Edna-Star, Alberta
Encyclopedia
The Edna-Star colony is the largest and oldest of the Ukrainian Canadian
block settlement
s. Located east of Edmonton
, in east-central
Alberta
, the boundaries of the block settlement include all or part of multiple counties and municipal districts, census divisions numbers 12
and 10
.
ethnic enclave
found throughout Western Canada
. The founding of this block settlement in 1891 marked the beginning of large-scale Ukrainian immigration to Canada. The region has been described at being as important to Ukrainian Canadian culture as Acadiana
is to the Cajuns of Louisiana.
in 1891 (although he himself did not arrive until the next year). Pylypow's first farm was near the present-day village of Star, Alberta
, then called Edna, and the name Edna-Star was applied to the whole area retrospectively. Most of the settlers were from Pylypow's home village of Nebyliv, Ukraine and the area was sometimes called the Nebyliv colony in their honour, although later settlers were from other areas of Austrian
-controlled Ukraine
, namely the provinces of Galicia and Bukovyna.
The location of the new settlement was chosen partly because of the existing Galician German
settlement nearby at Josephburg
. Ukrainians in Galicia were used to working with their German neighbours in the "Old Country" and many could speak some German. For new settlers, having a place to earn cash wages until their farm became productive was also extremely important, and the Germans were the logical place to turn. Another prime concern of the settlers was timber. This part of Alberta is part of the aspen parkland
biome, a relatively heavily-wooded area compared to the prairies further to the south. Much to the consternation of Anglo-Canadian
authorities, the Ukrainians were willing to sacrifice time and effort to clear the land, and would even take lands of poor soil quality in order to secure treed land. This was because there was a severe wood shortage in Austrian Ukraine, and peasants became reliant on the pan (landlord) for the precious commodity, used in making all manner of tools and buildings. In Canada one could receive 180 acres (72.8 ha) of forested (or prairie) land for free under the Dominion Lands Act
.
By 1914 the zone of Ukrainian settlement stretched for 110 kilometres (68.4 mi) from Edna-Star in the west to Slawa in the east and approximately 70 kilometres (43.5 mi) from Smoky Lake in the north to the outskirts of Mundare and Vegreville in the south.
Many of the non-Ukrainian immigrants to the area, also came from the Austrian
crownlands of Galicia and Bukovina
where the Ukrainians originated. These included Poles, Romanians, Germans, and Jews.
ecomuseum
, which preserves and showcases Ukrainian Canadian culture. It is also home to the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village
which contains pioneer buildings from all across the area.
At one time within the boundaries of the settlement block, up to 80% of the population was of Ukrainian origin. However, internal migration in Canada has changed the patterns. As well since Statistics Canada has allowed people to claim "Canadian" as a ethnic origin only since 2001, figures are not comparable before and after that date.
According to the 2006 Census, in Census Division 10
there were 6,700 people who claimed to be single-origin Ukrainian (the largest of any ethnic group, excluding "Canadian") and 17,130 people who claimed some Ukrainian origin out of a total population of 85,155, giving approximately 20% of the population. In Division 12
there were 3,575 who claimed to be Ukrainian single-origin and 11,220 total claiming some Ukrainian origin out of 59,305, for around 19% of the population.
Ethnic origin statistics are not available for many of the counties, towns, and villages with the most concentrated Ukrainian populations, because Statistics Canada
does not publish this information for communities with a total population of less than 5,000 for privacy reasons. Rural-to-urban migration
has reduced the populations of Lamont
, Thorhild
, Two Hills
, and Minburn
counties below this threshold. The counties for which there are statistics that have the highest proportions of total respondents claiming some Ukrainian origin are St. Paul
(26%), Sturgeon
(18%), Beaver
(16%), Bonnyville
(17%), and Vermilion River (16%).
Other than Ukrainians, the largest responses in this area are French (especially near Bonnyville and St. Paul), German (especially near Josephburgh), Native Indian, and Metis, with smaller number of English, Scottish, and Irish, and some Romanian, Polish, Russian, Jewish, and Norwegian.
In the three largest towns in the region the percentage of the population claiming some Ukrainian origin were: Vegreville 44%, 5,720; St. Paul
, 31%, and Bonnyville, 18%. Other towns and villages thought to have large Ukrainian populations include Myrnam
, Willingdon
, Lamont, Mundare
, Andrew
, Chipman
, plus numerous hamlets and rural communities.
