‘The first black doctor on the Prairies’: a look at Dr. Shadd during Black History Month in Canada
February is Black History Month in Canada, and one of the most fascinating local historical figures is Dr. Alfred Schmitz Shadd.
The Melfort and District Museum has a large collection of information about Shadd and his time in the northeast.
Shadd was born in 1870, and began his time in the northeast as a teacher in Kinistino, before returning to Ontario to complete his medical studies. He graduated with honours from the University of Toronto in 1898.
Shadd became one of two local doctors to service a large area in the region.