Eye on the Future

Henry C. Klassen taught history for many years at the University of Calgary. His academic pursuits centred around the study of Canadian business and financial history. His book, A Business History of Alberta, was shortlisted for the Scholarly Book of the Year at the 2000 Alberta Book Awards.

Eye on the Future is a Who's Who of Calgary's (and the nearby rural hinterland's) pioneer business class . . . With his superb command of the region's history and archival sources, Klassen has produced a picture rich in intricate detail and nuance. No doubt, Eye on the Future will remain the classic reference on the first three decades of Calgary's business history A.A. Den Otter, The Canadian Historical Review

• List of TablesList of illustrationsPrefaceAcknowledgmentsIntroductionThe Meeting PlaceThe BlackfootThe Coming of Montana Traders Hamilton and Healy's Trading Post Calgary's Changing Business SystemI.G. Baker and Co: American Enterprises in the Wagon-Row EraI.G. Baker and Co, and its Network of StoresIsaac Gilbert Baker and the Foundation of a Trading CompanyExpansion in MontanaTrading in the Canadian Prairie RegionEstablishing a General Store in CalgarySurvival and ExpansionResponding to the Needs of the Mounted PeopleAchieving Growth through Ties to Native PeopleChanging Natural EnvironmentProsperity in the Mid- and Late 1980sI.G. Baker and Co's Relationship with its Main Competitor, Power and Bro. Ongoing Commitment to BankingExpanding Merchandise SalesNew Management at the Calgary StoreSources of BeefI.G. Baker and Co and CapitalismHudson's Bay Company: British Empire in the Wagon-Road EraNetwork of Trading Posts and Stores in AlbertaJohn Bunn and the Establishment of a Store in CalgaryConflict between Richard Hardisty and Robert HamiltonJames A. Grahme and Calgary BusinessAngus Fraser: New ManagerCharles J. Brydges and New Business OpportunitiesAn Uncertain FutureCharles J. Brydges' Visit to CalgaryRails and MarketingImpact of the Canadian Pacific RailwayOvercoming Barriers to Inland TransportationRichard Hardisty Responds to the Canadian PublicI.G. Baker and Co and the Canadian PacificCanadian Pacific and the Calgary TownsiteBusiness in Calgary After the Arrival of the Canadian PacificCoping with the Depression in the Mid-1880sBusiness Opportunities during the Saskatchewan RebellionPeacetime BusinessThe Emergence of the Town of CalgaryNatural Advantages of CalgaryThe GridGeorge Murdoch: Harness and Saddle MakerIsaac S. Freeze: A General MerchantSpecialization in CommerceRankin and Allen: Dry Goods MerchantsThe Movement for IncorperationCalgary's Early GovernmentHamlets, Villages, and Settlers in the Bow ValleyCreating Banking ServicesInformal Private Credit NetworksPrivate BanksLafferty and Smith LaJeune, Smith and CoLafferty and Moore: Women in the Banking BusinessChartered Banks Imperial Bank of CanadaBank of MontrealResponding to the Calgary Government's Financial NeedsFinancial EnvironmentBuilding the Ranching CommunityCanadian Pacific StockyardsLand and the Rise of Big Ranch Companies in the Bow ValleyAmerican RootsSever Winter of 1886-1887Livestock Raising and the Natural EnvironmentRanching in the Bow Valley: The Conrads, I.G. Baker, and the Harris BrothersCochrane Ranche CompanySmall RanchersOsborne E. Brown: Elbow River RancherArthur G. Wolly-Dod: Pine Creek RancherJohn Quirk and his Meidum-Sized RanchImproving the Canadian Pacific StockyardsMaintatining the Family FarmThe Banister Family Farm at DavisburgFarm Protest Movement in the Bow ValleyEmergence of the Calgary MarketShattered and Fulfilled DreamsRobert Findlay: Homesteader at High RiverThe Andrews Family Farm at DavisburgJames F. McKevitt: Midnapore FarmerFarming at Davisburg: The David Suitor FamilyInformal Economic Networks Agricultural Societies and FairsVoluntary Associations in the Bow ValleyFarmers and the Natural EnvironmentFinancial ProblemsKenneth Cameron: Okotoks FarmerPolitics and ProgressFrom Town to CityA Promising PlaceCalgary: Southern Alberta's Railway HubMaking Funds Available to SettlersThe Great FirePostfire Calgary's BusinessCanadian Pacific StationBusiness and HotelsSandstone CityTurning Business Ideas into Business OrganizationsGeorge Alexander and the Alexander BlockWilliam Roper Hull: Meat Packer and RancherPeter A. Prince and the Eau Claire and Bow River Lumber Co. Hutchings and Riley: Harness and Saddle MakersEnvironmental ProblemsAlexander Lucas and Alberta's First CityWesley F. Orr and a Young and Ambitious CityDepartment Stores and Mass DistributionRecovering from the Great FireMass Distribution in Fort BentonCalgary's First Department Store: I.G. Baker and CoCredit and Cash SalesWholesale DivisionRetail DivisionCompetitionSale of I.G. Baker and Co's StoresA New Era in Department Store Business: Hudson's Bay CompanyGrand Opening New Sandstone Department Store Labour RelationsRewarding James ThompsonEdmond Taylor: New ManagerExpansionWomen in BusinessGender and WorkforceEntrepreneurshipJanet Dewar and DressmakingMary MacLeod: DressmakerMargaret Leishman: MillinerAnnie A Milder and the Millenary TradeFrances Marie Carr: BoardinghousekeeperAgnes Carroll and the Holy Cross HospitalAnnie and Jean Mollison and Braemar LodgeFinancing the Canadian DreamThe Canadian DreamJames A. Lougheed: Lawyer, Real Estate Entrepreneur, and SenatorChristina Kinnisten: Calgary Confectioner Luey Dofoo and the Restaurant BusinessSamuel and Helen Shaw: Midnapore EntrepreneursSandy Watson: Pine Creek FarmerMeopham Garder: Ranching in the Bragg Creek AreaJames C. Linton and BooksJames S. Mackie: Gunsmith and BooksellerService BusinessesConclusion: Themes of an Era 1870-1900New Technologies in Transportation and CommunicationNew Goods for ConsumersBusiness by Economic SectorChronologyNotesBibliographyIndex