After a few days away I was on my way home when I saw this...
...long abandoned grain elevator on the open prairie near Dodsland, Saskatchewan.
It's always a good feeling to see one of these old prairie sentinels still standing.
Photographed on November 19, 2019.
Much to my surprise I found two existing churches and a cemetery on this same site. This is "The Old Church."
Even though it's now overgrown with aspen trees the building is still an eye-catcher.
Each of the three wooden crosses remain intact on top of the three small cupolas.
Finding an historic church is always a welcome surprise. From the scant records I could find I believe it was built in 1903.
Sfanta Treime Romanian Orthodox Church is near Calder, Saskatchewan.
Photographed on October 10, 2020.
This oil painting on glass of Mary is mounted above the front doors of Patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary Ukrainian Catholic Church at Model Farm, Saskatchewan.
The painting is original to the church which was built in 1932.
Photographed on October 12, 2020.
Saint John the Baptist Ukrainian Catholic Church is near Glidden, Saskatchewan.
It was a foggy and frosty day in the country which always makes for alluring pictures. The caragana hedge behind the church was covered in thick hoar frost.
The apse of the church is an unusual four-sided shape with windows on two of those sides.
The three wrought iron crosses are oversize and distinctive.
Even when this sign is not physically present, as it is here, it's a sign that should be in mind at all heritage sites. Please respect all historical sites.
Photographed on November 22, 2020.
The Court House (now City Hall)...
...and Post Office in Melville, Saskatchewan.
A pair of attractive and historical brick buildings in downtown Melville.
Photographed on October 11, 2020.
A friendly black lab I met in the country near Grayson, Saskatchewan. She was full of energy and as soon as she saw I had a stick to throw we were instantly best buddies. This is the sort of spontaneous interaction that makes for a great day on the road.
Photographed on October 11, 2020.
These are the three rose windows at Saint Mary's Ukrainian Catholic Church in Yorkton, Saskatchewan.
It was -32°C outside and I was happy to be taking photographs inside where it was toasty warm.
This a just a small example of the many beautiful stained glass windows at the church.
Photographed on December 17, 2019.
Saint Vladimir Ukrainian Orthodox Church is in Vegreville, Alberta.
A touch of the traditional in a modern setting...a mosaic tile representation of Christ holding a bible.
Photographed on February 23, 2020.
This is Lindahl Township School (complete with cast iron water pump). The original three-gabled school must have been quite attractive in its day...
...but there also must have been quite a population explosion in later years, enough to warrant two lean-to additions to the school.
Some decorative elements are the arched window in the west-facing gable, small finials at the tips of all three gables and eave returns on the north and south ends of the original school. (An eave return is where the bottom corner of the roof wraps around to the adjacent side of the building...adding a little "touch of class.")
Lindahl Township is thirty-six square miles of farm and pasture land with a population of about sixty people. Lots of space to move around.
Photographed near McGregor, North Dakota on December 18, 2018.
A country church near Oxville, Alberta.
I was both surprised and pleased to see that the road had been plowed. Since no one lives along this stretch I expected a half mile plus walk-in to see the church. Thank you Mister Grader Man!
The exterior is finished in plain gray stucco...
...while the interior is plaster painted a soft yellow. The floor is hardwood painted gray.
A small table and two chairs for an indoor picnic when visiting on a warmer day. The spartan design (both inside and out) of the building 'suggest' a Lutheran church.
The large windows let in lots of light.
A community cemetery is located just west of the church.
Photographed on February 20, 2020.
