The oldest building in Edmonton was built before the lightbulb was invented
Edmonton has plenty of historic buildings, but one is older than the lightbulb, the telephone, cars, airplanes, the end of the U.S. Civil War, and even Canadian Confederation.
The Peter Erasmus House, now located at Fort Edmonton Park, is considered the oldest building in Edmonton, and we’re looking back at its history and how it wound up in the park.
The log house is believed to have been built around 1861, although its exact construction date is unknown. According to the City of Edmonton Archives, it was originally located near the Victoria Mission in what is now Smoky Lake County before being moved to Fort Edmonton Park in 1974.
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It’s a small two-storey cabin and an example of the simple log construction used in early Alberta. It was built with dovetail corner joints, with mud and plaster packed between the logs to keep the house warm and dry.
Each floor only had one room, making for a small footprint and a design that would have been easier to heat through the long, cold winters.
Despite its name, Peter Erasmus didn’t actually build the log house.
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Erasmus was born in 1833 in the Red River Settlement in Manitoba to a Danish father and MĂ©tis mother.
He was known for his intelligence and could speak 10 languages, eventually becoming an interpreter for Cree chiefs during negotiations with the Canadian government.
He was also involved in the Treaty 6 negotiations in 1876 and was even a signatory to the treaty.
As for his log house, Erasmus bought it in 1885 when he moved to the area to teach at school. He lived there until 1906, but members of his family remained there until 1941.
They eventually left the land and house to the municipality because of high taxes. Erasmus himself lived a long life, dying in 1931 at Whitefish Lake at the age of 98.
Today, you can find his little log cabin in the Settlement area of Fort Edmonton Park, next to McCauley’s Livery Stable and the MĂ©tis Camp.