Milestone

Town, pop 542, located between Regina and Weyburn on Hwy 39. Agriculture is the major industry in the region and consists of a combination of grain, specialty crop, and livestock production. Seed cleaning, pulse crop processing, and small manufacturers add diversity to Milestone’s economy. The origins of Milestone date to 1893, when the CPR constructed the SOO LINE connecting Moose Jaw to Minneapolis. Significant settlement began around 1900 with settlers primarily hailing from eastern Canada, the British Isles, continental Europe, and the USA. By 1903, a substantial community had developed, and in 1906 the population was 244. In the subsequent decades, the community experienced steady growth; unlike many Saskatchewan communities, Milestone has had a relatively stable population since the mid-1950s. Today, it has an array of amenities and services. Milestone’s St. Aloysius Roman Catholic Church, completed in 1920, has been designated a heritage property. Until the town got its own resident priest in 1928, it was a mission of the Wilcox parish. In 1927, Father Athol Murray of Wilcox looked after the Milestone congregation; later, he compiled a record of all baptisms, marriages, and deaths from 1913 to 1931.

David McLennan