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Grande Prairie had an active Boy Scout movement in the 1960s as evidenced by this group of "Owls" and "Wolves" with their troop leaders. At that time a boy at 11 years of age could join as a Tenderfoot and aspire to eventually become a "Queen's Scout". The boys learned practical life saving skills following their motto, "Be Prepared" and as well performing community service projects.

CFGP was established in 1937, the first radio station north of Edmonton and the most northerly station in the British Empire at the time. It was owned by the Northern Broadcasting Corporation Ltd., and shares were sold to local people and businessmen at $200 each. Taylor, Pearson and Carson, from Edmonton, owned the largest number of shares as well heavy investments in many other radio stations throughout Alberta. The station went on the air with 100 watts of power on November 2, 1937, on channel 1200. Howard Brooker was the first manager, followed by Mr. Cecil Berry as President and Manager, assisted by Miss Margaret Moon as secretary, Bert Churchill as music director, George Sinclair as chief engineer, and Paul Guy as Announcer. Operating hours were from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 4 to 10 p.m. This was during the depths of the Depression, and public service broadcasting was the key, creating a communications role for CFGP within the community--not just weather and announcements, but sending greetings to friends, school broadcasts for curriculum enhancement, church services for the shut-ins, radio dances to raise money for causes such as building the Monkman Pass Highway, Armed Forces radio service shows for U.S. and Canadian army personnel, emergency evacuation and communications for disasters such as forest fires. They used local talent in programming--Mel Rodacker's "Oldtimers" played regularly on radio during the 1940s and 50s; locally produced radio plays were aired in cooperation with Little Theatre. Free advertising was given to many community causes: Victory Loans, the Kinsmen's Milk for Britain campaign, the construction of the Curling Rink, improvements on the Memorial Arena, the development of Bear Creek Park, . Today, CFGP still promotes many community events such as Stompede, Golf Classics, Fairs, Rodeos and Provincial/National Competitions. They offer community service announcements to non-profit clubs and organizations free of charge. But it was not just in communications that CFGP contributed to its broadcast area. In 1939, they sent 250 children to Edmonton to see the King and Queen; in 1940 they assisted the National Film Board in filming Peace River, a promotional film for the Peace River area of Alberta and British Columbia; in 1941 they started a regular program to raise funds for the needy at Christmas; and at war's end organized and funded Welcome and Welfare Committees throughout the Peace to welcome home returned soldiers. In 1944, the editor of MacLeans Magazine described CFGP as "Canada's most community minded station." The station also brought celebrities to Grande Prairie: the Edmonton Flyers Hockey Team in 1960,;Off-site broadcasting drew thousands of people to events such as the Opening of the Smoky Bridge, the Dunvegan Bridge, and the Whitecourt Cut-off, and started a tradition for "on location radio" which continues today. Sometimes the occasion was a disaster instead of a celebration and thousands of dollars were raised through CFGP coverage on disasters such as the Kinuso Forest Fire in 1944, and the Canyon Creek fire in 1945, when Jack Soars broadcast on location from the site of the fire. News was always an important aspect of programming--starting with the first announcer, who simply read the news from the previous day's Edmonton Bulletin. In 1940 they began to receive "ticker tape" news which they got directly from the radio transmitter. Also, during the 1940s, the newsman monitored the CBC network and re-wrote the items. In 1956, the first News Editor, Mrs. Charters, was appointed so news features;Early schedules were daytime programs that quickly extended into evenings. Other innovations in programming included "Open Line" in 1958;CFGP started with its own building and transmitters on the rise of land just north of town, but quickly realized they needed to be more accessible. In January 1938, they moved to offices in the Donald Hotel, and in 1941 to their own building on 99th Street and Richmond Ave. The station increased in staff and broadcast area. By 1944, there were nine staff and 1,000 watts of power, in the early 50s they went to 5,000 watts, and by 1956 the signal strength was 10,000 watts. In 1964, a new building was constructed on 103 Avenue and four years later CFGP went to 24 hour programming. Management at CFGP after a short stint by Howard Brooker: Cecil Berry 1938-1945; Art Balfour 1945-1958; Cam Perry 1958-1968; Walter Everitt from 1968-1978. In 1978, Gordon Pearcy, who began his broadcast career with CFGP in 1943, took over as manager and VP of Northern Broadcasting Ltd. until 1990. CFGP was purchased by the Selkirk Chain c. 1980, and in 1986 introduced AM-Stereo. The next year, 1987, was the station's 50th Anniversary, and they celebrated in a big way. Their new home in Windsor Court was officially opened on by the Duke and Duchess of York, Andrew and Sarah. In 1997 the radio station began airing on FM, changing its name to SUN FM.

Charles Edgar Sutherland and his son, Charles, left Minnesota for Grande Prairie in 1919. He came by train and brought 2 horses, 2 cows, 1 colt and 1 heifer with him. Son Charles took up land in the Beaverlodge area and later found a homestead south of the Wapiti on the north side of Toad Mountain. He married Mary Gordon in 1929 and they had two daughters. Audrey was born in 1930 and Muriel in 1934. C.E. Sutherland lived with his son's family until his death in 1935.

