Mitford is a

ghost town A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

. Established in 1886, Mitford supported a sawmill, and later a coal mine, before being abandoned by 1898.

History

In 1885, T.B.H. Cochrane and his wife Adela exchanged their lease of near

High River High River is a town within the Calgary Metropolitan Region of Alberta, Canada. It is approximately south of Calgary, at the junction of Alberta Highways 2 and 23. High River had a population of 14,324 in 2021. History The community takes ...

for one just west of present-day

Cochrane, Alberta Cochrane ( ) is a town in the Calgary Metropolitan Region of Alberta, Canada. The town is located west of the Calgary city limits along Alberta Highway 1A, Highway 1A. Cochrane is one of the fastest-growing communities in Canada, and with a pop ...

. The next year, Cochrane associated himself with the Calgary Lumber Company and built a

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

three miles west of present-day Cochrane, handling the vast amount of lumber on his lease. Although the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway () , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Canadian Pacific Ka ...

approached the mill from the east, tension built between Cochrane and the railway, as the railway did not like stopping at the mill due to the steep grades nearby. By 1888 the town contained an office, drug store and bunkhouses. By 1891 it had a school as well, meeting in the saloon. It was named for a friend of Cochrane's wife. However, the success of the sawmill was limited. Most of the good quality

fir Firs are evergreen coniferous trees belonging to the genus ''Abies'' () in the family Pinaceae. There are approximately 48–65 extant species, found on mountains throughout much of North and Central America, Eurasia, and North Africa. The genu ...

to be found in the area was never sold, instead ironically being used to construct a railway designed to transport the lumber to market. In 1888, a coal mine began operation in the area, with the distinct advantage of having the sawmill's railway nearby to transport the coal to market. In 1890, it became obvious that both operations were doomed to fail, closing the same year. In an effort to save the town, T.B.H. Cochrane established a

brickyard A brickyard or brickfield is a place or Yard (land), yard where bricks are made, pottery firing, fired, and stored, or sometimes Commerce, sold or otherwise distributed from. Brick makers work in a brick yard. A brick yard may be constructed ...

using material found just north of Mitford. In 1893, that operation was also closed, due to the inferior quality of its product. After the closing of the brickyard, the town fell into decline, before it was abandoned in 1898. Before its desertion, Mitford housed a store, a school, a hotel, a restaurant, a medical practice, and an

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

church. The steam engine used on Mitford's railway was sold to a

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

mill, and the Canadian Pacific Railway ceased making regular stops at the town.

Today

In 1898 a fire started in the Chinese restaurant, destroying most of the town. In 1899, the town's church was moved to Cochrane, and today all that remains is the town's cemetery, which currently stands on private property.

References

{{coord, 51, 12, 51, N, 114, 33, 03, W, display=title Ghost towns in Alberta Localities in Rocky View County Populated places established in 1886