Lethbridge Herald, December 6,1909
A homegrown bank in Grassy Lake, Alberta? Did I hear you snicker? I don't know what became of the Grassy Lake Securites Company but it appears it's founding in 1909 was a sign of the optimism of the times-- along with less restrictive banking laws In 1909 all you needed were a few big ideas and a few eager investors. The fact that your new bank was located in a tiny community of 200 souls should prove no obstacle. Houses and businesses were "erupting" out of the rich dust of the Southern Alberta prairie-- so why not a homegrown bank, too?
Grassy Lake, ca.1912, Glenbow-Alberta Archives photo.
Unloading horses at the Grassy Lake train station in 1902 (left). Abandoned train station, 1967 (right).
Glenbow-Alberta Archives photos.
Pushed along by land speculators and mecca-builders William Salvage and Harry Driggs, "Grassy" had achieved village status by 1911 and by the early Spring of 1912 had hit the 460 mark. Presumably, it's new banking establishment was growing along with it, in anticipation of hitting the population requirement for "town" status: then set at 700. Grassy Lake by this time was possessed by a spirit of optimism that ran rampant even in the smallest hamlets and villages along the CPR rail line. One claim regularly made by land speculators on the prairies was that the first crop would pay for the farm. Grassy Lake could hardly wait to see the new found wealth flowing down its streets. So, indeed-- why not a bank to help to both hold and promote all that coming wealth?
Full page ads with enlarged maps from William Salvage's full-page January, 1910 Medicine Hat News ad promoting real estate, industries and resources of Grassy Lake from the Medicine Hat News. The second map highlights the location of Grassy Lake in relation to Lethbridge and Medicine Hat.
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