This is Champion Alberta

We’re a bit of south of Calgary in Vulcan County and visiting a quaint little village by the name of Champion Alberta. There’s lots of charm and personality here and in the pleasing light found near sunset we simply wander about with a curious eye. That’s our MO – put those feet in motion with no plan or goal and with this every discovery is a pleasant surprise. Ahead, it’s a little tour just for you that we so enjoyed producing.

Champion’s been around since 1911 and founded concurrent with the arrival of the Canadian Pacific Railway’s Calgary to Lethbridge line. The trains still run but pass through without pause. Reaching a peak population of just over six hundred in the early days, today it’s about half that. Agriculture drives the local economy and always has but there’s the petroleum biz too.

Downtown’s not that busy anymore. Back when Champion was all shiny and new, there were booming hotels, restaurants and stores of all kinds, but today it’s pretty quiet. Still there’s signs of life and we’ll touch on that as we go, but late this business day only the grocery store was open. Say it with me…Lotto Stop! That you’re reading this means we did not win a cool couple million on 649 and so it’s again the daily grind for us.

The Champion Inn.

The Champion Inn when built in 1911 was called the Savoy but has carried its present name since the 1980s, It stands at a once prominent position in town, at the corner of the two busiest streets (1st and Main) and in close proximity to the train station. In the day this was THE choice spot.

In times past the building also housed various other businesses, a dentist in the early days and similarly the offices of the local newspaper. Then later in the 1960s it was a hair salon and lamenting the loss, in the 1990s there was ice cream parlour here. Nooooooooo! A scoop of that creamy frozen goodness is about as awesome as it gets, but we hear those needing a fix (so us) can now find a new outlet in town. A coffee/ice cream place has since opened up just up the street since our visit and will be the first place we hit up when we make our return. Look for us there, all smiling and happy, a cup of joe in one hand and a waffle cone in the other.

In recent times, a series of restaurants and pubs have operated out of the hotel with the last closing shortly before our visit. Rooms have not been offered for some time with these later businesses surviving exclusively on the food and beer end of things. But wait, there’s breaking news and we have found out a new eatery has since moved in (thanks to our network of informants). Small town restaurants already have it hard but in this pandemic things must be murder, so that’s a brave move and we’ll show support next time we’re in Champion.

Across the road, it’s the Gas Plus closed for many years now. The building is briefly seen in the 1990s road movie Leaving Normal (a too-cute Thelma & Louise according to one critic). Other parts of Champion are seen too, but most of the filming was at night or the scenes too brief to make out much else. It’s not really a bad flick if you go in with bridled expectations. This building is relatively new and from the late 1970s.

Champion Park is located at the end of Main Street and is home to some displays, some mini grain elevators, a pump jack and old coal mine cars (mines were to the east and northeast). In times past the train station would have been here and while gone it was not demolished and instead survives present day at a different Champion Park.

Notice the old rail siding still in place and while the grain elevators that once stood along this track are long gone, it’s aptly used to store old grain cars. They’ve come home one last time. These “Take an Alberta Break” hoppers are nearing the end of their service lives, so the ones seen here might not have a bright future.

Originally bought by the Alberta Government in the early 1980s, a time when grain cars were in short supply, they were also used as rolling advertisements with each carrying the name of town in the province. In this line we saw Strathmore, Innisfail, Stony Plain, Coutts and a bunch of others. Rail cars are a target of choice for graffiti guys, as you can see in the photos.

What’s the deal with that thing marked derail? It does exactly what it says and should a railcar on a siding roll free for whatever reason, it will cause it to jump the track before further damage can be done. If not in place, a runaway might foul the main track, which could spell disaster for the next passing train. While the outcome is bad in either case a small derailment is better than the alternative, that is a major train pile up.

To honour those who paid the price.

Next door to the Champion Inn is a building we had naively miss identified last time we visited the community. Turns out it was a store, and not a second hotel as we thought, something that would have been made obvious had we opened our eyes. That’d be too easy, but looking close one can make out faded lettering that tells us exactly what it was. Up there for all to see it’s the words Dry Goods, Gent’s Wear (we think), Clothing, Groceries and Crockery and finally Boots and Shoes. They’re not plain as day, but with the right angle and/or lighting are able to be seen. And it’s after all these years too.

