Wilfred Miller, the son of Arthur and Gretchen (Gruntman) Miller of German descent, was born at home on the family farm in the village of St. Benedict, about 56 kilometres north of Humboldt, Sask. in 1926.
St. Benedict is a village that was founded by German immigrants in the first decades of the 20th century and is located in the Carlton Trail Region of Saskatchewan; in 2011 the population of St. Benedict stood at 82.
Wilf explained his arrival into the world like this. "I had no choice but to be born at home. It was in the early spring and back then winter was winter and it lasted far into the spring. There were no snow plows and cars were rare and never seen on the roads during the winter. It was common to see horse drawn sleighs as the mode of transportation traveling through the fields. They traveled through the fields because the roads being level were usually drifted shut. It was easier on the horses to travel in the fields and near the trees where there was less snow and because it was also a bit warmer."
Wilf grew up on the farm along with four other siblings and learned how to operate all the farm equipment.
In 1951 he left Saskatchewan and at the age of 25 he headed to Prince George because he heard that there were jobs and lots of them.
He arrived by train because at that point in time there was no highway connection straight west into Prince George. The alternative was to travel south out of Saskatchewan down into the U.S. and then head west until a connection could be made to travel north to Prince George, a small town situated between two rivers.
Wilf said, "When I arrived in Prince George the Hart Highway was gravel all the way to Dawson Creek and the Pine Pass was treacherous. It was easy to see why in the 1950s that most people arrived in Prince George by train."
Wilf found work in the bush in the Hixon area operating heavy duty equipment and it wasn't long until he bought into S&M Contractors Ltd. His company contracted work all over Prince George including many of the sawmills. There were sawmills everywhere and yes there were jobs and lots of them.
In the early 1960s, Wilf's company used their equipment to help fight some of the biggest forest fires in the area. It was dangerous work and their equipment and the operators were quite often at risk in dangerous situations. Many other companies around Prince George also used their equipment and together they all helped fight the fires.
Wilf's company played a huge part in the original development of the BCR Industrial Site south of Prince George.
Wilf said, "In order to get to the site we had to move our equipment over the old railroad bridge, travel down the bank and follow the river until we came to a farmer's field. From there we traveled across the farmer's field to get to what is now the BCR Industrial Site. It took skill and patience to get to the site but we did it.
"Once we got our equipment at the site we started to clear away the bush according to the surveyor's directions followed by all the ditching and drainage work also under the direction of the engineers on the project. It was a great project and I am proud to say that I was a part of what you see out there today."
The original site was bush country and had little or no development back in the 1950s. Today the BCR Industrial Area covers about 700 hectares of land and is near the intersection of two major highways and the downtown area of Prince George.
I asked Wilf to tell me about the highlight of his nearly 90-year life. He said the second biggest highlight was when he started his own company. The biggest highlight was when he met and married Agnes Long.
He met Agnes at a dance and soon learned that she was horse logging in the Burns Lake area working right along with her father. Wilf said, "I was so proud of her and believe me she knew everything there was to know about horse logging."
Wilf and Agnes were married in 1953 and raised their family on Ewert Street and later moved to the Hart Area. Sadly Agnes passed away in 2003. They had two children, a son Barry and a daughter Laura, who in turn gave them two grandchildren.
Wilf decided to retire and after nearly 20 years he sold the business. It wasn't long until he started up again. People wanted him to work for them because of his good reputation and outstanding work ethics.
Wilf concluded by saying, "Over time everything changes. Technology has changed everything so do your book work and keep up with everything that is new. I try to keep fit by going for a walk at the mall followed by a cup of coffee with friends. Stay happy and always keep in touch with your family and your friends."
