Baljennie is an unincorporated community in Glenside Rural Municipality No. 377, Saskatchewan, Canada. Its first post office opened in 1891.[6]
Baljennie | |
|---|---|
  Baljennie | |
| Coordinates: 52°19′16″N 107°32′06″W / 52.321°N 107.535°W | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | Saskatchewan |
| Region | West-central |
| Census division | 12 |
| Rural Municipality | Glenside |
| Government | |
| • Reeve | Wade Parkinson |
| • Administrator | Cheryl Forbes |
| • Governing body | Glenside No. 377[1] |
| Time zone | CST |
| Area code | 306 |
| [2][3][4][5] | |
History
Baljennie was named by an early resident, Stephen ('Sandy') Warden,[7] after his daughter Jean, and was originally spelt Baljeanie.[8] Warden, a former officer of the North-West Mounted Police, had established a ranch in the area in the early 1880s, which subsequently became a staging post for mail coaches travelling between Saskatoon and Battleford.[8] A school was opened at Baljennie in August 1912.[9]
The Canadian Pacific Railway extended its line northward from Asquith to Baljennie in 1931.[10] The line between Sonningdale and Baljennie was closed in June 1977.[11]
Baljennie had a population of 76 at the time of the 1951 census,[12] but declined in later years. The school was closed in 1970 and was turned into a community centre.[9] The community's last business closed in 1991, and its derelict Anglican church was destroyed by fire three years later.[13] After several years during which Baljennie was effectively a ghost town, a number of families moved to the town site from 2007 onwards.[13]
Notable people
- Arthur James Bater, politician
Cultural references
In her 1976 song "Coyote", Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell, who grew up in Saskatoon, sings "I looked the coyote right in the face/On the road to Baljennie near my old hometown".
See also
References
52°19′16″N 107°32′06″W / 52.321°N 107.535°W