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A Brief History
Wolf Creek owes its existence to the trestle bridges across the creek from which it took its name and the McLeod River directly beyond it. While most railroad construction camps would come and go fairly quickly, the monumental task of fording the deep ravine of these rivers meant that Wolf Creek would grow to a substantial size. When the Grand Trunk Pacific made its way here in 1909, over 400 metres of track would need to be laid and nearly 1,200 cubic metres of rock would first need to be excavated to get the line through. The town was also the headquarters for the Foley, Welch and Stewart construction firm which pushed the railroad through to Tete Jaune Cache in British Columbia, and so businesses arose to serve these numerous workers. These included a bank, stores, restaurants, poolrooms, barbershops, blacksmith shops, livery stables, real estate offices, a drug store and a NWMP detachment.
One of the stopping houses was run by Joseph H.B. Smith, whose final resting place is marked by a gravestone behind the white chapel easily spotted from the road. A cairn on the site notes that Smith, with his father Edward and two brothers George and John arrived in the area in 1907, two years before the railroad arrived. After the railway had been constructed Joe Smith became a specialist in growing and exhibiting grain, winning the world wheat championship in Chicago in 1929.
Taking range road 161A north for 1.7km, and turning left (west) on township road 541A and continuing 1.4km, one will find the remains of a very old cabin on the right, perhaps from the railroad construction days.
For the real enthusiast, a trip to the trestle that made the town will be a must. While the easiest way to reach this would be to walk down the rail line to the west, this would be trespassing and dangerous and is not advised. Instead take Range Roads 161A and 161 south from the hamlet for 5km, turn right (west) on township road 534 and continue 3.2km. Turn right (north) on Range Road 163 and continue for 2.4km where the road deteriorates considerably. Walk the one and a half kilometres northwards along the rutted road until you hit the railway line. To the east is the Wolf Creek trestle, and to the west is the Mcleod River trestle.
The chapel which stands to the south of the Smith graves and cairn
Photo by: W.J. Pratt
SITE INFORMATION
Year Community/Town Founded: 1909
Year(s) Became a Ghost Town: Unknown
Population at Peak: 2000
Main Industry: Railroad Construction
Other: Services
Ownership of Site: Crown
Access to Site (when open/accessible): Year Round, Roads Permitting
Appeal to Families & Children: Some outdoor space for children to play.
Appeal to People with passion for topic: Cabins in the woods, some older ramshackle buildings, a small chapel, and the wolf-creek trestle await exploration.
Scenic Appeal of Site: 2
FURTHER READING & BIBLIOGRAPHY
Source 1 Fryer, Harold. Ghost Towns of Alberta. Langley: Stagecoach, 1976.
Joe Smith (fourth from left, standing) and his wife Mary Jane (far right)
are seen at their "stopping place" in 1913
Photo: Glenbow Archives
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