RANCHING AND COAL MINING:HERITAGE OF ERIC CLEVELAND
Pioneer Eric Cleveland had a strong historical connection with the early ranching and coal mining industries in the Pincher Creek district. Although he never achieved great economic wealth as a result of his work, his contributions were typical of those hard working individuals who were part of the Western Canadian frontier.
FAMILY’S AGRICULTURAL HERITAGE AND THE CALL OF THE WESTERN FRONTIER
Erick Cleveland was born in 1868 in Toronto, known during its pioneer years as Muddy York. Even though he was raised in a rapidly growing Central Canadian city, he still had an agricultural heritage. As was the case with most pioneer families, the Clevelands were permitted by municipal authorities to keep a milk cow, two or three horses and a few chickens on their property within the city. Such farm animals, sheltered in a small barn and chicken coop in the back of a large yard, were considered to be necessities with a few food items as milk and eggs while the horses were used for transportation. The family’s agricultural background was further strengthened in that the previous four generations were farmers in the pre-Confederation Canadas and earlier across the line in New York State.
Cleveland’s father John served as a municipal employee for several years but son Eric took little interest in that field of employment. He was much more suited in agricultural pursuits and the call of the western frontier. In the late 1880s he spent three years working on several farms in the Winnipeg area where he gained hands-on experience.
RANCH HAND ON THE HATFIELD RANCH
In the 1890s, Eric Cleveland struck west again, initially arriving in Fort Macleod. There he received word that rancher Herbert Maynard Hatfield (1855 – 1945) wanted to hire a couple ranch hands. Hatfield was a true Pincher Creek area pioneer, having established his large ranch along the left bank of the Waterton or Kootenai River. Cleveland borrowed a horse and rode the long overland route down to the ranch. He used the prairie river system and the distant mountains of Waterton Lakes as his guideposts. Hatfield hired him even though he had more experience in farm work than ranching.
Eric Cleveland worked at the ranch on and off throughout most of the 1890s. He was particularly busy during calving and branding seasons and assisted with the early roundups. Soon he was adept in working with cattle. However, he found local winter weather to be a challenge as he was not used to the changeable temperatures and precipitation associated with the Chinooks. He complained bitterly about the strong westerly winds and the drifting snow which often was difficult to travel through. Yet it was the often regular nature of the Chinook itself that was a blessing for local ranchers, opening up some of the country during winter and decreasing their need for feed being brought in.
CHRISTIE COAL MINE
By 1901, Eric Cleveland had left the Hatfield Ranch and started working at the Christie Mine southwest of Pincher Creek. This successful coal mining operation was started in 1883 by Andrew Christie (1839 – 1933). Local folklore remembers the mine for its high quality coal. Most of its resources were sold to the local market.
Cleveland worked in the mine itself, helping to dig out the coal and transport it to the surface. The work was dusty and hard with mechanized equipment non-existent. Yet Cleveland worked there diligently for years. Later, he had one of the contracts to deliver coal from the mine to customers both in the countryside and in Pincher Creek. Return trips usually took an entire day and required a good team of strong work horses. Cleveland’s ranch work definitely paid off with aspects of this job as well.
PORCUPINE HILLS RANCH
Some seven years later, in 1908, Eric Cleveland returned to ranching, having just purchased a small ranch a short distance northwest of Nanton, in the northern reaches of the Porcupine Hills. His younger brother Elijah joined him in a business partnership with the ranch and helped make the purchase. Together, in the 1910s and 1920s, they raised a fine herd of cattle and were equally proud of the horses attached to the ranch. The cattle were marketed in both Nanton and Stavely; the brothers being community minded, they rarely sent their cattle to market in the bustling city of Calgary. The siblings also could be seen attending community events on a regular basis.
The brothers’ business was successful in spite of only one significant spring on the ranch and the drought of 1919. When it was sold in 1926, the two had developed a thriving commercial operation.
Eric Cleveland retired to Vancouver where he enjoyed the milder climate of the west coast. He returned to the Pincher Creek area several times during the 1930s, enjoying visits with his old friends from years gone by. Cleveland passed away in 1944.