Arborfield

Alfalfa dehydration and processing plant, Arborfield.

David McLennan (David McLennan photo)

Town, pop 411, located NE of Tisdale on Highway 23, on the western edge of the Pasquia Hills and just south of the Carrot River. The first settlers cut trails into the heavily treed area of Arborfield in 1908; with timber plentiful, most homes and buildings were built of logs. The settlers had expected that a railway would soon serve the district, but in 1919 there were still no signs of construction. A delegation was chosen to travel to Ottawa to petition authorities, and they were promised a railroad in the near future. In 1929, the first train arrived. Over the following few years, more people streamed into the region from the drought-ravaged areas of the province’s south. In 1950, the population was over 500 and growing. Today, farming remains the main industry in the area. Grains, lentils, hay, and cereal crops are grown; the types of animals (and insects) raised in the Arborfield district include leafcutter bees, honey bees, hogs, cattle, horses, sheep, goats, elk, wild boar, and chinchillas. A large subsidiary to the agricultural industry is alfalfa dehydration and processing. Arborfield Dehy Limited, which was established by a group of local farmers in the early 1970s, is a large area employer; the company processes alfalfa hay into feed pellets and has a large export market in Japan. Nearby Pasquia Regional Park has a trail to the site where fossilized remains of a 90-million-year-old, 6-metre-long (20 ft.) crocodile were discovered.

David McLennan