Data Point related to: CITY/TOWN
Harris
On August 10, 1909, the Government of Saskatchewan issued incorporation papers for the Village of Harris, though its roots trace back a few years earlier. Richard Elford Harris, born in 1847 in Ontario, married Anne Cantellon in 1872. Initially working as a carriage maker and carpenter in Goderich, Huron County, he moved his family westward in 1891 to farm in Morden, Manitoba. In 1904, the Harris family, with two sons and a daughter, journeyed further west from Saskatoon on the Old Bone Trail, settling two miles north of the village's present location, halfway between Goose Lake and Devils Lake (later known as Crystal Beach).
As settlers arrived and passed through, the Harris family’s sod house became a welcoming stop known as the 'Harris Stopping Place,' where travelers could rest, enjoy a meal, and shelter their animals. Richard Harris and his sons often assisted settlers in locating homesteads. As the community grew, the need for a post office emerged, and Harris became the area’s first postmaster. Soon after, a store and Methodist church were built, with Harris occasionally serving as a lay minister.
The hamlet expanded, eagerly awaiting the railway. When surveyors missed the settlement by two miles, the resilient pioneers purchased land from homesteader Jack Sinfield and relocated businesses, homes, and an elevator near the railway tracks that ran southwest. The first train arrived in the fall of 1908, and another prairie town took shape on mile 52 of the Goose Lake Line.
Naming discussions followed, with 'Sinfield' and 'Miscampbellville' as options, but when Harris received permission from the Post Office Department to move his office to the new site, the community adopted his name. The Methodist Church also relocated to the new townsite.
In its progressive spirit, Harris established its first telephone company in 1916, added cement sidewalks in the 1920s, and brought in electricity by 1930. In 1955, Harris was among the few villages to adopt a natural gas utility through Sask Power, 25 years ahead of some neighboring communities. A gravity sewer system was installed in 1960, remaining low-maintenance to this day, with land for the lagoon donated by a resident. Street paving began in the early 1970s, completed by 1980, and in 1976, a municipal water treatment and distribution system became operational.
Type of Data Point - Website/Blog Post
Visit page of City/Town - Harris
Inserted: 27-10-2024 17:10:17
Questions related to this Data Point
How did Harris show progressive development in adopting new utilities like gas and electricity?
How did the location of the railway impact the development of Harris?
What impact did the Harris Stopping Place have on the village's growth and reputation?
What role did Richard Harris play in supporting early settlers in Harris?
What were the key factors that led to the naming of Harris instead of other suggested names?
Why was Harris able to maintain its gravity sewer system with minimal maintenance over time?
Why was the Harris family’s sod house significant to the community?
Contexts related to this Data Point
Cities - Villages and Towns in Canada
Historical information about Canadian towns and villages
Map of Saskatchewan
Villages and Towns in Saskatchewan
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