Charles E. Spencer was born in England, in the old County of Westmorland (now part of Cumbria) in 1869. The 1901 British Census shows Charles in Southampton, where he boarded on Pear Tree Green and worked as a 'builder and joiner". Four years later, at the age of 37, he emigrated to Canada. His first residence was in Moose Jaw, where he filed on a homestead, but by 1909 he was living in Edmonton. There he became a partner in the Argonaut Company, and after they established the townsite of Grande Prairie City in 1910, he became a permanent resident here. The Argonaut Co. Ltd., composed of a group of Edmonton businessmen, was established in 1909 at the encouragement of W.A. Rae. In 1908, Rae had made a trip to the grande prairie with his wife and son, and was impressed with the agricultural and commercial potential of the area. He sold the idea of developing a townsite on Bear Creek. The group opened their headquarters on Jasper Avenue in Edmonton, and in 1909 purchased 80 acres of land along the CNR Railway Survey. The named the townsite "Grande Prairie City" and soon a banner proclaiming the new townsite draped their office on Jasper Avenue. As a partner in the Argonauts, Mr. Spencer was one of Grande Prairie's first real estate agents. He bought and sold land, and rented out a series of "cottages" as well as an office block . He also formed a partnership with Neil Campbell, another Argonaut, and once again was in the building trade. Charles Spencer designed and/or built many of our early public buildings: the first school in 1915; the large brick Montrose School in 1917, which he designed and supervised without pay; the Grande Prairie Hotel in 1917; the Spencer Block, a complex of offices and suites, in 1919; the first Town Hall, which also included the Fire Hall, in 1920; the new Grande Prairie High School in 1929; and the Donald Hotel in 1937. When the building trade slowed during the 30's, he traveled around the south Peace building stockyards and loading platforms for the Grande Prairie Cooperative Livestock Association. It was out of the Spencer Block that Mr. Spencer operated "Prairie City Agency" which sold all lines of fire insurance. In 1936, Miss Ann Philips Roberts, a new graduate of the Grande Prairie Business College, was in charge. An earlier business was the Grande Prairie Electric Light Co. which he encouraged the ratepayers of the town to establish in 1917. They formed a company and sold shares, providing electrical service to the town until Canadian Utilities took over the franchise in 1929. Besides being a partner in the Argonaut Company and a builder, Charles pursued a number of other interests. As early as 1917, he opened a lending library in the Donald Hotel, cooperating with the Extension Department at the University of Alberta to provide the best possible reading material. Although this library was not in operation long, Spencer continued to promote the need for a public library and was instrumental in forming the first Library Board. He also continued to build his own collection, which was reputed to be one of the most complete in the north. In 1952 he donated his own private collection of 2500 books to the library. They were personally catalogued by the Supervisor of Public Libraries for all of Alberta, who stated that some of the books were of a quality that universities would be proud to have. The list of public offices Mr. Spencer held included founding member of the Board of Trade, member of the Hospital Board; Chairman and/or Secretary-Treasurer of the Grande Prairie School Distict 2357, Justice of the Peace, Commissioner of the Juvenile Court. In 1934, when he was re-elected to Town Council, he had already served several terms. It was in this capacity that he preserved the Town files, in effect starting one of the first Archival collections. Not content to stay and do what he could inside the Peace Country, Charles also made trips to Vancouver and Seattle to promote a coastal outlet for products from the Peace River Country. He also made several trips back to England visiting family, but he always returned to the Peace Country. "It does a man good to get away for a while, for the reason that one is then more satisfied with the Peace River..." he commented in 1937. Mr. Spencer remained in the Peace Country until he died on February 18, 1952, at the Grande Prairie Municipal Hospital after a lengthy illness. As a mark of respect, all stores in the town closed for his funeral. He was buried in the Grande Prairie Cemetery. The Spencer Block was purchased by the Army and Navy Department Store out of Edmonton, and the building razed. In 1955, a modern new store, Macleods was built on the site."

Frank Stoll's father, George Mitchell Stoll, arrived at Lake Saskatoon on June 2, 1910, along with his brother Charles. They had traveled over the Long Trail, via Grouard by ox team, coming into the area when the grass was lush and the wild flowers and fruit trees were coming into bloom along the creek. Having spent the previous few years as cowboys in the state of Montana, they decided their homesteads were ideal for the raising of livestock. A shack, barn and corrals were built of logs, some land broken and wild hay stacked that first summer, so they were prepared for winter. In 1916, with the arrival of the railway at Grande Prairie, Frank's mother, Theresa Smith came from Toronto to visit her sister, Mrs. Percy Clubine. While here, she met and married George Stoll, never to return to Toronto again. The young couple moved into a new house built on the farm and George purchased his first horses to replace the oxen that had, till then, been the beasts of labour on the farm. The Stolls farmed in the Lake Saskatoon area for the next years. Four children were born to them: John in 1917, Frank in 1919, and Aleida. In 1940, Frank married Irene Bradley, and built a small home on his own quarter. Two children were born into this farm family: Joan in 1942, and Gordon (Bud) in 1944. Meanwhile, the dependence and love affair with horses continued. Frank had numerous teams, all personalized with names in their photographs: Maggie & Jessie, quality Clydesdales; Minnie & Maud, Percheron Crosses; the six horse field team of Maud, Highness, Bob, Owen, Bessy and Jessie. Even the children had their own pony, Tiny Tim. By the time they were going to school, they could ride and control him on their own. After the war, some of the farm work was done with tractors, but Frank liked the horses for doing winter work and for chores around the farm yard: hauling wood, cattle, feed for the cattle, manure from the barn. For a couple of winters they hauled the mail from Wembley, where the train dropped it off twice a week, to Pipestone Creek. In an emergency, when the roads were blown in or heavy with mud, the horses were able to go where the vehicles could not. Minnie & Maud could get the family into town even when the roads were impassable. Frank always liked to make his horses look good, with Scotch tops/collars and braided tails, and spreaders of red, white and blue rings on the harnesses.

