Ethnic Diversity in a Coal Town

One of Lethbridge's defining characteristics has always been its ethnic diversity. This can be traced back to the early coal mining days when immigrants were recruited to work in the mines. From the time the Lethbridge coal fields first began to be mined until they shut down, thousands of miners came and went. These miners brought not only their hard work and skills to Lethbridge but also a new cultural diversity .

Most of the earlier miners in the Lethbridge region came from Europe, but some were from other parts of the world. The Galt company began with miners of Scottish descent from Westville and Stellarton, Nova Scotia. Another company later brought in miners of eastern European descent from the Pennsylvania coal fields. Many Hungarians found their way to this region when young men who had homesteaded in the Saskatchewan area came to work in the Lethbridge mines during the winter. Meanwhile, their wives and children stayed on the homestead to fulfill the residency requirements.

P19768270020-GM A local musical band made up of Lethbridge miners.

During the First World War, forms were issued to the coal mining companies that asked them to keep track of the ethnic origins of their employees. One such list provided by the North American Collieries mine at Coalhurst indicated a workforce of 366 employees, made up of almost 30 different ethnic backgrounds. There were also a high number of employees who listed themselves as Canadians when officially there was no such category.