Steelman

Unincorporated Hamlet
Located at Section 15, Township 4, Range 5, W2

Lat- 49° 18' 00“ N
Long- 102° 36' 02” W

13 km N. from Hirsch, 15 km SE from Lampman, 7km SE from Breeze

In Browning Rural Municipality #34

Located on the Canadian National Rail line (CNR) between Deborah and Breeze SK on the Lampman-Frobisher line
Originally on the GTPR line, see below

Pool Elevator map shows it had an Elevator at one time
plus I know of a Store, Picture Show, and Post Office

Mr Dean Sane sent the following photos May 23, 2021 to prove these existed here.

CN Steelman Sign

Cafe and Billiard room main floor and Sane family lived upstairs

Stores, Gas Station on the Main St

Pool Elevator No 769

Searle Elevator

A tornado Aug 27, 1931 destroyed an elevator at Steelman

Part of My Dad's 1927 Map of this area.

Steelman today is known for it's Natural Gas Plant

First Gas Plant in SE Sask was the “Steelman Gas Plant”, or Steelman Gas Company Ltd.
which was started by Provo Gas Producers Ltd. and Dome Exploration (Western) Ltd. of Calgary,
which started construction in 1957, and went into production in 1958.
Plant originally cost $12 million, including the collecting lines.
Permit to build the plant was issued in Aug 1957.
One newspaper report from Jan 8, 1958 said Steelman Gas Company Ltd. was building the plant for $20 million.
Apr 1958 article says the Steelman Gas Co. Ltd had financing of $10,750,000.00 expected in a couple weeks,
Shareholders of Dome Exploration (Western) Ltd. were told.
Dome and prove owned 78% of the outstanding common shares.
Public offering in SK, 2 million in debentures, and a total of 160,000 common shares in units.
In addition private placement is being arranged for 6 million in first mortgage bonds. 4 million in US and 2 in Canada.
The shareholders approved the name change to Dome Petroleum
And head office move to Calgary from Toronto at this same meeting.

In 1971 the collecting lines extended 60 miles from the Manitoba border, 40 miles North of US Border.
It was staffed by a crew of 26.
The first step in the process, in 1971,
was to remove hydrogen sulphide, and carbon dioxide.
The gas was then compressed to 550psi and processed through a refrigeration- absorption unit to remove the liquids, propane, butanes and gasoline.
The residue gas was compressed through one more stage to pipeline pressure of 900psi and was delivered to the SPC line.

The Plant remained under Dome Petroleum's control until 1988.
AMOCO Canada merged with Dome,
then British Petroleum (BP) merged with AMOCO in 1998

It was originally started to collect the flare gas, or lean oil gas produced in the extraction of oil from the ground.
2008 it was owned by BP Canada Energy Company

Enbridge Pipelines (Saskatchewan) Inc, operates the feeder pipeline system, for the natural gas liquid generated from the plant

When it was constructed it was a 30 acre site.
The Gas gathering Line and Low-Pressure Compressor station was designed and constructed by Pryde-Flavin Engineering Company of Calgary
Consisted of 5 compressor stations in the field.
The Processing Plant and Compressor station at the site, were designed and built under the supervision of Stearns-Roger Engineering Company Ltd. of Calgary and Denver.
The contractor building the Plant and Compressor stations was Refinery Engineering Ltd. Toronto, a subsidiary of Refinery Engineering Ltd. Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Contractor for the gathering system is Bannister-Helm Ltd. Edmonton.

My dad, Phil Gent, worked at the Steelman Gas Plant when our family moved to Estevan from Bienfait in 1958
His sister Kathleen Widdifield, nee Gent, was born near Steelman in 1915
My grandfather Percy Gent moved his family to the Arthur Nelson place near Steelman in 1909

Steelman Post Office History
Opened March 1,1912
Located in the Steelman Store
Federal Electoral District: Moose Mountain (Saskatchewan)

Postmaster Information:

Post Office Information Disclaimer:
This reproduction is NOT represented as an official version of the materials reproduced,
nor as having been made in affiliation with, or with the endorsement of the National Archives of Canada.
The source of this material is the National Archives of Canada

Night of Sept 27, 1928 the Post Office in Steelman was robbed of $600.00. Four Armed Bandits in a large automobile made off with the money.
1/2 hour latter they robbed the PO in Hirsch. John Rech would have been postmaster at the time.

Postmasters Bio and Genealogy Info
George H. Ingram,
First Postmaster
b- Jan 1890, in Ontario
A Robert John Ingram homesteaded on SE Section 4, Tsp 4, Rge 5, W2 who I believe was his father.
In 1911 his mother is shown as Elizabeth, 2 brothers, Charles and Frank, all living in Tsp 4, Rge 5, W2.
In 1901 the family was living in Peterborough ON, with a sister Lillian here.

