Simpson, Saskatchewan
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Simpson is a village in Saskatchewan, Canada between Regina and Saskatoon. Simpson was founded in 1911 by Herman Bergren and Joseph Newman during construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway. It is named after George Simpson, a governor of the Hudson Bay Company.
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[edit] Early Years
For the first several years after its founding Simpson was nothing more than a name on a map. It wasn't until 1915 that it acquired its first official resident. An Irish immigrant by the name of Edward Byrne. Byrne was granted a homestead with the intention of mining it for gold and other minerals. In 1917 he opened the Simpson Gold Mine. Although the mine never produced an ounce of gold, it did serve to draw other people to the area (most of them also seeking gold). When it became apparent that there was no gold to be had, many of the fortune seekers decided to stay anyway and the Town of Simpson began to grow.
To this day the Simpson Gold Mine still stands and is the towns main tourist attraction. Stock footage of the mine can even be seen briefly in the 1991 movie City Slickers.
[edit] Golden Years (1950-1980)
Over the next few decades Simpson continued to grow and prosper but the best, most successful years for the town came between 1950 and 1980. It was during this time that most of the major buildings in Simpson were constructed. The local bank, gas station, rink, hotel/bar, bordello, restaurant, fire hall, post office, physics lab, grain elevators and School were all built during this period. It was also during this time when Simpson reached its peak population wise of 350 people [1]
[edit] Present Times(1980-present)
Like many small towns Simpson has declined in recent times. The population has left for greener pastures and even the local school has been closed down and sold to Gypsies[2]. The town still has activities like minor Hockey and its yearly mud bogging tournament. But even those popular attractions are much smaller than they used to be.
[edit] Interesting Facts
- Because of a student vote, from 1994 until its closing in 2002, Simpson Schools official mascot was Optimus Prime
- In 1992 the producers of the TV show The Simpsons sent the Town of Simpson a letter threatening possible legal action if the town attempted to capitalize on the success of the show and its similar name. Nothing ever became of it but in an odd twist in a later episode of the show, characters Patty and Selma were heard suggesting changing their town's name from "Springfield" to "Seinfeld" in order to leech off the popularity of the latter hit TV show.
