Stories

As the train pulled into the station at North Portal, Saskatchewan, Sarah Atkins had no idea if she would be admitted into Canada. Her daughter and son-in-law, Naoma Atkins Hooks and Sam Hooks, had made it across the border and on to Edmonton.

"The Harlem Chicken Inn had become a successful business, but Melton saw her mission as one of social uplift. Williams, along with many other Edmontonians, got his first job at Melton’s place. Everyone around town knew they could count on Melton for a meal, and on at least one occasion, a hungry resident took advantage of her generosity."

"...many of the Black people who managed to settle on the Prairies were not only of African descent, but citizens of Indigenous Nations themselves. In the Black towns of Oklahoma, part of the attraction of western Canada was that it was, in fact, populated mostly by Indigenous people." 

"Black immigrants might not have disclosed connections to Indigenous nations in Oklahoma for a good reason: the federal government in their new home had been carrying out a genocidal campaign against First Nations. Furthermore, many Canadian government officials mistook Blacks for “Indians,” making them subject to the repressive policies of the Indian Act."

What began as a call for civic renewal on the dumpsite quickly turned into a massive park development project. The Beverly Dump would not only be shut down, it would be turned into a 319 acre park to “rival Copenhagen’s famed Tivoli area.”

"Funny thing about garbage. Everybody creates it but nobody wants to do anything about it." --early Edmonton City Engineer A. W. Haddow