Gathering Story: History by the People was a project of the instructors in the Arts, Education and Commerce Department of the Grande Prairie Regional College. It began in 2002 with the vision of honouring and preserving the unwritten stories of Indigenous people of the Peace River Region. Importance was placed on respecting the integrity of the peoples and their cultures, so the event was held at a traditional Beaver site, now Dunvegan Historical campsite, on the Peace River. The organizers of the Story Gathering Weekend included Indigenous elders and sought to celebrate Indigenous heritage through telling, recording and preserving their stories. Importance was placed on respecting the integrity of the peoples and their cultures. Initially the focus was on the traditional Beaver Band #152 which was seen as “the Band that was left out” as they were never given a land base, but participation broadened as other groups became interested. The event was held in 2002, 2003 and 2004. The stories in this fonds were recorded at the May, 2004 gathering.

Floyd Raymond Van Schaick was born in South Dakota in 1898. He emigrated to Alberta with his parents in 1905, and then moved to Flying Shot Lake where he took a homestead on the NE 36-70-8-W6th. As a teenager, Floyd finished his grade 8 under Maude Clifford at Flying Shot Lake School, and in 1917 enrolled in high school in Camrose. In 1918 he enlisted in the first World War and was sent overseas. He completed his high school in Ripon, Yorkshire after the war was over. In the fall of 1919, Floyd entered Brandon College, an outpost of McMaster University, and graduated with a degree in education in 1924. He taught for a number of years, finally ending up teaching high school science in Wetaskiwin. There he met and married Agnes Irvine. In 1933, Floyd and Agnes moved up to the Peace Country to live on his homestead. They had one child who died as an infant and later adopted a son, Beverley, and a daughter, Sylvia. Floyd was active with the United Church, the United Farmers of Alberta and the Bear Lake Rural Electrification Association. Agnes died c. 1970, and Floyd re-married to Jean Bunyan.

Mr. Harry Tuffill was born in London, England in 1887 and immigrated to Canada in 1906. He worked at various trades in Hamilton and Toronto until 1909, when he was offered a position with Walter McFarlane's survey crew. Their contract, that summer, was to survey portions of the Peace River Country of Alberta. Surveyor McFarlane's field notes list Tuffill as one of the three "head Chainmen" in the 30-man crew that first year. The survey party traveled with 12 teams of horses and sleighs loaded with supplies, trailing a cow along for milk. Over the next three years the crew surveyed the south Peace from east of the Smoky to the British Columbia border, and from the Wapiti River to the Burnt Hills. Some work was done north of Dunvegan and some north of Peace River. The 1911 party also helped survey nine townships in the Peace River Block of British Columbia around Pouce Coupe. Impressed by the potential of the Peace Country, in 1911 Mr. Tuffill filed on NW 33-73-7-W6th, in the Buffalo Lakes area. His intention was to build a home for his fiancée, Maud Shattock. The First Great War interfered with those plans and Harry joined the 91st Highlanders from Hamilton. He served overseas and returned to his homestead in 1919. Harry and Maud were finally married in 1920.*Mr. & Mrs. Tuffill farmed and lived on their homestead until his death in 1965. Mrs. Tuffill died several years later.

John Putters was born in Grande Prairie, attended school in Grande Prairie, graduating from the Grande Prairie High School . His father owned and operated Putters' Electric in the 1930s-1940s. John is very active in a Grande Prairie Alumni group living in Edmonton and Calgary who meet regularly for reunions.

Jack & Dorothy Potts came to Grande Prairie c. 1942, as part of the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals. This corps ran a wireless station in the town during the Second World War, from about 1942-1947. The Station Site was on the corner of 93 St. and Richmond Avenue, then quite a ways out of the town, and Jack Potts was the Sgt. Major, Warrant Officer I. The population of Grande Prairie in 1942 was approximately 3000, so the Signal Corps, with their wives and their children, were a significant addition. Also, some of the men married girls from the area and a number of "Signal Corps" children were born in Grande Prairie, including the two oldest girls in the Potts family. The Potts' first home was an apartment above the beauty parlour, which was one of the few places with running water and plumbing. When the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals station in Grande Prairie closed in 1947, Jack & Dorothy Potts were transferred. The building was subsequently sold to the Salvation Army for $1.00, to be used as a home to care for aged Veterans.