Great Wall of Saskatchewan
Encyclopedia
The Great Wall of Saskatchewan is a project created by Albert Johnson. The wall is located approximately 1.6km west of the Village of Smiley, Saskatchewan on Highway 772
. Construction started in 1962 when Albert started arranging stones in the form of a wall. As stones were cleaned off the surrounding farmland Albert would add them to the wall. This continued clear until 1991. As the stones were transported to the wall they were placed so that the wall would support itself without the use of cement or mortar. The outer layer stones are specially shaped stones, that have been tapered inward in order to prevent the wall from moving. The interior of the wall is filled with small and odd shaped stones. During construction of the wall spruce
trees were added along side the wall for wind protection. After 29 years of work the wall was complete with a 6 foot base, stretching more than a 3/8 of a mile in length with an average height of 6 feet and 12 feet at places.
Along with the stone wall a sod house
, built from sod cut out of the surrounding grasses was completed in 1986 with help form others in the Smiley area. In 1991, when the stone wall seemed to be complete, Albert began stoning the slopes around the wall and planting various flowers and vegetables.
Saskatchewan Highway 772
Highway 772 is a highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It runs from Highway 317 near Hoosier to Highway 307 near Smiley. Highway 772 is about 20 km long.Highway 772 also passes near the community of Dewar Lake....
. Construction started in 1962 when Albert started arranging stones in the form of a wall. As stones were cleaned off the surrounding farmland Albert would add them to the wall. This continued clear until 1991. As the stones were transported to the wall they were placed so that the wall would support itself without the use of cement or mortar. The outer layer stones are specially shaped stones, that have been tapered inward in order to prevent the wall from moving. The interior of the wall is filled with small and odd shaped stones. During construction of the wall spruce
Spruce
A spruce is a tree of the genus Picea , a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the Family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal regions of the earth. Spruces are large trees, from tall when mature, and can be distinguished by their whorled branches and conical...
trees were added along side the wall for wind protection. After 29 years of work the wall was complete with a 6 foot base, stretching more than a 3/8 of a mile in length with an average height of 6 feet and 12 feet at places.
Along with the stone wall a sod house
Sod house
The sod house or "soddy" was a corollary to the log cabin during frontier settlement of Canada and the United States. The prairie lacked standard building materials such as wood or stone; however, sod from thickly-rooted prairie grass was abundant...
, built from sod cut out of the surrounding grasses was completed in 1986 with help form others in the Smiley area. In 1991, when the stone wall seemed to be complete, Albert began stoning the slopes around the wall and planting various flowers and vegetables.
External Links
- Saskbiz Community Profiles: Prairiedale No. 321 - Great Wall of Saskatchewan