These images have been obtained from various archives, families and publications. Click on the image for a larger view and other details.

The photos in this section will deal with overall historic views of the Bell Farm from the time of its establishment in 1882 through its evolution into small family-sized farms in the 1890s and after. These images may show farming operations, like seeding and harvesting, various farm buildings, construction and other activities. It concludes with the incorporation of the Bell Barn into a well-landscaped acreage late in the 20th century.

The Bell Farm Visitors Register was printed in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and was first used in August 1884, a full two years after the Bell Farm began operations. Hence, it is not a complete record of all who visited the Farm, as many early visits are not recorded. As well, historical information from other sources indicates that not everyone who came to the Farm signed the Visitors Register.

On August 20, 1883, the management of the Canadian Pacific Railway Company, headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, left on a grand tour of the new railway then under construction in western Canada. Including various dignitaries, the party came to 66 people, plus staff to cater to their daily needs and keep the train operational from Winnipeg to the Rocky Mountains.

Members of the British Association held their Annual Convention in Montreal, Quebec, Canada in 1884.

On Sept. 6th they, along with some family members and a few others, left Sarnia, Ontario and headed into the Canadian West. While the total number of people in the party was 117, only about 30 of them signed the Bell Farm Visitors Register.

The Bell Farm Visitors' Register was not printed until 1884, two years after work started at the Farm. From various historical records, including newspapers, journals, books, government reports and correspondence we know that many other people visited the Farm between 1882 and 1884.

A unique group of settlers to come to the Bell Farm stated that they arrived before Major Bell and his entourage arrived in June 1882. Known as squatters, they staked out land claims to areas that they hoped to homestead themselves. Between 1882 and 1883 their dispute was arbitrated among several representatives for both sides.

This Album includes people of all ages who lived, and sometimes worked, on the Bell Farm during the era that Major Bell was here (1882-1896) and afterwards.

The Bell Farm was a corporate venture, officially known as the Qu'Appelle Valley Farming Company, and included a number of investors, and employed many people, both for farm purposes and for construction and maintenance. Major Bell also employed a large number of Indigenous people to help operate his farm. The images in this Album focus on the people who worked and lived on the Farm. Images of and information on the Investors can be found in Album 300. The following Images are presented in alphabetical order, after the general farming photos and sketches.

The photos in this section will deal with the Bell Farm from the time that the decision was made to preserve the round stone barn in 2006, and subsequent documentation of the barn before its dismantling in April 2008.Here you will also find updates of the work being done to rebuild the barn on the new 5 acre site, nearby on another portion of the original corporate farm yard.This section will also include images of new landscaping and interpretive material being erected, and of events related to the fund raising and promotional activities associated with the Bell Barn Project.