Ukrainian Canadian
A Ukrainian Canadian is a person of Ukrainian descent or origin who was born in or immigrated to Canada. In 2006, there were an estimated 1,209,085 persons residing in Canada of Ukrainian origin, making them Canada's ninth largest ethnic group; and giving Canada the world's third-largest...
block settlement
Block Settlement
A block settlement is particular type of land distribution which allows settlers with the same ethnicity to form small colonies.This settlement type was used throughout western Canada between the late 19th and early 20th centuries...
s. Located east of Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
, in east-central
Central Alberta
Central Alberta is a region located in the Canadian province of Alberta.Central Alberta is the most densely populated rural area in the province...
Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
, the boundaries of the block settlement include all or part of multiple counties and municipal districts, census divisions numbers 12
Division No. 12, Alberta
Division No. 12 is a census division in Alberta, Canada. Including the City of Cold Lake, the majority of the division is located in the northeast corner of central Alberta, while the northern portion of the division is located within northern Alberta....
and 10
Division No. 10, Alberta
Division No. 10 is a census division in Alberta, Canada. It is located in the east-central portion of central Alberta and includes Alberta's portion of the City of Lloydminster.- Census subdivisions :...
.
Background
A block settlement is a type ruralRural
Rural areas or the country or countryside are areas that are not urbanized, though when large areas are described, country towns and smaller cities will be included. They have a low population density, and typically much of the land is devoted to agriculture...
ethnic enclave
Ethnic enclave
An ethnic enclave is an ethnic community which retains some cultural distinction from a larger, surrounding area, it may be a neighborhood, an area or an administrative division based on ethnic groups. Sometimes an entire city may have such a feel. Usually the enclave revolves around businesses...
found throughout Western Canada
Western Canada
Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces and commonly as the West, is a region of Canada that includes the four provinces west of the province of Ontario.- Provinces :...
. The founding of this block settlement in 1891 marked the beginning of large-scale Ukrainian immigration to Canada. The region has been described at being as important to Ukrainian Canadian culture as Acadiana
Acadiana
Acadiana, or The Heart of Acadiana, is the official name given to the French Louisiana region that is home to a large Francophone population. Of the 64 parishes that make up Louisiana, 22 named parishes and other parishes of similar cultural environment, make up the intrastate...
is to the Cajuns of Louisiana.
Founding and development
The colony was founded by a group of Ukrainian settlers led by Iwan PylypowIwan Pylypow
Ivan Pylypiv or Iwan Pylypow and Vasyl Eleniak were the first Ukrainian immigrants to Canada in 1891–93.Pylypow was born in the village of Nebyliv in Kalush county in Austrian Galicia. He was a peasant logging contractor, and after falling on hard times considered finding a better life abroad,...
in 1891 (although he himself did not arrive until the next year). Pylypow's first farm was near the present-day village of Star, Alberta
Star, Alberta
Star is a hamlet in central Alberta, Canada within Lamont County. It is located on Highway 831, approximately north of Lamont and south of Highway 45.- See also :*List of communities in Alberta*List of hamlets in Alberta*Edna-Star Colony- References :...
, then called Edna, and the name Edna-Star was applied to the whole area retrospectively. Most of the settlers were from Pylypow's home village of Nebyliv, Ukraine and the area was sometimes called the Nebyliv colony in their honour, although later settlers were from other areas of Austrian
Cisleithania
Cisleithania was a name of the Austrian part of Austria-Hungary, the Dual Monarchy created in 1867 and dissolved in 1918. The name was used by politicians and bureaucrats, but it had no official status...
-controlled Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, namely the provinces of Galicia and Bukovyna.
The location of the new settlement was chosen partly because of the existing Galician German
Walddeutsche
Walddeutsche Germans , sometimes simply called Polish Germans, the name for a group of people, mostly of German origin, who settled during the 14th-17th century on the territory of present-day Sanockie Pits, Poland, a region which was previously only sparsely inhabited because the land was...
settlement nearby at Josephburg
Josephburg, Alberta
Josephburg is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Strathcona County. It is located on Highway 830, east of Fort Saskatchewan. It is in close proximity to Alberta's Industrial Heartland, home to petrochemical industries....
