Building the Buffalo Ferry

(The following is an excerpt from the history book “Buffalo Chips to Microchips”)

By William C. Anderson

This photo (taken around 1914), proudly shows the accomplishments of the early settlers in building a river crossing over the Red Deer River. The scene is probably at one of the three locations of the Buffalo Ferry, within a mile of the present Buffalo Bridge. Site locations were changed over the years to what were considered to be better operating sites. This scene is on the south shore of the river, as ascertained by the overhead cables, holding the ferry in the river, being on the left side of the ferry.

The Buffalo Ferry around 1914. Photo (from the history book “Buffalo Chips to Micro Chips”)

The completion of a ferry crossing in itself was a great stride forward in the building of a community. At about this time, the CPR completed the building of the Empress to Bassano railway line, through the country south of the Red Deer River, and small towns were springing up along the line. The village of Buffalo was established three miles south of the ferry, along the new railway line. The ferry served the farming community north of the river for about twenty miles.

The freight wagon, with its two-horse wheel team and driver, plus a second snatch team and driver, illustrate the freighting of the materials needed to build a ferry crossing. The steep river hills on the south side of the river required that the location be chosen carefully. It needed room to build and launch the ferry, as well as remove and store it safely each fall at freeze up. There had to be room for the ferry man’s residence, and barn for his team of horses and maybe a cow and some chickens. The freighters hauled the lumber, steel and cables to the site, and also a large quantity of boulders, gravel and sand for the approaches. A special government crew of carpenters and blacksmiths built the ferry on site, without the aid of electricity!