Timeline... 1900 - 1909

The World 1901: Queen Victoria dies, Jan. 22. Edward the VII reigns. 1901: Marconi sends the first radio signal across the Atlantic. 1903: Ford Motor Co. established to manufacture automobiles Canada 1902: First Canadian “production” car built by Good Brothers in Kitchener ON. 1903: Canada loses the Alaska Boundary Dispute 1904: Marquis wheat strain developed in Ottawa Experimental Farm 1905: Saskatchewan and Alberta enter confederation. 1909: First heavier than air flight in Canada, with pilot J.A.D. McCurdy. First Grey Cup Game. May 15, 1909: An earthquake is felt across the prairies.

Manitoba 1901: Manitoba’s first Hydro-electric plant opens on the Little Saskatchewan River northwest of Brandon.   1906: Manitoba farmers organize the “Grain Growers’ Grain Company” with shares available at $25. For any farmer wanting to join. 1908: Manitoba Government Telephones takes over the telephone service.

The Municipality of Pipestone The communities in Pipestone have reached what is termed the consolidation era (following the pioneer and establishment eras). Services are established, village layouts are established, and transportation lines are in place. The initial spurts of growth have settled. Hastily erected frame buildings are replaced with more substantial houses and stores. Recreational and cultural options are explored. 1900 Dr. Alva Burton Chapman is Reston’s first doctor. Had been a bridge builder and lumberjack. Sinclair School District # 105 formed and the first school built. 1901 Bardal School opens on S.W.14-8-29 - Dublin School opens on SW 22-6-28 Ewart School District #1287 established – school held in Mr. Ryland’s house The statutory labor requirement is abolished, to be replaced by taxation. The first municipal health officer is appointed - Dr. B. Baird of Pipestone at a stipend of $150.00. The population of Reston has risen to ninety-nine persons. 1902 G.S. Munroe Co. builds a fieldstone store of granite found 5 km south in the Kinloss District The Village of Ewart is created on the Reston – Wolesley line. Daybreak Presbyterian Church opens on SW 31-9-26. (It operated until 1962.) Reston Prebyterian (Untited) Church built. The first drug store in Reston is established by Doctor Chapman, for many years was both doctor and druggist to the community. Curling, in Reston began on an outdoor rink and the first bonspiel was held in 1902. 1903 Frank Stewart is the first Blacksmith in Sinclair. (1903 – 1911) 1904  Mrs. A.E. (Eliza Challener) Smith, a Nurse invited to community by Dr. Chapman, is the first lady to curl. She was still an active curler in the 1970’s. George E. Proctor is the Bardal postmaster, the building was moved to NW 22-8-29. (Building still exists, now on S 22-8-29) John Bulloch builds the first hotel in Sinclair. He brought the lumber with him when he arrived. Alf Archer came from the east in 1904 and at first mended clothes in the back of Donnelly's Men's Wear.   Preparing for War, 1913. Note the Donnelly & Archer building at centre. 1905 Frank Manning is first owner /  editor of the Reston Recorder.  (1905 – 1945) A Baptist Church is built in Reston. ( Torn down in 1946.) The Reston Rink Co. is formed and a new rink is erected. The three story cement block Arlington Hotel is built at the comer of Main St. and Railway Avenue in Pipestone.   Walter Rayner becomes Postmaster for Elm Valley 1905 – 1910. 1906  The population of Reston is 360. Edward Hanlon Berry builds the Berry Block for his Jewelry & Watch Repair business. St. John’s Anglican Church opens in Reston. Issac Haywood builds a store in 1906 on the corner of what was “Main Street”  in Ebor. B.M. Hart, who worked on railway line through Woodnorth establishes the first Woodnorth Store in a boxcar. In 1910 he acquired a store building and Post Office. He later built the first hall. Sproule School established on SE 10-9-29, a mile south of Ebor.     Many of Reston’s fine brick homes were built in the prosperous pre-war years. The Reston Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) Engine House (1906) Heritage Value Statement : Reston C.P.R. Engine House The Reston CPR Engine House, a utilitarian brick structure with a heavy post-and-beam wood frame, is a rare and evocative link with the era of the steam locomotive, which coincided with the rapid settlement and economic expansion of the Prairies. The building’s cavernous interior recalls the labour-intensive nature of steam locomotive transportation, with its need for regular servicing and maintenance. The prominence of the engine house on Reston’s outskirts also is a reminder of the railway’s impact on the community, which for several decades was the eastern terminus of passenger and freight services that connected parts of southwestern Manitoba to the CPR’s main line in neighbouring Saskatchewan. Interior engine house machinery still in place in 2008      Reston CPR Engine house in 2008 1907 The roots of Pipestone-Albert Agricultural Society and the Reston Fair go back to June 21, 1907 when a public meeting was called for the purpose of organizing the society and electing officers. Land is purchased for Fair Grounds. A fair was planed for that years but cancelled due to a severe hailstorm that ruined crops Chapman Drug Store Building is built by Dr. Chapman. It houses first telephone switchboard. A site is bought for the Sinclair Cemetery from Thomas Craig. Village of Bulter created on NW 33-9-29  along the new CNR line. Orma School #1401 (1907-191)  established. Crowell School #1287 (named after a pioneer) built in 1907 on SE 8-8-28 by T.S. Rintaul. Later (1911) moved a short distance to Ewart. The Scarth townsite is created on land owned by William Scarth (NW 9-9-26) with the arrival of the Canadian Northern Line A store  / post office and a school are located at the site. Cromer, formerly a settlement called Elm Valley, is established when the CN Railroad arrives. 1908  The first Fair held in Reston Fair Grounds – Aug. 4. The Race track is also built. $30000 in debentures is issued to cover the cost of establishing telephone service in Reston In 1908, the CPR puts in a branch line, which ran in a northwesterly direction to Wolseley with Reston as a terminus. It was at this time that Reston became a railroad town of importance. It enjoyed this prestige until 1961 when the Wolseley line closed down and the tracks were torn up. Manitoba Telephone System service installed in the Village of Pipestone. Jack Wright builds the general store in Butler. Ebor Athletic Club is formed – the Ebor Tigers football team win a regional championship.   1909   Sinclair Presbyterian Church is built. Previous to 1904 services were conducted by the Reston minister, Rev. McAlister. Rev. 1. G. Stephens from Reston continued to hold services in the Sinclair School and the Icelandic Hall from 1904 to 1908, when connections were severed and Sinclair, Crescent and Broomhill were formed into a Mission Field. The first managers of the Church were appointed in 1908 when John Milton, J. H. McLandress, John Bulloch and 0.1. Brownlee were elected.