little fuss on the way from his friends, and they saw (Ku Klux) Klan hanging his friends,” Williams said. “He got some money from his sister and he and his brother left soon. They weren’t sticking to find them coming next.”

Williams said it’s still hard to imagine what so many people have survived.

Pictures depicting many of the early settlers are displayed in the halls and museums of Amber Valley.

Jamie Doll / Global News

At that time, Canada was sending public invitations to anyone interested in coming to the west and settling down. It provided $ 10 per acre of land to those who wanted it.

Amber Valley was one of four black settlements in Alberta. It was the largest and northernmost community, with churches, schools and post offices built by the people of the community.

But especially in urban centers like Edmonton, it didn’t take long for some newcomers to experience the same racism and discrimination that they wanted to flee.

“Racism began to occur here. The pool was separated and the cinema was separated. Blacks live in the town, Associate Professor Russell Cobb of the University of Alberta told Global News. There was only a specific place where they could and a specific position they could hold.

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Cobb, the author of the history of black settlers in Alberta, said the petition spread in the early 1910s, banning blacks from migrating to Alberta and owning land.

“The Edmonton City Council has collected tens of thousands of signatures and submitted them to the federal government,” Cobb said.

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The author and advocate of social justice, Rosemary Sadrier, said the invitation to Canadian settlers was “an open call until blacks began to appear.”

“And when that happened, efforts were made to discourage them from entering the country,” she said. “Initially, some of that disappointment was brought about by the suspension of taxes and taxes at the border.

“Then they started rumors that the 20-foot snow never disappeared. It’s just ridiculous.”

And when they didn’t work, Prime Minister Wilfred Laurier signed the Order in Council in 1911, preventing blacks from migrating for a year.

Sadrier erroneously said the order was “the western climate and conditions were considered unsuitable for the settlement of people from Africa, because it was too cold and too hostile to survive.” He said it was based on the allegations.

It was never signed by law, but Sadrier said it eventually stopped black immigrants to Canada.

Despite the major challenges, Amber Valley farmers were resilient and some farmers worked on rail during the off-season.

“They went far north and the people survived — so did their offspring. For me to survive and provide them with a way of life for us to move forward and become what we have achieved. Gives a very high rating, “said Wisdom.

“We grew up thinking that we were no different than others. We knew who we were and our parents realized that education was the power. Are taught, educated, and doing better than they did. “

Wisdom eventually moves to Edmonton, admitting that things were different.

“I remember knowing my skin color very clearly. I couldn’t find a job to get a particular job,” she said.

Only a few families remain in the Amber Valley area. A public hall and a quaint museum with large, bright murals of the first settlers help preserve the story of this important place. The first person’s hut born here is on the same land.

Pictures depicting many of the early settlers are displayed in the halls and museums of Amber Valley.

Jamie Doll / Global News

Gilbert Williams drives a school bus and tours the museum in the area. He said he has never been busy, especially since the Black Lives Matter movement began.

“I’ve been busy since the end of February last year. There were no weekends (it was quiet, and) people are coming out and even on weekdays. Some people want to talk to their families about Amber Valley. “I will.” He said.

He made it his mission to share the stories of brave men and women who paved the way for this historic place.

“History is important. History is a way of teaching,” he said standing outside the museum on a cold winter day. “The more you learn, the less likely you are to make mistakes in the past.”

Amber Valley is commemorated with Canadian postage stamps. It features prominent members of the community who were afraid to be forgotten a while ago.

Amber Valley: Settlements in northern Alberta are seeing a surge in visitors interested in black history