. Ukrainians in Galicia were used to working with their German neighbours in the "Old Country" and many could speak some German. For new settlers, having a place to earn cash wages until their farm became productive was also extremely important, and the Germans were the logical place to turn. Another prime concern of the settlers was timber. This part of Alberta is part of the aspen parkland
Aspen parkland
Aspen parkland refers to a very large area of transitional biome between prairie and boreal forest in two sections; the Peace River Country of northwestern Alberta crossing the border into British Columbia, and a much larger area stretching from central Alberta, all across central Saskatchewan to...
biome, a relatively heavily-wooded area compared to the prairies further to the south. Much to the consternation of Anglo-Canadian
Anglo-Canadian
Anglo-Canadian can mean:* A collaboration between the United Kingdom and Canada, similar to the term Anglo-American* A shorthand form for English Canadian...
authorities, the Ukrainians were willing to sacrifice time and effort to clear the land, and would even take lands of poor soil quality in order to secure treed land. This was because there was a severe wood shortage in Austrian Ukraine, and peasants became reliant on the pan (landlord) for the precious commodity, used in making all manner of tools and buildings. In Canada one could receive 180 acres (72.8 ha) of forested (or prairie) land for free under the Dominion Lands Act
Dominion Lands Act
The Dominion Lands Act was an 1872 Canadian law that aimed to encourage the settlement of Canada's Prairie provinces. It was closely based on the United States Homestead Act, setting conditions in which the western lands could be settled and their natural resources developed...
.
By 1914 the zone of Ukrainian settlement stretched for 110 kilometres (68.4 mi) from Edna-Star in the west to Slawa in the east and approximately 70 kilometres (43.5 mi) from Smoky Lake in the north to the outskirts of Mundare and Vegreville in the south.
Many of the non-Ukrainian immigrants to the area, also came from the Austrian
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
crownlands of Galicia and Bukovina
Bukovina
Bukovina is a historical region on the northern slopes of the northeastern Carpathian Mountains and the adjoining plains.-Name:The name Bukovina came into official use in 1775 with the region's annexation from the Principality of Moldavia to the possessions of the Habsburg Monarchy, which became...
where the Ukrainians originated. These included Poles, Romanians, Germans, and Jews.
Recent demographics
Today the area known as the Kalyna CountryKalyna Country
The Kalyna Country ecomuseum is a heritage and eco-tourism district in East Central Alberta, Canada, named after the highbush cranberry plant, pronounced in the Ukrainian language....
ecomuseum
Ecomuseum
Ecomuseums originated in France, the concept being developed by George Henri Rivière and Hugues de Varine, who coined the term ‘ecomusée’ in 1971...
, which preserves and showcases Ukrainian Canadian culture. It is also home to the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village
Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village
The Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village is an open-air museum that uses costumed historical interpreters to recreate pioneer settlements in east central Alberta, Canada. In particular it shows the lives of Ukrainian Canadian settlers from the years 1899 to 1930...
which contains pioneer buildings from all across the area.
At one time within the boundaries of the settlement block, up to 80% of the population was of Ukrainian origin. However, internal migration in Canada has changed the patterns. As well since Statistics Canada has allowed people to claim "Canadian" as a ethnic origin only since 2001, figures are not comparable before and after that date.
According to the 2006 Census, in Census Division 10
Division No. 10, Alberta
Division No. 10 is a census division in Alberta, Canada. It is located in the east-central portion of central Alberta and includes Alberta's portion of the City of Lloydminster.- Census subdivisions :...
there were 6,700 people who claimed to be single-origin Ukrainian (the largest of any ethnic group, excluding "Canadian") and 17,130 people who claimed some Ukrainian origin out of a total population of 85,155, giving approximately 20% of the population. In Division 12
Division No. 12, Alberta
Division No. 12 is a census division in Alberta, Canada. Including the City of Cold Lake, the majority of the division is located in the northeast corner of central Alberta, while the northern portion of the division is located within northern Alberta....
there were 3,575 who claimed to be Ukrainian single-origin and 11,220 total claiming some Ukrainian origin out of 59,305, for around 19% of the population.
