Amber Valley, Alberta
Amber Valley | |
|---|---|
Unincorporated | |
  Amber Valley Location of Amber Valley in Alberta | |
| Coordinates: 54°43′58″N 112°55′46″W / 54.73278°N 112.92944°W | |
| Country |  Canada |
| Province |  Alberta |
| Region | Northern Alberta |
| Census division | 13 |
| Municipal district | Athabasca County |
| Government | |
| • Reeve | Doris Splane |
| • Governing body | Athabasca County Council
|
| Time zone | UTC-7 (MST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-6 (MDT) |
| Website | www |
Amber Valley is an unincorporated community in Alberta, Canada, about 160 kilometres (99 mi) north of the capital Edmonton. Its elevation is 608 m (1,995 ft). Originally named Pine Creek, Amber Valley was among several Alberta communities settled by early black immigrants to the province. It is the location of the Obadiah Place heritage site.
History
In 1909, a group of 160 Black Canadian homesteaders established the community as a block settlement.[2] The homesteaders, from Oklahoma and Texas, arrived within four years of Alberta becoming a province in 1905.[3]
The settlers were led by Parson H. Sneed, a clergyman and mason, to an area by the Athabasca River. For the first few years it was difficult for them, with the climate harsher than what they were used to back in Oklahoma. They had to develop areas for planting crops and building houses from the ground up. In the end, the settlers were as resilient as their surroundings were tough, and three quarters of them stayed. They built a school house in 1913 and a nondenominational church in 1914. They also had a baseball team that was widely known in the north. Amber Valley became the largest community of black people in Alberta until the 1930s.
Beginning in the 1950s, many descendants of the original settlers began moving to near cities such as Edmonton to escape the rigors of rural life. In Edmonton, many Amber Valley descendants founded the Shiloh Baptist Church, one of the few black churches in Western Canada.[4]
The community is now considered a ghost town.[5]
Original settlers
Willis Reese Bowen organized the original group of five families who moved from Oklahoma to Vancouver and then on to Amber Valley.[6]
- John King and Stella King, parents of Violet King Henry
- Willace Bowen[7] or Willis Reese Bowen[8]
- Harrison (Parson) Sneed[9]
- Hazel Procto[9]
- J.D. Edwards[10]
Notable people
- Violet King Henry
- Oliver Bowen, a descendent of Willace Bowen[9]
- Cheryl Foggo[9]
- Floyd Sneed, a descendent born in Calgary, related to Harrison (Parson) Sneed[9]
Popular interest
- The community was the subject of the 1984 documentary film We Remember Amber Valley, directed by Selwyn Jacob.[11]
- The setting of Aster in Esi Edugyan's debut novel, The Second Life of Samuel Tyne, is based upon the settlement.[12]
See also
Similar 1908 to 1910 Alberta homesteader settlements of Black Canadians:
References
- ^ "Municipal Officials Search". Alberta Municipal Affairs. May 9, 2019. Retrieved October 1, 2021.
- ^ Boyle and District Historical Society (1982). Forests, furrows and faith : a history of Boyle and districts. Boyle. p. 27.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Rowe, Allan (2015-02-12). "African American Immigration to Alberta". Historic Resources Management Branch. Alberta Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Retrieved 2017-02-06.
- ^ http://www.edmontonexaminer.com/2012/02/09/102-year-old-church-a-unique-piece-of-edmontons-history
- ^ http://wayback.archive-it.org/2217/20101208160345/http://www.albertasource.ca/blackpioneers//index.html
- ^ Mikell, Montague. "Fixing Obadiah Place". Alberta Settlement. Legacy Magazine, Summer 2000. Retrieved 5 Feb 2017.
- ^ Brennan, Brian. "John Ware wasn't the only black settler in Alberta at the turn of the 20th century". Brian Brennan. Brian Brennan. Retrieved 5 Feb 2017.
- ^ "OBADIAH PLACE". HistoricPlaces.ca. Retrieved 5 Feb 2017.
- ^ a b c d e Brennan, Brian. "John Ware wasn't the only black settler in Alberta at the turn of the 20th century". Brian Brennan. Brian Brennan. Retrieved 2017-02-05.
- ^ "A Farmer from Amber Valley: J.D. Edwards". whitepinepictures.com. Retrieved 2017-03-30.
- ^ Turner, Patricia (27 December 2011). "Exclusive interview with Selwyn Jacob: The Producer of the documentary on Harry Jerome". Mega Diversities. Retrieved 21 February 2014.
- ^ http://www.randomhouse.ca/authors/57816/esi-edugyan#