Vanguard, Saskatchewan

Vanguard
Vanguard
Village
	Motto: A Proud Past & A Promising Future
	Vanguard
	Coordinates: 49°54′32″N 107°15′25″W / 49.909°N 107.257°W
Country	Canada
Province	Saskatchewan
Region	Canadian Prairies
Census division	No. 3
Rural Municipality	No. 106
Post office Founded	N/A
Village Incorporated	1912
Town Incorporated	N/A
Government
• Mayor	Allen Kuhlmann
• Village Administrator	Sandra Krushelnicki
• Governing body	Vanguard Village Council
Area
• Total	1.86 km2 (0.72 sq mi)
Population (2001)
• Total	187
• Density	100.4/km2 (260/sq mi)
Time zone	CST
Postal code	S0N 2V0
Area code	306
Highways	Highway 43 ; Highway 4
Website	Vanguard, Saskatchewan

Founded in 1912, the village of Vanguard, Saskatchewan is located in the southwest corner of Saskatchewan on Highway 43 close to Notekeu Creek. It is located in the rural municipality of Whiska Creek. Its prime economic driver is agriculture: chick peas; lentils; red, spring, hard and durum wheats are grown here.

Education

Vanguard is the home of Vanguard Community School with specialist teachers, low student-teacher ratio, and an enrollment of approximately 90.

Attractions

Nearby communities are Pambrun (home of Millar College of the Bible), Gravelbourg (renowned for its French heritage and cathedral), Swift Current (the regional "headquarters"), Hodgeville ("home" of the Saskatchewan flag) and Ponteix (close to Notekeu Regional Park). Vanguard is close to Cypress Hills inter-provincial park, Grasslands National Park, the Canada–US border, and Lac Pelletier regional park.

History

In 1910, the Canadian Pacific Railway purchased the land which became the village of Vanguard from Latimer Young. The origin of the name Vanguard may be attributed to it having been on the vanguard of the railway in 1912 ; however, Vanguard is also a name in the Royal Navy tradition. Lord Horatio Nelson had a Vanguard; the last dreadnought battleship (scrapped in 1960) was also called Vanguard. Recent publications state that the inspiration for the name of the village came from HMS Vanguard which was commissioned in 1909 and exploded in 1917, killing 843 of the 845 men aboard. Regardless of the true origin of the name, the north-south streets in Vanguard reflect the naval heritage, being named Armada, Victory, Triumph, Drake and Nelson Streets. The east-west streets are named in honor of the province (Saskatchewan Avenue), the landscape in which Vanguard is situated (Prairie Avenue), the rail heritage (Railway Avenue) and the hopeful spirit in which Vanguard was established (Progress Avenue). Vanguard is bisected by Division St. and the main street is called "Dominion".

Notable people

Author, broadcaster, and journalist James Minifie (1900–1974) called Vanguard home. He worked for the New York Herald Tribune and was the Washington correspondent for the CBC. Knowlton Nash described Mr. Minifie as: "a man passionately dedicated to improving the quality of journalism [whose] overwhelming desire was accuracy in reporting". Woodrow Lloyd, former premier of Saskatchewan, was a principal in Vanguard. NHL goaltender, Al Rollins, was born in Vanguard.