This building dates back to the early days and functioned as grocery or variety store into the 1970s at least under a series of names and owners. At times it also housed the post office and upstairs for a time, a dance hall. Beside a well worn hitching post speaks of a time when horsepower had a literal meaning and in rural areas it would not be odd to see such animals being used as conveyances into fairly modern times. Still, it’s a bit of an illusion and instead put in for that movie Leaving Normal (no, not Team BIGDoer’s biopic) spoken of earlier, then left behind when filming wrapped.

The Champion Library is housed in an old school and is pretty as a picture. Across the road, it’s some metal cuts-outs depicting local scenes like a coal mine, a down by the tracks view, a scene honouring veterans (and when the call was made more prairie boys stepped up than anyone). There’s many more, and a nice flower garden surrounding it.

The town offices are also in building from the early days and from the time built in 1911 and into the early 2010s, was home to various financial institutions. The town moved their offices here in the early 1990s. When built the structure had one story with the second added, it’s believed, in the 1920s. A local dog comes to eye us up, sniffs the air then turns tail and leaves. Nothing to see here…I guess.

The next block east is home to some old garages and these remind us just how busy things were in the old days. One dates from the the 1940s and displaying some subtle Moderne-esque architectural stylings it operated at least into the 1980s. Almost across the street, it’s another one from perhaps the 1910s-1920s period. I guess no one recorded when it was build so we don’t know for sure. A cement pad out front marks what we believe was a fuel island. There’s a third garage that we missed taking a photo of – doh – we’ll catch it next time but it does appear in that other Champion piece (link a number of paragraphs above)..

We chat with some local friends and wander about taking the quiet evening, our our favourite time of day to explore. A stop’s made to pick some odd and ends at the store – even with our pinch-every-penny budget we always try to put a few coins in the local economy. A lot of the photos here don’t necessarily take in historic subjects, but instead reflect that small town ambience. Think care free and welcoming, a slower pace and no big city troubles. Take the time to look close and you’ll discover there’s a real personality in these places.

The station still exists (see post).

This is by no means a complete tour or inventory of what’s in Champion and instead just a little slice. No point trying to cram it all in one pass and with that there’s always a reason to come back.

Maybe this will inspire you to visit Champion and when you do share your photos with us. And maybe drop by Champion Grocery when there, or Clever Scoops or get some take out from the Champion Inn Restaurant and have a picnic in the park. The world is too messed and busy so slow down and have some fun.

Here’s some useful search terms if want to know more: Village of Champion Alberta and Visiting Vulcan County.

Till next time, adios friends.

They’re saying…

”Fantastic detail and in depth coverage of history….great work…much appreciated by those who follow.” Rob Graz.

More like this…
A Stop in Heinsburg – Wish we could have stayed longer.
In & Around Hanna – This is bliss.
Wandering Shaunavon – In the Land of Living Skies!
Exploring Viking – Just who are these Sutter guys?

If you wish more information on what you’ve seen here don’t hesitate to contact us!

Date of Adventure: June, 2020.
Location(s): Champion, AB.
Article references and thanks: Marilyn Wolfe and Racille Ellis, both of who were a huge help and the Book Champion and District.
Drop by Champion and tell’em we sent you.

There were coal mines in the area.

Looking up…

It sucks.

Closed, but since reopened.

Someone to chat with.

Old grain cars on a side track.

Sunset on the flag.

At Champion Park.

These dot the Alberta Plains.

It’s been closed a while now.

To roll no more.

A well worn hitching post.

When you look close, you see interesting things.

In the soft light at the end of the day.

Welcome!

Craig’s is no more.

As seen in “Leaving Normal”.

Can you make out the faded lettering?

We don’t have much but they’ll get our business.

Visited in the spring.

Ding dong!

This former garage is from the ’40s.

Birdy condos.

Another old garage (circa 1910s-1920s).

The library is housed in an old school.

The town offices and the town dog.

Roll on Inn…

Made you smile.

It’s the little things.

Visited one quiet evening.

“Take an Alberta Break!”

Just what is a derail?

Goodnight Champion, but we’ll be back.