By Historical Society

Mustache History – Historical Society

Jul 19, 2011 | 8:27 AM

A Hairy Heritage

Many of the movers, shakers, and doers in the history of our city were proud bearers of moustaches. Is there a correlation between dynamic facial hair and notability in Prince Albert? Not likely, but we invite you to judge for yourself.

James Isbister (1833)
The first farmer in the area, James Isbister was born at Fort Nelson in 1833. He and his family settled in what would later be known as Prince Albert to raise wheat and livestock in 1860. He was imprisoned for weeks following the North-West Rebellion, although he supported the cause for only as long as it obeyed the constitution. Isbister, his wife, and his facial hair are all buried in Prince Albert.

Richard Deacon (1850)
Deacon set up a farm for himself and his family in the 1870s at Colleston. He moved into eastern Prince Albert, then called Goschen, not long after so that his children could attend the mission school. In 1877 he set up a blacksmith shop in town to serve the community, and later became the Captain of the east end volunteer fire brigade. During the 1885 Rebellion, he was the O.C. of the Goschen Detachment. Immediately following this, he was involved in an expedition north to catch enough fish to feed the community.
Deacon put two steamers and one side wheeler on the river: Josie, Marion, and the Pathfinder respectively. These were used to haul logs and operate the local mills. None of these enterprises were enough to prevent the Captain from maintaining a stunning moustache for all to see.

Samuel Donaldson (1856)
A member of the respected North West Mounted Police until 1882, Donaldson retired to Prince Albert to open a livery business. He served as a city councillor for almost a decade, was mayor for two years, and a city alderman for four after this. He was twice elected to the Saskatchewan Legislature, and even represented the area in Parliament. There is no doubt that his popularity is at least in part due to the care he put into his upper lip.

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Andrew Holmes (1860)
Born in Scotland, Andrew Holmes would one day grow up to be the head of our city. He was a member of the school board, a councilman, an elected alderman, and twice elected as mayor in 1910 and 1911. In addition to this, he served as a sergeant during the Northwest Rebellion. Facial hair may not just lead to political and military success, however! Holmes’s daughter, Janet Holmes, was such a talented painter at age eleven that her work still hangs in the Prince Albert Historical Museum today.

George Carr (1867)
When Admiral Peary went on his Arctic expedition in 1893, George Carr was at his side, sporting his warm and dashing facial hair. While they did not reach their goal of finding the North Pole, Carr was able to meet and trade with the Inuit and bring back several valuable artefacts, some of which are on display in the museum today. He returned to Prince Albert, where he later served in the school board and became a city councillor.

While the evidence looks to be overwhelmingly in favour of the proposal that moustaches and success in life are interlinked, there seem to be as many points against it as there are for it. The founder of this city, James Nisbit, was clean-shaven. So were many other notable citizens, from Mayors Sam McLeod and John M. Cuelenaere to author Lucy Maud Montgomery, to the Right Honourable John George Diefenbaker himself. We leave it to the reader to use their judgement in the matter