Photo Courtesy of Brian Tremblay
There’s lots to love at Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park and this month we celebrate the romance of its past. From wedding ceremonies and celebrations, to the arrival of newlywed couples, love was in the air.
One wedding ceremony is known to have been conducted at Glenbow. Chester and Gladys de la Vergne hosted the ceremony in their newly constructed home, located at the top of today’s Scott Trail. On November 15, 1909, Gladys’s sister, Celia Block, wed Leonard Kennerley, Chester’s business partner. The men ran the Glenbow Sheep and Horse Ranch, and Kennerley was the ranch manager. The Kennerley home still stands, however the larger de la Vergne home was demolished years ago.
The wedding party pictured above occurred at Glenbow townsite on October 30, 1910 to celebrate the marriage of Ethel Hughes and Tom Gillard. Ethel had arrived at Glenbow with her brother’s fiancé. Ethel then became governess for the de la Vergne children. Tom had taken up a homestead and was also an engineer at the Glenbow Quarry. After the wedding, the couple moved to Tom’s farm.
Cupid’s arrow also brought a new bride to Glenbow. When a friend introduced Glenbow’s CPR section foreman, John Charyk, to Anna Dorosh, John knew she was the one for him. Coincidentally, the two had immigrated to Canada from neighbouring villages in what is today the Ukraine. On their second meeting, John proposed to Anna. On October 3, 1907, their Greek Orthodox wedding was conducted in a Calgary home by a priest brought from Edmonton. The newlyweds arrived the next day in Glenbow, where they lived in “a brand-new two-storey house of six rooms.”
Although you won’t be able to see the now-demolished Charyk home on your next visit to Glenbow, you will find lots to fall in love with. So, put on your mitts and toque enjoy a February trip to Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park.