Rural Development

The Past | The Start of Changes | The Future

by Alex, Ben, Connor and Tommy

People involved in rural development were the early settlers. They first came to the Millarville area in the late 1800’s. To make a living they started raising cattle with a ½ section of land or more. The Millarville area was developed quicker than other areas because a lot of land in southern Alberta was leased or rented to ranchers, but the Millarville area was not. The people could buy the land and begin to farm.
The land of the hamlet of Millarville was originally the homestead of Robert Turner, who came to the area in the late 1880’s. Robert Turner and his brothers, James and John, owned land at the edge of the schoolyard and to the west where the original McKay house is. They also owned land towards Turner Valley and experimented with irrigation in 1890’s. The Turners raised Clydesdales horses, cattle and sheep. It is recorded that at one time they had 50 horses and 20 cows. The Turners were among the first people of Millarville to drive a car. Robert Turner’s land is now Millarville and Millarville Ridge.

What was it like to live on a farm or ranch back then?

Life was hard. The people worked with their horses and cattle and any other jobs that helped care for their animals, such as growing hay, building fences and branding their animals.

The Start of Changes

The first change to the rural areas was the oil development during 1940-1946. Almost every ranch in this area had a member of their family working on the oil rigs and bringing home money, which would help them with their ranch. Sometimes the people continued to work for the oil companies and would hire helpers to work on the ranch.
In 1946 the oil industry moved to Leduc and some of the farm and ranch families followed. This began to create a smaller farming community and began an area of acreage ownership.

Communication:

In 1909 Alberta Provincial telephones installed the first rural phone line to Millarville. 5 phones were installed one line was for the store. By the 1950’s the party line was installed. A party line was a telephone line where many houses were connected on this one line. A house could hear many different telephone rings, but could only answer what their particular ring was, example, perhaps one ring or maybe two.

W.H. King and Galloway Ranch

In 1912 the Kings bought the ranch from Mr. Adams. Mr. King started to raise a breed of cattle called “Highland” cattle. He also raised and trained horses for the army. At the end of the war in 1918, there wasn't a lot of money so the Kings started milking their cows and shipping the cream to Calgary. As soon as Mr. King could, he started a job, other than farming, which he held for the next 16 years. W.H. King lived at his Galloway ranch until he died in 1941. We do not know who owned this land after 1941 but today this area has been subdivided into lots for houses called "Millarville Crossing" across from the Millarville store.

The rural development has changed over the years from larger farms and ranches into smaller farms and acreages. The beauty of the area with the mountain views and rolling hills has encouraged the people from cities to move to the acreages of Millarville. Today people want to live in a peaceful area enjoying the wildlife and quiet countryside.

The Future:

What will the future be like for Millarville?
1. It might become a city or a town with lots of stores and houses and not as many trees and fences.
2. It might be a town with coffee shops for people to gather and talk. Still like a community.