Red Deer Forks Trail
The Red Deer Forks Trail—referred to in various historical sources as the Winnipeg Trail or the Fort Walsh–Edmonton Trail—was one of the earliest trade and transportation corridors in Western Canada. Descriptions of the historic Fort Walsh to Edmonton route note that it crossed the Red Deer River at its confluence with the South Saskatchewan, south of present-day Empress, near the landmark known as The Bull’s Forehead and the long-abandoned Hudson’s Bay Company post, Chesterfield House (established in 1800 and closed in 1823).
From this crossing, the trail followed a northwesterly course along the east side of Sullivan Lake before entering the Battle River region and continuing on toward Fort Edmonton. In the early 1880s, the Red Deer Forks Trail became a vital artery for freight hauled by Red River cart from the rail terminus at Swift Current. Compared to the 1,500 km Fort Garry–Edmonton (Carlton) Trail, this route shortened the journey by several weeks.
Historical reports suggest Red River carts typically travelled about 30 km per day in favourable, dry weather. As bison herds declined and could no longer sustain reserve populations or supply emerging trading centres like Edmonton, the shipment of goods from the East became increasingly essential. Once railways reached Calgary and subsequently Edmonton, use of the trail diminished.
Red River cart
noun /ˈrɛ d ˈrɪ vɚ kɑ ː rt/
A two-wheeled, wooden cart with large spoked wheels, traditionally used by the Métis people and fur traders in the 19th century. Designed for rugged terrain, it was entirely constructed of wood, allowing for easy repairs and flotation across rivers.
Still visible cart trail in Meeting Creek Valley North of Donalda on RR185.
Trail passing through Glen Hayes townsite.
Rail line through Red Willow four miles West
SETTLEMENT & SPECULATION ALONG THE TRAIL
As in many parts of Western Canada, settlers in the Battle River district assumed that future transportation lines would follow existing overland trails. This optimism shaped the early development of several communities.
Old Red Willow (E½ 14-41-17-W4), established in 1902, grew briefly with businesses and homes until speculation arose that an anticipated railway line would pass farther east.
In response, the Hayes family created Glen Hayes (W½ 24-41-17-W4) directly on the trail. Between 1904 and 1909, several houses were constructed, including one for a mining manager hired to evaluate local coal seams in the Red Willow Creek valley.
These ambitions ended abruptly when the Canadian Northern Railway (CNoR) announced its line would be built six km west, bypassing both Glen Hayes and Old Red Willow. Many structures from both settlements were physically moved to the new Red Willow townsite. The Hayes family later relocated to the east side of Buffalo Lake, where they operated a store in their home until 1911—strategically positioned to serve traffic along the trails leading through the Boss Hill Métis settlement, Tail Creek, and beyond.
TRADING POSTS & TRAIL-BASED COMMERCE
A Hudson’s Bay trading post operated by Donald Whitford—a highly regarded guide for early explorers—was located at NW-33-40-17-W4, approximately five km northeast of Glen Hayes. Its proximity to the trail provided consistent opportunities to ship furs eastward and receive trade goods from Winnipeg.
Another enterprise established to capitalize on trail traffic was the Olstad & Ellefson Store, built in 1902 above a strong spring in the Meeting Creek valley (SW corner of SE-2-43-19-W4). This was a crucial junction where the trail divided: one branch followed Meeting Creek westward; the other continued north toward Fort Edmonton.
After the partnership dissolved and Mr. Ellefson passed away in 1910, August and Mike Vikse purchased the stock and operated the store until 1911, when they moved their business to Donalda in advance of the railway’s arrival in 1912.
Though not explicitly recorded, the spring was almost certainly a freighters’ overnight stop. Its location—28 km from the Red Willow Creek crossing—aligns exactly with the documented daily distance typically covered by a Red River cart.
TOP - original location on the trail East of Meeting Creek.
Bottom - Renovated store at trail location.
john Frank, grandson of Thomas Stephens, Canadian Northern Station Agent 1916-1917 (No station agents for the first two years)
DECLINE OF THE TRAIL & CONTINUED LOCAL USE
By the time the Canadian Northern line from Drumheller to Vegreville was surveyed in 1910, the Red Deer Forks Trail had largely vanished as a commercial freight route. Nonetheless, arriving settlers continued to use portions of the trail while travelling to the Donalda and Meeting Creek districts. Many early homesteaders journeyed eastward from Wetaskiwin, following the southern leg of the old trail using township maps for guidance.
Even after railway plans rendered some settlement attempts obsolete, new ventures appeared. In 1908, a store and post office named Edenville was built along the trail just west of present-day Meeting Creek. When the rail siding location was confirmed, the buildings were moved, and the community re-established itself as Meeting Creek.
MAPPING THE TRAIL
My research traces the trail through a series of township maps:
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Twp 40 Rge 17 and 40-18 – site of the Red Willow Creek crossing
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41-18 and 42-18 – where the trail entered the Meeting Creek valley at present-day Donalda
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42-19 and 43-19 – location of the spring/store where the route divided, with one branch following Meeting Creek toward Todd’s Crossing on the Battle River, and the other leaving the valley east of Highway 56 en route to Salois Crossing and ultimately Fort Edmonton
The earliest maps were derived from the Special Survey of Standard Meridians and Parallels (1878).
Additional detail followed Dominion Land Survey mapping efforts in 1893 and 1898. The versions consulted—preserved at the Alberta Provincial Archives—are among the first to depict fully surveyed townships alongside geographic features and established trails, assisting homesteaders in locating land.
The trails diverge. North to Ft. Edmonton, West to Todd’s Crossing.Middle line of longitude is modern day Hwy 56.
Ironically, the only public display recognizing the Trail is a marker in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. While the distance the trail traversed in Saskatchewan from the Swift Current railhead to the river crossing at Chesterfield House (164 km) is considerable, the vast majority of the trail’s route was in Alberta. Once the railhead reached Walsh, Alberta, the trail was essentially all on Alberta soil and further reduced the distance to Edmonton by 154 km—making the total distance of the Red Deer Forks Trail approximately 500 km, compared to the 1,500 km Carlton Trail.
Research derived from local the following sources:
- Red Willow Reflections
- Donalda’s Roots and Branches
- Echoes of Empress, Empress, AB
- The Whitford Diaries - Donalda and District Museum
- Interview with Flora Chalmers - Donalda and District Museum
- Marion Carlson - landowner, Meeting Creek
- AB Research studies:- The Boss Hill Metis Site - Provincial Museum of Alberta
- “Far Corner Of The Strange Empire Central Alberta On The Eve Of Homestead Settlement” -William Wonders, University of Alberta
- The Carlton Trail - First Western Highway, Manitoba Historical Society
- Township Maps - Alberta Provincial Archives - Edmonton
