The Icelandic Canadian - 01.08.2002, Qupperneq 18

16
THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
Vol. 57 #1
Icelandic settlement. He was instructed to
look for a place with good land, lakes and
rivers. They intended to go into mixed
farming and fishing. He was also to make
other arrangements, such as for tickets, etc.
Money for the trip was raised by free will
donations. We think that all concerned
paid their share, although we think that he
had less than he should have had for such a
trip. Most of these people had “tight shoes”
to bind in money matters and had to shape
their cloaks to their size.
Soon after, Sigurdur took the
Northern Pacific to Vancouver. From there
he went to Vancouver Island and as far
north as Nanaimo, about 300 miles north
of Victoria. I think on that trip he did not
have much chance to look around. He did
not, in his judgment see any place on the
Pacific Coast to lead his flock. Some
thought he fell down on his mission, but on
second thought it must be considered that
he did not have the time or money to trav-
el from place to place. In this position, he
started his return journey without making
any decision.
When Sigurdur returned to Calgary,
he met Olafur Gudman and they talked
about the immigration west from Dakota.
Olafur had shortly before taken a trip
north to look for land along the Red Deer
River. He said there was good land there
and a good place for an Icelandic settle-
ment. Olafur had already filed on a home-
stead there for himself and his father. That
may have been the reason that he wanted
the Icelanders to settle there, although he
was always known to do the best for his
countrymen. He urged Sigurdur to go
north and look at the land and he sent his
brother, Sigfus who had been there, with
him. On that trip, Sigurdur looked at the
land three townships north of the Red Deer
River. He liked the area and had
Townships 36, Ranges 1 and 2 set aside for
the Icelandic immigrants. He returned to
Dakota on the first of May.
Sigurdur had written to some of the
leading men in Dakota from Calgary,
describing his trip. He said in a letter to me,
“I like the country north of the Red Deer
River, the soil is good and lots of grass.
Alternating plow land and hay meadows
with clumps of trees, here and there. Good
fishing in the lakes and rivers, the winters
are said to be shorter and milder than in
Manitoba and North Dakota.” When
Sigurdur returned to Dakota many had
sold what they could not take with them
Some were disappointed that they were not
going to the coast but they had not changed
their intentions to leave. Sigurdur urged
them to go to Alberta and and settle in the
place he had picked for them.
He said he thought that as for climate
and the lay of the country it would suit
them fine. So it was decided. They had sold
their belongings for about half price so
they were all poor. The amount of money
they had was very small to move many
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