Lethbridge—A new chapter in Lethbridge's military history has opened, thanks to a donation that arrived at the Galt Museum & