Sask Hauntings

If you have ever traveled around the province on the grid roads you will see how many rural churches dot the landscape. Due to the changing rural communities most of these churches are no longer used. Most have been been left for special occasions or abandoned all together, These churches are usually 50+ years old so their history is rich. One would think they would have interesting stories right? Well this one does... The story goes.. A nun at the catholic rural church was seeing a man from a non-catholic family. She found out she was pregnant. They tried to hide it but when the priest found out about the pregnancy from the non-wed couple he was furious. This was a huge sin and against everything the church stood for. So the priest took matters into his own hands and killed the nun after the baby was born.He also killed the baby shortly after. Since then the church has been cursed. Fact or fiction? You decide.  There are no records of this that I was able to find. ...

Batoche if you don't know is a historic site in Saskatchewan. A beautiful, scenic and historic location. If you live in the Saskatoon area then you have probably been taken there on a field trip or two along with its neighbor Fort Carlton. However if you haven't heard its also apparently the site of a ghost or two. Some history on batoche: " In 1870, The Northwest was brought into Canada as a new territory. The Métis people were a half native, half French group of people who lived in these lands with no formal government or laws. They immediately reacted to the arrival of Canadian authority by challenging that authority and declaring that they should only be brought into Confederation as a province with recognized authority and representation. Louis Riel led this movement and the birth of the Province of Manitoba was the result. The Métis did not end up with the retention of the freedoms they valued and many moved further west into the Saskatchewan areas as Mani...

 Saskatchewan is a province full of religion. Years ago their were many missions, convents and private catholic schools all over this province. Most of these locations were demolished but most of the churches remain at these sites. Some of the schools also remain around the province, most are re-purposed. Why am I telling you this? Because their is a haunted religious site where only the church remains that is known to be very haunted. The locals all know about this building and each has had a different experience. The church that remains at the site was becoming run down a few years ago. The building was falling apart and the vandalism was starting inside the church. I was told by some locals that people will feel their legs being grabbed, arms being pulled and there is a feeling of someone watching them. The church is very active and whatever remains is not friendly. It is believed that what remains is aggressive and doesn't take kindly to younger people that enter the chur...

Most people only know about the Woodlawn cemetery in Saskatoon. Others also know about the Nutana heritage cemetery. But most do not know about the other heritage cemetery. The Smithville or Summerdale Cemetery is located west of the city. This heritage graveyard is small in size but dates back to 1901 - maybe earlier. On occasion it is still used but it does not see much activity these days unless you are talking paranormal. I spent an evening photographing in this cemetery for a  project and I have to say it was uncomfortable. There are very few cemeteries in this province that make me uncomfortable but this one did. After talking to some people I found out there are stories attached to it. People have seen lights, heard noises, some voices and some have seen unexplained mists. So why not take a walk around a this cemetery and see for yourself.

There are many rumours about hauntings that don't make sense. Like people thinking morgues are haunted. Why would they be haunted? No one died in a morgue so why would their spirit follow there body and then stay in a morgue? Doesn't make sense. However, a hospital being haunted - where people come to seek help and some never leave. That makes sense to me. The Regina General hospital is no exception to the hospitals being haunted in this province. Built in 1900 it was not until 1907 that this hospital was known as the General Hospital. The south wing was added in 1912, a nursing home added in 1915 and the north wing was added in 1926 to accommodate more people. After the province bought the hospital in 1974 the hospital underwent a major additions and renovations due to the need for increased capacity this hospital became what it is today. You can still see the original parts of the hospital surrounded by its many additions. The hospital has many stories attached to it an...

The Estevan area is in the southeast corner of the province. It is known for its industrious coal mining and oil industry. Today there are two giant mines that mine use what is called strip mining. They have stripped most of the landscape to mine coal and created many new hills from the mining. Years ago it was a very different scene. Mining for coal was done in underground coal mines and they were all over the place. People could start up there own coal mines and there were different styles of them. They were everywhere, around Estevan, Beinfait, Taylorton, Roche Percee and surrounding areas. Eventually they were covered by the new strip mines, others collapsed and in the past few years they have filled in the rest because teenagers have gotten into the mines and died from the gases inside. There were very dangerous places and that is why you will not find them around anymore. Along with most history, especially in areas that date back before Saskatchewan was a province there are ...

I have decided to make a post about a very unique historic cemetery in the province. It is a Jewish Cemetery and what makes it unique is the "grave houses." The cemetery features many old graves dating back to 1902 and has about 60 graves. Some of these graves have grave houses which are rare for Saskatchewan Jewish cemeteries.  This style of graves reflect an Eastern European traditional influence. When I first found this cemetery I was intrigued at first by the houses. I had never seen anything like it and could not believe how many there were and different styles. Some were even updated to modern metal siding. The Jewish families have all moved away in the last 100 years leaving this cemetery the only remains of their settlement. So why grave houses? Well some believe that they were built to keep animals and livestock away, keep the rain off, provide shade, comfort to the dead spirit and providing a home for the spirit of the dead are just some theories. Whatever the ...

Old wives lake seemed like any other lake in the province until I inquired about the name. Hearing the tale about the lake and how it got its name I did some research to find out if it was true and to my surprise, it is an accurate historic tale. So if you don't know the tale let me share with you..... A group of Cree were camping on the edge of lake and were discovered by a party of Blackfoot. The Cree who were with families could not get to safety before the Blackfoot returned with a larger party. Since they figured the Blackfoot would return in the morning to attack with a larger group the elderly Cree women offered to stay behind and be decoys as the younger people escaped during the night. Sure enough the Blackfoot attacked in the morning and finding that only the elderly woman remained they killed the "Old Wives."  It is said today that the spirits of the women inhabit Old Wives Lake and you will here there laughter that mocks the Blackfoot. I have drive pas...

Recently in the news they have been talking about Nutana, an area of Saskatoon and how the ground has been shifting. This is one of the oldest areas in Saskatoon which in turn means it has the oldest cemetery. A heritage cemetery that was started in 1903.   The reason I find this cemetery interesting is its history. This cemetery is located on the edge of the river. Of course being on the edge of the river means that the ground shifts and the riverbank can collapse because of water erosion. Not only has this river bank collapsed 3 times but the coffins were floating down the river. Yes, it's true. I have spoken to people that remember the most recent collapse in 1984. The bank collapsed and the graves closest to the river fell into the river. Coffins floated down the river that day. With all this ground shifting again, could this happen again? When something like this happens where there is so much disturbance to the graves, it makes me think that this would upset the spiri...

Weyburn Mental Hospital, Saskatchewan Hospital, Souris Valley Extended Care - whatever name you call it this hospital was a large mental institution. Built in the kirkbride architecture style this building was one of the largest in the commonwealth when it was built in 1920. The hospital officially opened in 1921 and had room for 900 patients and 120 staff. The hospital was self sufficient with houses for nurses, power plant, main building, farming, water tower, etc. This building is rich in history both good and bad. The use of LSD testing and treatments like lobotomy, electroshock and hydrotherapy were controversial.  People admitted here were of any age that had mental illnesses but at one point they started accepting people that maybe did not want to deal with their relatives of any age, maybe because they had a stroke or something else not related to mental illness - this lead to overcrowding at the hospital. With this much history and hundreds of people living in ...

There is a stone house located just off the Trans Canada highway about 3 miles east of Indian Head known as "the screaming house". This house can easily be identified because it's two windows facing the tracks have been closed off. This home was built by a family in the 1800's. According to the legend they say that one of the families children wandered onto the tracks and as the mother looked out the window she watched her child get killed by a passing train. The mother was so upset by this tragedy that her husband blocked  up the window's facing the tracks hoping to help cope with the event. It is said that the mother still relives this terrible tragedy and if stand in the downstairs room in the late evening when a train is going by on the tracks you can hear her screams. Of course this is just a local legend and no one knows what really happened for sure. But people continue to visit the home and some claim to feel the presence of a woman and children.

Sinnnett was established in 1905 and consisted of the merging of 4 school districts. The first business was a blacksmith shop in 1915. Also in this year the telephone company was formed. In it's finest moments Sinnett had 2 elevators, 2 grocery stores, elementary and high schools, garage, post office, parks, rink and even an oil station. Sinnet also had the first credit union in the area. The last business in Sinnett was closed in 1969. Today there is nothing left of Sinnett except a small plaque commemorating its existence. The town of Sinnett may be long gone but it's apparent that not all residents have left. The road in front of the Sinnett Catholic church and cemetery has become legendary. The road seems to be home to a ghost car. If you drive this road you may see headlights come towards you, but as you approach the hill and get on the other side you will see nothing. This has  been seen by countless eyewitnesses. Was this an old resident ...

Before I tell you some of the tails at this old Sanitarium let me clear up some common misconceptions about Fort San... Fort San is an old hospital for tuberculosis patients, not a mental hospital. It was home to many patients with Tuberculosis, people ranged from children to elderly people.  Many people died at Fort San as with most sanitariums but there was no crematorium.  The building at the back of fort san with the giant brick stack is part of the power plant, as is common with institutions this age - It is not part of crematorium. If anyone has seen a crematorium the stacks are quite tiny and much wider. The site does have an old morgue which was turned into the kitchen for the conference center. The bodies from fort san were removed through the back door by the morgue.  Fort San was opened in 1917 when tuberculosis infections were increasing in the province and there was no cure. It was a self sufficient facility including a power house, gardens, livest...