Louis Hirt
b- 1890 in Austria
d- Winnipeg?
Buried in Shaarey Zedek, Jewish Cemetery in Winnipeg MB
Homestead Application Date: Oct 11, 1904
Place: Saskatchewan, Canada
Homestead Number: 171122
Part: NE, Section: 22, Township: 2, Range: 5 , Meridian: W2
Shown as Store Keeper in 1916, Immigrating in 1899 to Canada
By 1920 Lewis Hirt was living in Estevan where he also owned a store.

Matthias Fleck
b- age 33 in 1906 in Russia
d- ?
wife- Anna Fleck, nee Batinger, b- age 29 in 1906 in Russia
daughter- Pauline Fleck- ca 1897, in Russia
son- Joshys Fleck- ca 1898 in Russia
son- Chrestian Fleck- ca 1900 in Russia
daughter- Mathilda Fleck- Dec 20, 1902 in Alameda, NWT (SK)
Family immigrated in 1901 to Canada
1906 Fleck Family living near Frobisher
A Matthias Fleck Sr and Jr are buried in Estevan Souris Valley Memorial Cemetery, both born in Landau Russia
Nov 13, 1931 a Matthias Fleck lived in Torquay, when he invented and took out a patent on a new farm gate

Miss Evelyn Helen Giem
She worked in the Estevan Post Office as well

Frank Andrew Mehler
b- Feb 19, 1918
d- Jan 31, 2007
son of Nicholas and Anna Mehler
raised on family farm SE Section 34, Tsp 4, Rge 5, W2, near Steelman.
He also operated the picture show in Steelman, besides the PO.
Lived on 700 block, in Hillside, Estevan, for years

John Rech
Adolph Rech Hardware Store in Steelman
Info below from Darwin Wagner “One of my ancestors, John Rech, operated the Grocery Store/Post Office in Steelman from 1920 thru 1937.
He first owned the old store on George Street (known to us as kids as Anderson's Store) in Estevan, and then relocated to Steelman where they remained until the dirty thirties took hold, and they were forced to sell to Ethel Seely (I believe from Weyburn).
John's brother, Adolph, operated the hardware store in Steelman, and used part of it as a billiards hall and gasoline station.
My father and his parents lived in Steelman for about five years in the late 1920's and then moved to South Frobisher area. Both the Rech and Wagner families are documented as being the first founders of the Lutheran Church at Steelman and Frobisher.
Adolph Rech bought a new 1928 Ford truck and would take the local Lutherans to Church in Estevan before their own Church was built.
John and Adolph's sister, Bertha, came to Canada in 1912 and married Albert McCormack, who was one of the first journalists for the Estevan Mercury.
Bertha and Albert had one son, John Edward, who became an MLA for the Liberal party under the leadership of Ross Thatcher. He was killed in a car crash just after beginning his second term in office.”

John was in charge when the Post Office was robbed at 9 am, Sept 27, 1928 by 4 men in a Buick. One entered the front and one entered the rear. the other 2 remained in the car. They robbed $600 cash, and several grain tickets. From Steelman they proceeded to Hirsch to rob the Post Office there. They then headed south across the line.

The Pioneer Store, Steelman, owned by John Rech
photos courtesy Darwin Wagner, May 7, 2012

School
Located in School District # 820

Roseleigh School moved to Steelman where most of the pupils lived.

School Photos courtesy Dean Sane May 24,2021

Cemetery
Cemetery nearby: Roman Catholic Cemetery
Steelman-Maryland- SE 2-5-5-W2
Note- Link below is NOT my site-
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cansacem/maryland.html

History Book
“Poet's Corner.”
Lampman & District History Book Committee, Lampman, Sask. 1982.
Lampman and District and the RM of Browning
including the hamlet of Browning, Steelman, and the village of Willmar
and the School Districts of:
Cateville, Cote, Crystal, Enniskillan, Erin, Glasston, Idlewilde, Lampman, Morrisville, Rockland, Roseleigh, Sinclair, Weir Hill, Willmar and Yankee
Note- I do not have a copy of this book

James Cuddington Family
See my Cuddington Family Page located in my Bienfait Section
Researching this family for Bienfait, I found out they overlapped in Steelman.
James Charles Cuddington, and William Cuddington homesteaded near Steelman

Located on the Grand Trunk Railroad / CNR /

Regina-Boundary Branch Line
GTPR Regina Boundary Branch Line

Originally Created Dec 13, 2009**

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