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Intoduction

This web site is an off-shoot of work that we have done over the last two years to research my wife's family. My wife is Audrey Hans, daughter of Cam and Amy Hans (see right), who lived on the edge of Caron. Cam Hans was the son of William V. Hans amd Minnie Smith and they farmed land north of Caron (see picture at the bottom of the page). There were a number of Hans families who lived and farmed in the Caron Rural Municipality and we have been working to unravel their connections. We know that the families have their origins in Germany and that they moved from there to Ireland before emigrating to what we know as Canada. In Canada they lived in Wellington County, Ontario and there they cleared dense forest and swamp to carve a farm from the bush. The families then took part in the migration west and arrived in what is today the Caron Municipality at the end of the 19th Century.

Our research included seeking out the land on which these people lived and where possible gathering photographs of their homes. To that end we have travelled around the municipality taking photographs for our collection. In the process we became very much aware that farms that we photographed 20 years ago no longer exist. In fact, so changed is the landscape that houses and barns are gone, trees that sheltered them have been removed and even the fields themselves have changed. Quarter sections of land which 20 years ago could be distinguished from their neighbours are now blended together into mile long fields. Minor roads that were once graded are now suitable only for farm vehicles and will soon become so overgrown as to be indistinguishable from the fields on either side. In the Caron R.M., as in all rural areas of Saskatchewan, elevators have disappeared and the railway lines that served them have been dismantled. The small communities that grew up around the elevators are gone.

--- The home of Chris Fulcher ---

All of this is of course a sign of the times and a result of the realities of the farming economy. Small farms have disappeared to be replaced by corporations. Gigantic concrete elevators have replaced rural elevators and the provinces highways are living proof of the fact that grain moves to the elevators in semi-trailers today. People have moved off the land in large numbers and the countryside is littered with old houses and outbuildings that are in various stages of decay. The need to farm every inch of good land and the concern about liability usually results in these building being demolished and burnt.

This is true, understandable and at the same time regretable. The artifacts of the history of these prairie pioneers is being erased from the landscape and much of it has already gone. So we decided to do something about at least recording it for posterity. The outstanding "Celebrate Saskatchewan Year (1980)" project that resulted in the publication of community history books is something that sets Saskatchewan apart and ahead of many others in this regard. Anyone wanting to learn about the Caron R.M. should try to find a copy of "From Buffalo Trails to Blacktop". This web site does not attempt to out-do that excellent book, in fact it relies heavily on it. What we do seek to do is to bring the story of the Caron R.M. to the Internet so that everyone can enjoy it. What we also want to do is to record what is there now before any more of it disappears. Since we don't live in the area we will never be able to refect all the changes in the future.

So to sum up, this is not the official web site of the Caron R.M., they are not responsible for anything we say. This is not meant to be an upstaging of "From Buffalo Trails to Blacktop" but an extension of it. This is our attempt to tell the story of the Caron R.M. and the people who lived in it over the years. We also publish seven local history web sites set in my home country of England and they have all prospered by the involvement of others. Readers need to know that we appreciate all the assistance you can give us. Please point out our errors and if you have photographs, memorabilia or stories to add please send them along to us. We guarantee to return anything sent to us promptly and to give full credit on the site to anyone making a contribution.