Early History of Camrose

The area in and around the present city of Camrose, once rich in furs, was at one time the home of the Cree Indians. These wandering people were often found along the banks of Stoney Creek down to the Battle River, along the shores of Dried Meat Lake and in the environs of the nearby vicinity. One of the most commonly known Cree, who was present at the time Camrose was established, was PE-O-Kis.

The first home on the present site of Camrose, originally known as Sparling, after the Reverend Dr. Sparling, a physician from Winnipeg, Manitoba, was built in 1893 by Ole Bakken. The home was kept in immaculate condition and was always open to visitors. The first merchant in the Hamlet of Sparling was Duncan Sampson, who had come from Ontario. In May 1904, Sampson erected a small store near the present Sparling School, with his dwelling upstairs. Mail of Sparling settlers was left in a soap box in Sampson’s store.

The Hamlet of Sparling was incorporated as the Village of Sparling on May 4, 1905. Because the name was often confused with the towns of Sperling and Stirling in Western Canada, village council, in 1906, changed the name to Camrose. There is no factual evidence available to indicate the reason for the selection of the name of Camrose, but it is generally accepted that it was named after a town in South Wales.

By June 1905, Canadian Pacific Railway had completed a railway grade east from Wetaskiwin to Sparling, complete with a bridge over Stoney Creek. A train originating from Wetaskiwin came to the village in the afternoon three times a week.

In the original survey of the town site, the main street’s 100-foot width came into being largely through the farsighted planning of pioneer citizen and first Justice of the Peace, Francois Adam, generally referred to today as “Father of Camrose”. His foresight is much in evidence as the main street of Camrose is a great source of pride to the local citizenry. The “uncluttered” look that downtown has is due to its wide main street. This, combined with the orderly development throughout the city, has resulted in Camrose earning the enviable reputation of being one of the “nicest” cities in western Canada. In 2000, Camrose was the National Communities in Bloom Champion for its population category.

Since 2000, the Camrose Main Street Project has undertaken, with owners, the restoration and enhancement of the facades of more than a dozen buildings in the Downtown. Every year in August the city’s pioneers are celebrated during Camrose Founders Days.