Source Unknown
Lindbergh at one time was a very thriving and bustling hamlet. In fact the entire district is rich in past history that goes back to about 1908 when the early settlers first started to take up homesteads.
In 1910 a post office was established in the Stewart Maxwell residence and was called Tyrol. In 1911 this post office was moved to the site of the Moose Creek Telegraph Station and renamed Mooswa. The telegraph station was situated in the area of where our Windsor Salt Plant now stands. It was one of many telegraph stations in operation between Winnipeg and Edmonton.
Two early telegraph operators at this site were. George Mann and Art Bowtell. One other business located at the Mooswa Site was the Eddy Davis General Store.
Some of the early settlers started arriving about 1908. The Henry Anderson family as well as the Davis family, Bob Chanler, Louis DeDelly, and Tom Johnson were all early pioneers to the district. Others were the Frisby and Lorenson families, Billy McCormick, Leo and Barney Edwards, Omra Bullis and Ally Lambright.
Many families settled to the north of present day Lindbergh. They were the Caleb Dunham and McLain families, the Allens, the Ockermans, the Hillebrands, the Laughlins, the Martins, the Bartholomews, the Hatchards, Albert Hammond, Slim Harris, the Gallaghers, the William Saranchuk family as well as the Chris Nelson family. This is just a partial listing of the settlers to the area, there were many others.
After the area was partially settled, a school was built. It was called Moose Creek School District No. 2062 and for many years it was attended by the many children of that area.
With the arrival of the railroad in 1928 the Mooswa settlement was moved a few miles to the north west. It was renamed Lindbergh, in honor of Charles Lindbergh, a flyer who had flown across the Atlantic Ocean in a small one engine plane in 1927. Soon after the hamlet of Lindbergh grew at an alarming. rate. Eddy Davis moved his general store from the Mooswa site and there he established Lindbergh's first post office. Later it was taken over by Vic Ramsbottom who later relinquished it to Hardy Lawrence. Hardy also operated a garage as well as the Imperial Oil agency. Still later Hardy turned the post office over to his daughter, Mrs. Phyllis Saranchuk who operated it for many years.
A second store was soon operating in Lindbergh, it was owned by Mrs. A. Palynchuk, it was later sold to Karl Heinemann. It was followed by a third general store, one operated by Gladys Sweheim, who later sold out to Jim Young. Soon after the arrival of the railroad the Imperial Lumber Co. established a lumber yard as well as a hardware store. It was first managed by Vic Ramsbottom and later by Jim Mclvor, Royal Wilson and Harold Tomjun. About this time the United Grain Growers built a grain elevator. It was first managed by Charles Carlton and later by Ted Magnusson. Nearby was the stockyards which bought and shipped livestock once a week. At one time a hotel was in the process of being built but was never really put into operation. The builder, George Henri died while it was being constructed, and this project was then shelved. Other places of business in Lindbergh was a pool hall and barber shop operated by Joe "Red" Carrier, a livery barn managed by Leo Edwards, a meat market owned by Eddy Davis, and a small railroad station which was used for storing freight as well as providing a shelter for those using the trains. In the north part of the hamlet stood the Catholic Church. A blacksmith shop built by Bob Poitras was also doing business. Later (1934) a second Blacksmith shop was built by Wm. Penerowski and his son Harvey. They moved to Lindbergh from the dried out area of Saskatchewan, and stayed till 1939.
Lindbergh, although it was a small hamlet, always had a good baseball, softball and hockey team. They could always compete with teams in larger centres. Some of the early baseball players I remember were: Fred Frisby, Bob Maxwell, Jim Young, Harvey Penerowski. Leo Edwards. Sherman Davis, Charley Keller and Eddy Davis. Some of the hockey players I recall were Eddy Davis, Chester Davis and Fred Lorenson.
Lindbergh held its own for many years but for some unknown reason it began to decline and eventually all places of business closed. Today it is mainly a residential community. What may have caused its demise was the improvement of automobiles, better conditioned roads which allowed the residents to shop in larger centres and the loss of their school, which no doubt contributed to its downfall. It was a sad fate, however Lindbergh was not alone, it seemed this trend occurred throughout all of Alberta.
Those who can remember when Lindbergh was a thriving hamlet will no doubt agree Lindbergh has a very interesting past.
