117 years of the Belsher family celebrated with historical landmark

McCORD — A Belsher historical landmark was unveiled near McCord on Aug. 3. The art installation, commissioned by Clair Belsher of Calgary, honoured a family of six brothers and a sister who came to McCord from Shawville, Que., in the early 20th century when the Canadian government encouraged settlement of the West through the Homestead Act, said Gayle Belsher.

“The unveiling occurred on the original homestead quarter of Willie Belsher, the first of the family to make a homestead claim.

“Willie signed the application for a homestead at the Dominion Lands Office in Moose Jaw on Dec. 22, 1908. He returned to his home in Shawville, Quebec, until the spring of 1909, when he arrived in Saskatchewan with two of his brothers who had also made homestead claims, to begin life in the West. Disembarking the train at Morse, they travelled south by horse and buggy, across unturned prairie for four days until locating the stakes marking their claims. Three more brothers and a sister would follow, coming to homesteads in McCord. All met the Homestead Act requirements and gained title to their land.

“Willie married and brought his young bride from Ontario to his sod shack, where they began their family. They raised 16 children, never having electricity or running water. Three of those children attended the unveiling event.

“After Willie moved to Calgary in 1954, his homestead quarter was purchased by his youngest brother, Russel Belsher, then gifted to his son, Clair, who initiated the project."

Almost 100 members of the Belsher family attended the unveiling. They came from as far away as Mississippi, Texas and Australia, as well as from various locations in the western provinces. Representatives from all five of the Belsher brothers who farmed on homesteads and had children, including some fifth-generation family members, were present.

“After the unveiling, the extended family enjoyed lunch in the McCord Community Hall, followed by a slide show, a walking tour of historic places, and a service in the original Holiness Movement Church, which once stood on Willie Belsher’s land before being relocated to its current town site. Returning to the community hall, there was a supper provided by the ‘Belsher who stayed’ in the McCord area, and group family photos in front of a family tree that everyone built. The event ended with a pancake breakfast on Monday morning at the home of June and Lorne Belsher, where several campers had parked in the yard for the weekend,” concluded Belsher.