In 1893, Sir John A. MacDonald, then Prime Minister of Canada, asked
Jacob Y. Shantz to select a site in Western Canada for a Mennonite
settlement. Didsbury was the site chosen, and Jacob Shantz constructed
an immigration shed, a barn, and also dug a well in preparation for the
settler’s arrival. In the spring of 1894 Jacob Shantz, his family, and 34
settlers left Berlin (now Kitchener, Ontario) on a colonist train heading
west and arrived at 3:00 am, April 18, 1894.
Didsbury
Museum
Location: 2110-21 Ave., Didsbury
Open: Year-round Website: didsburymuseum.com
Phone: 403-335-9295
The Donalda & District Museum found its beginnings in 1979 when Don
and Beth Lawson decided to donate their personal collection of over
500 lamps and pioneer artifacts to the village, on the condition that a
museum be built to house the collection. Today, the museum’s collection
has over 1,100 lamps and hundreds of other artifacts. The museum is
also comprised of the Donalda Co-operative Creamery, the Imperial Bank
of Canada building, Railway Station and the World’s Largest Lamp.
Donalda
& District
Museum
Location: 5001 Main St., Donalda
Open: Year-round Website: donaldamuseum.com
Phone: 403-883-2100
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