Ethnic origin statistics are not available for many of the counties, towns, and villages with the most concentrated Ukrainian populations, because Statistics Canada
Statistics Canada
Statistics Canada is the Canadian federal government agency commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and culture. Its headquarters is in Ottawa....
does not publish this information for communities with a total population of less than 5,000 for privacy reasons. Rural-to-urban migration
Urbanization
Urbanization, urbanisation or urban drift is the physical growth of urban areas as a result of global change. The United Nations projected that half of the world's population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008....
has reduced the populations of Lamont
Lamont County, Alberta
Lamont County is a municipal district in central Alberta, Canada, located in Census Division Number 10, northeast of Edmonton. The county contains 27 Townships. Its seat of government is Lamont.-History:...
, Thorhild
Thorhild County No. 7, Alberta
The County of Thorhild No. 7, Alberta is a municipal district located in the central part of northern Alberta, Canada in Census Division 13. It was incorporated as a county in 1955....
, Two Hills
Two Hills County No. 21, Alberta
The County of Two Hills No. 21 is a municipal district in east-central Alberta, Canada.It is located in Census Division 10. The county was formed in 1963, from the Municipal District of Eagle No. 81 and the Two Hills School Division. The seat of the county is in the Town of Two...
, and Minburn
Minburn County No. 27, Alberta
The County of Minburn No. 27 is a municipal district in east central Alberta, Canada.It is located in Census Division 10. It was established as a county on Jan 01, 1965 from the former Municipal District of Minburn No. 72. The municipal seat is set in the Town of Vegreville.-Demographics:In 2006,...
counties below this threshold. The counties for which there are statistics that have the highest proportions of total respondents claiming some Ukrainian origin are St. Paul
St. Paul County No. 19, Alberta
The County of St. Paul No. 19 is a municipal district in northeast Alberta, Canada.It is located in Census Division 12. It was previously known as the Municipal District of St. Paul No. 86 until January 1, 1962 when it became the County of St. Paul No. 19. The municipal seat is in the Town of St....
(26%), Sturgeon
Sturgeon County, Alberta
Sturgeon County is a municipal district in Alberta's Edmonton Capital Region, Canada.It begins at the north end of Edmonton, with 97th street turning into Highway 28. It extends east to Fort Saskatchewan and west to Calahoo. It is located in Division No. 11....
(18%), Beaver
Beaver County, Alberta
Beaver County is a municipal district in central-east Alberta, Canada. It is centred around Holden, and has the municipal seat in Ryley, in the western part of Census Division No. 10....
(16%), Bonnyville
Bonnyville No. 87, Alberta
The Municipal District of Bonnyville No. 87 is a municipal district in northeastern Alberta, Canada in Division No. 12. Its located adjacent to the province of Saskatchewan, on the east....
(17%), and Vermilion River (16%).
Other than Ukrainians, the largest responses in this area are French (especially near Bonnyville and St. Paul), German (especially near Josephburgh), Native Indian, and Metis, with smaller number of English, Scottish, and Irish, and some Romanian, Polish, Russian, Jewish, and Norwegian.
In the three largest towns in the region the percentage of the population claiming some Ukrainian origin were: Vegreville 44%, 5,720; St. Paul
St. Paul, Alberta
St. Paul is a town in east-central Alberta, Canada. It was formerly called St. Paul de Métis and was originally a French-Catholic settlement and mission to the Metis people....
, 31%, and Bonnyville, 18%. Other towns and villages thought to have large Ukrainian populations include Myrnam
Myrnam, Alberta
Myrnam is a village in east central Alberta, Canada. It is located approximately east of the capital city, Edmonton, and about east-south-east of the town of Two Hills. Its economic base is mixed farming, cattle farming, and grain farming.-History:...
, Willingdon
Willingdon, Alberta
Willingdon is a village in central Alberta, Canada. It is located in Two Hills County, 117 km northeast of the city of Edmonton.- Demographics :...
, Lamont, Mundare
Mundare, Alberta
Mundare is a small town in central Alberta, Canada. It is located east of Edmonton and west of Vegreville, at the intersection of Highway 15 and Highway 855, north of the Yellowhead Highway...
, Andrew
Andrew, Alberta
-External links:**...
, Chipman
Chipman, Alberta
Chipman is a village in central Alberta, Canada within Lamont County and Census Division No. 10. It is located on Highway 15, approximately 11 km southeast of Lamont, 22 km northwest of Mundare, 70 km east of Edmonton, and 30 km northeast of the Yellowhead Highway entrance...
, plus numerous hamlets and rural communities.