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The Doukhobors were a communitarian, rural group of religious immigrants fleeing persecution due to politically different beliefs with the Tsarist Government of Georgian Russia and Ukraine in 1899. With Philadelphia Quaker assistance and sponsorship from Leo Tolstoy 7,000 emigrated to Canada settling in 3 large colonies in the area of Swan River, Yorkton, of the Yorkton Gen Web Region and in the Prince Albert area in the Prince Albert Gen Web Region and smaller colonies south of Prince Albert near Blaine Lake, and Saskatoon in the Saskatoon Gen Web Region . In the Yorkton Gen Web Region 45 townships were reserved for the, Devil's Lake or South Colony, a colony at Thunderhill and another further to the west in the Saskatoon Gen Web Region at Rosthern. A Militia Act was passed allowing Doukhobors exemption from military service as per their beliefs. Doukhobors were very fundamental, evangelical, pacifist and vegetarian people, some of whom worked for the rail line gangs in the summer raising capital. In 1907, the newly formed government of Saskatchewan enforced conformity to Homestead Act Regulations - individual land registration rather than communal registration, as well Local Improvement Districts were initiated to set up schools in the various provincial areas. The Government allocated 15 acres for each Doukhobor settler, when they still refused to register individually land was gradually made open to the public. There arose three distinct groups of Doukhobors in the settlements: 1) Those with right wing beliefs who wanted to assimilate into society, send kids to school and pay taxes. 2) Those who rejected Doukhobor beliefs and did not preserve ethnicity or culture were the left wing group of Doukhobors 3) Extreme Right Doukhobors, known as the 'Sons of Freedom' were among the colonists who left to B.C. under the leadersip of Peter Veregin. Of the first two groups, those individuals who possessed capital, departed from colonies to homestead individually.
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Ethnic origins and History |
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