Robsart Saskatchewan 61 Years Apart

The tiny-dot-on-the-map community of Robsart Saskatchewan goes back just over one hundred and ten years, had an early but brief foray with success, and today is a shadow of its former self. It’s home to many more ghosts than people and this made quite evident by simply wandering its empty streets. There’s not a soul about and nary a sound to be heard. The older generations have passed on and the most of those that came later moved away in search of opportunity.

It’s one of the more intact forgotten towns visited by BIGDoer.com and our group has seen its fair share over the years. Keep in mind, the properties here still belong to someone, so it’s only fair to show this respect. The streets are public access and feel free to wander about but everything else should be considered off limits. Intermixed with empty homes are a few presently lived in.

Robsart is located in the southwest corner of the province and in an area always lightly populated. It hit stride with the coming of the railway in 1914 and for a time things looked rosy. They were off to a good start, but that would end soon enough. The decline started with the coming of great depression of the 1930s. Crop failures, low prices, and a general uneasiness all arrived at the same time.

The exodus was not immediate but slow and steady. A trickle of people left at first, then more and more with each passing year. By the 1980s, Robsart had seen better days. By the 2000s, it was near dead and lost village status early that century. At the peak in the 1920s it had a population of three hundred and fifty. Today some fifteen to twenty hardy souls call it home sweet home.

A railway branch line runs past the town and that’s almost a rarity today in Saskatchewan. So many secondary lines and grain gathering branches have been abandoned in the province over the years and former roadbeds devoid of steel are the norm. This track belongs to the Great Western Railway, who mostly hauls grain, but this section doesn’t see much action.

Wandering about, we’re immediately taken aback. It feels so lonely, spooky and lost. It’s almost as though people just up and left one day. That’s true in many cases and for some it’s due to untimely deaths.

The community is several blocks square and has a small commercial district (rather, small former commercial district) roughly at the centre. A few old stores and such remain, but stand empty. There are many old houses, most rather small and humble (no McMansions here). A couple are lived in but most are not.

A few of these are seen in the old photo and were likely occupied then, but now either vacant or gone. That Then image dates back to 1963 and shows some kind of going’s in town. That’s the old Robsart Community Hall in the foreground and what ever is happening, it’s likely taking place here. At the time it functioned as the centre for community events of all types.

Weddings, parties, concerts, political events, farming workshops and all manners of get togethers would happen here. The lack of bunting or decorations suggests something more business like in nature was occurring this day. Looks at all those cars!

A friend of BIGDoer.com was kind enough to ID the bunch and it’s amazing given the distant ones are pretty obscured. But that’s classic car guys and thanks Barry Davies. We’re pretty hopeless in that regard so this saved us plenty of time. Still, we did our best to double check and Barry seems to have done his homework.

There’s a 1956 Meteor (by Ford) closest and these were their own marque at the time. They were sold at Mercury dealers and said to directly compete with GM’s Pontiac division. Next it’s a Monarch, also it’s own marque and sold at Ford dealers in competition with GM’s Oldsmobile division. It’s a 1961 and this became the last year for that brand.

A 1961 Chevrolet Pickup is next, then a 1957 Chevrolet, two Fords, a 1959 and 1962, then another Chevrolet, this one a ’55. Further along it’s a 1955/56 Ford, a 1961 Pontiac, 1962 Ford, a 1960 Pontiac and finally a 1962 Chevrolet. There’s one additional car in the scene, further away yet, but it’s too obscured to really see.

There’s a date attached to this file, but had it not been the case, the cars would have made it easy to narrow it down. I doubt there’s this many vehicles in Robsart today. If the shot were to be duplicated in 2024, however, the ratio of cars to trucks would likely have flipped. Everyone drives pickups out this way.

The Robsart Community Hall dates back to the early days (1920s suggested but not confirmed) and in any old reference photos found, displays a false front. From about 1967 on it also displayed a Canada Centennial Maple Leaf. Both are now gone, (the front by 2015 and the leaf, unknown), but the building appears otherwise mostly unchanged. We’ve included a couple photos from a 2014 visit that show how it appeared then and note how the Caraganas have since taken over.

Locals told us the hall still sees use from time to time, but we wonder if that’s even possible given its condition. They said it got fixed up a few decades ago, but time and the elements are hard on old buildings like this. Maybe the inside is still okay but the exterior looks rough. Where the most recent layer of vinyl covering has peeled away has exposed the fake brick asphalt siding seen in the earlier photo. It’s trade named Insulbrick and was popular at the time.

The photos look northwest up Quinta Street from Strasbore Avenue. This is just up from the business district which is off frame to the right of and a bit behind the respective shooting positions. There’s an old lumber store there that belonged to a chain that is sure to stir up memories in old handy-persons. The sign is faded, but still legible.

It’s not clear who shot and first shared the original image online, as it came with little accompanying data and shows up in a number of archives. Therefor we’re unsure who to properly credit. It is very likely in the public domain, however, and no search of copyright records has turned up anything. Who ever shot it could be connected with the event happening in the Robsart Community Hall. We’re sure curious.

If you have an old photo, like the one used here, that we could use as a starting point for the BIGDoer.com Then & Now, please send it our way. It must be your copyright (from an old family collection for example) or in the public domain. Many old photos and postcards are. Still, we’ll research the image just to make sure it’s clear to use. We always credit accordingly.

There were wonderful expressive clouds the day of our visit but then again Saskatchewan rarely disappoints in that regard. It is the land of living skies after all and this afternoon it was never more true.

This is one of the several Then & Nows we shot in Robsart Saskatchewan, and assuming the others work out (not all do), we’ll share them here eventually. The show many differing angles of the community and are super interesting.

Know more: (new tab): Robsart Saskatchewan.

They’re saying…

“I enjoy history so really enjoy the pictures and back stories.” Ted Swanson.

More Then & Now fun…
JB Fletcher’s Ainsworth BC ~45 Years Apart.
CC Snowdon Building Calgary.
The Highway Bridge at Wardner BC.

Something to say and no one to say it to? Go here: Contact Us!

Date of adventure: 1963 (old photo) and 2024 (Team BIGDoer).
Location: Robsart, Saskatchewan.
Article references and thanks: Rob Pohl, local Robsart-ians (ites), Barry Davies and the books – Our Side of the Hills: A History of Robsart, Vidora, Consul, Senate, Govenlock and Area (2 Volumes).

Robsart Saskatchewan 61 Years Apart (1963 and 2024).

A closer looks at the Community Hall seen in the old photo.

This house and the next appear in both images.

Caraganas are taking over many empty properties.

They removed the false front about a decade ago.

Turning right and make note of that ghost sign.

From 2014…

The hall a decade ago.

This is now gone too.