Sukanen Ship Museum Offers More than the Prairie Ship Story

Sukanen Ship Museum Offers More Than the Prairie Ship Story tion of fire engines and firefighter apparatus has been built over the years. A 1913 grain elevator in working condition is located on the north end of the property A line of buildings on the west side stores three large farm tractor collections — Case, Allis-Chalm ers and John Deere. These are supplemented by the replica International Harvester Company dealership and machin ery collection. This collection of buildings in cludes dozens of vintage cars and trucks with more than 200 vehiThe Sukanen Ship Pioneer Vilasylum in North Battleford where lage and Museum presents the he died. story of Finnish Settler Tom SuLocated on 40 acres, the pioneer kanen . . . and a lot more. village hosts pretty well all the The village museum has been businesses and institutions that around for 51 years, with the would have operated in a rural Sukanen Ship moved here in the Saskatchewan town of nearly 100 1970s to recognize the work of years ago. this talented, determined settler The streets are lined with a building an ocean-going ship in church, one-room school, general cles and tractors on display. the middle of the Prairies by hand store, hardware store, blacksmith A not-to-be-missed exhibit is the with tools he made. shop, municipal office, service homestead shack where Prime Sukanen never got to try his plan station, newspaper/print shop, Minister John Diefenbaker grew to move the ship up the SaskatchCNR railway station, pharmacy up in Northern Saskatchewan. ewan River, float it sideways and carriage house. The shack his Uncle Elmer lived through shallow parts and sail A farm barn and seven vintage in is adjacent. up the Churchill River to Hudson houses form part of the collec Diefenbaker is the only one of Bay and his home of Finland. tion that includes an 1890s ranch three Canadian prime ministers Neighbours in the Finnish comhouse, two settler shacks and a elected in Saskatchewan who was munities of Lucky Lake and one-and-one-half storey farm a resident of the province. Macrorie reported the odd settler. house. Closed for the summer of 2020. Mounties took him to the insane A fire hall and extensive collec