1925-1931
St. Paul’s Anglican Church and Historic House
The radio was a real luxury when they first appeared in the early 1920s. To people of the Peace River Country, it helped reduce the feeling of isolation from the outside world. It was a source of entertainment, news, education, and provided religious programs. According to a pioneer from the Sexsmith area, in “1921 when radio first came in… the only station was CFCN Calgary – we’d hear Aberhart (Alberta Premier) once and a while if the weather was right. Quite often there would be no sound out of it.” (Sexsmith, p. 852) When WWII broke out it was not uncommon for a certain student to be sent each day to the nearest residence to listen to the radio to hear the noon news and then come back to the classroom and give in detail an account of what was happening. (Sexsmith, p. 382). It would not be until the later 1930s that local radio stations began their own broadcasts.