Protecting Community Memories

The Spruce Grove and District Agricultural Society (the Ag Society) is wanting to protect and provide access to some special community memories. We have two projects that need your assistance.

The first is to convert 16 magnetic audio tapes of oral history interviews to digital format so that we can listen to them and preserve them for the future. Oral histories are a “method of gathering, preserving and interpreting the voices and memories of people, communities, and participants in past events”. These were recorded in the 1960s and 1970s and are the voices of some of Spruce Grove’s community builders. Jeet Video Productions has the specialized equipment and skills to safely play and digitize these kinds of fragile recordings.

The second is to bind part of a collection of the Spruce Grove Examiner, a local newspaper, which began publication in in 1974. Issues since 1980are part of our collection. Newspapers provide an interesting look at Spruce Grove life in the late 1900s. The local library recently donated this collection to the Ag Society in 2024. Newsprint paper is not strong or particularly stable. Binding the issues protects the newspapers from deterioration and makes it easier for family history buffs to enjoy.

The Communities of Spruce Grove, Parkland County and Stony Plain will benefit from the preservation of these items and from digital access to them.

The most recent Spruce Grove census indicates there are more that 40,000 people living in Spruce Grove. The Tri-Municipal Region: Spruce Grove, Stony Plain and Parkland County, has more that 150,000 people. A high percentage of the population is children and families. All ages benefit from the preservation and sharing of local history.

Part of the elementary school curriculum is to learn about local history. The sound of the voices of the past and the printed words of the past are a valuable way for children to be exposed to community history.