Hague Water Tower

The handsome CNR water tower in Hague, Saskatchewan.

I'd stopped to see the water tower the previous summer but since I was in the area again a return visit was in order.  It's still in beautiful condition...and also learned that the tower is used as a symbol in the town logo.

Photographed on October 9, 2022.

Driving Miss Daisy

I had the pleasure of Miss Daisy's company this past Sunday.

It was a warm day so she had her window wide open for the whole trip.  

We usually end up at Hillside cemetery where we can drive slowly down the narrow lanes...she has lots to sniff and I don't have to deal with traffic.  Can't beat that for a Sunday drive.

Photographed in Medicine Hat, Alberta on February 12, 2023.

Містер і Mісіс Сул

Містер і Mісіс Сул.

Mister and Missus Sul.

John and Mary together for all time.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Photographed at the Ukrainian Catholic Cemetery of Saints Peter and Paul near Sunville, Manitoba on August 19, 2022.

Great News!

Some great news to share.  

My dear friend David Carter arranged for a meeting with the archivist at the Esplanade Arts & Heritage Centre here in Medicine Hat, Alberta today.  We soon established a mutual understanding that the preservation of our heritage was vastly important.

In brief...the photos I've taken covering much of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba along with isolated areas of North Dakota and Montana will now be preserved in perpetuity in the archives of the Esplanade.  Everyone with an interest in our history will have access to the photos of the historic sites I've had the pleasure to experience first hand.  

And what better way to celebrate than with photos of the Congregational Church at Gros Ventre-Tothill...

...and Daisy!

It's been a wondrous day of gratitude and appreciation that works both ways, and all around.  I'm feeling somewhat blessed at the moment so excuse me for blushing.  I believe a glass of champagne is in order.

Daisy at the Congregational Church was photographed near Gros Ventre-Tothill, Alberta on October 2, 2022.  

Дванадцять хрестів

Дванадцять хрестів

Twelve crosses

A small selection of handcrafted wrought iron crosses that grace the domes and cupolas of both large and small Ukrainian churches in the beautiful province of Manitoba.  Enjoy!

Saint Michael's Ukrainian Catholic Church (1900/1921)

Venlaw, Manitoba

July 24, 2022

Saint Michael's Ukrainian Catholic Church (1900/1921)

Venlaw, Manitoba

July 24, 2022

Saint Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Church (1904/1933)

Ozerna, Manitoba

July 25, 2022

Ukrainian Catholic Church of the Ascension (1911)

Ruthenia, Manitoba

July 26, 2022

Saint Peter and Saint Paul Ukrainian Catholic Church (1904)

Rossburn Farms, Manitoba

July 26, 2022

Saint Mary's Ukrainian Catholic Church (1918)

Glenhope, Manitoba

August 19, 2022

Saint Peter and Saint Paul Ukrainian Orthodox Church (1940)

Sundown, Manitoba

August 21, 2022

Saint Elias Ukrainian Orthodox Church (1908)

Sirko, Manitoba

August 21, 2022

Holy Trinity Ukrainian Catholic Church (1898)

Stuartburn, Manitoba

August 22, 2022

Holy Eucharist Ukrainian Catholic Church (1924)

Rosa, Manitoba

August 22, 2022

Anyone interested in the symbolism of the crosses may find the above collection thought-provoking as well as a little bit puzzling.  My overall view is not so much an explanation as it is an understanding.

From what I've read the crescent moon motif was introduced after the seventeenth century in Ukraine to commemorate the triumph of the Christian faith over Islam.  When Ukrainian settlers immigrated to Canada the crescent moon was kept as an ornamental element on the wrought iron crosses that decorated the domes and cupolas of their churches.

During the early days of immigration it seems that at times both Catholic and Orthodox churches used the crescent moon at the base of their crosses and both faiths used the trefoil (three-barred) cross and the Latin (crucifix) cross. 

  

As is was, there were no "set rules" so the artists who designed and sculpted these attractive wrought iron crosses had a creative hand in expressing their native heritage and displayed it proudly on the churches they built in their new homeland.

Thanks to Crosses of East Slavic Christianity among Ukrainians in Western Canada by A. M. Kostecki.