The Piper family came in over the Edson Trail with a covered wagon and two teams of oxen. Chickens, two cats and a dog were also brought along and a cow which was purchased from Mr. Tremblay on the road.
The Pipers turned the first sod in 1912 with a walking plow and oxen. Potatoes and turnips were planted before beginning the job of cutting logs for their first log cabin which was sod roofed with hewed logs for floor and a stone fireplace.
Gibsons and Pipers planted the first cereal crops in 1914 and some grain was threshed that fall for seed. Hay was cut with a mowing machine and raked by hand.
The West Saskatoon district also claims the first protestant church services, the first school erected, and the first church building. The first church service was held in the home of Willis Piper by a travelling Anglican minister from Lake Saskatoon. Later, a resident minister arrived to homestead in the district. He built his own log house, which is still standing and lived in by the Jack Harrod family. The Anglican church was built in 1920 and we hope it will be preserved as a historical monument in the district.
The first school class was held in a log cabin owned by Slim Ford on his homestead and taught by Miss Ligertwood who married and remained in the district for several years. The log school built about 1921 had for its first teacher Miss Buchanan who later married and still lives in our district (Mrs. Hans Larson).
The first women’s organization was formed in 1921 as the Women’s Farm Group and later changed to the Women’s Institute in 1928 — the first W.I. in the Peace River Block.