FORT MACLEOD, Alta. – Many prairie residents may not realize that their disaffection with Ottawa and frustrations with transportation and water quality issues date back to the 1870s when the West was settled.
A new program at the North West Mounted Police museum in Fort Macleod wants to teach children that slice of Canadian history in a fun and engaging way.
The Red Coats are Coming program was developed by Denise Calderwood of Granum, Alta., and museum events manager Kim Driscoll, whose husband, an RCMP officer, transferred to the area last year.
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“The whole idea was to make history come alive,” said Calderwood, who solicited financial support from government and corporations.
Added Driscoll: “It’s a way to engage people in the rich history of the area. We have so many colourful characters that we don’t always celebrate in the way we should.”
The day-long program was designed to fit the Grade 4, 5 and 7 social studies curriculum and 1,500 children are registered. It runs until the end of June and is open to the public.
Students who participate in the program will learn about the characters who roamed the West and the conflicts and politics involved in creating Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta.
Organizers hope to continue the program next year if it succeeds.
Students watch a documentary called The Great March West depicting the 1873 trials of the mounted police trek from Winnipeg to Fort Macleod in which horses went lame, water was scarce and brackish, and disease was common.
A play called The Red Coats are Coming recruited 10 local actors from colleges and universities to portray life in the early West as experienced by aboriginal people, police and whisky traders. The final portion of the program offers four activity centres where children role play as whisky traders and police, hear traditional Blackfoot stories, learn about the importance of the buffalo, follow unmarked trails and practise country dancing.
They meet characters such as Metis scout Jerry Potts, who drank too much and worked as an interpreter for police and band chiefs. They face colonel James Macleod in a mock trial for selling illegal whisky and dance with his wife, Mary, at a New Year’s Eve ball.
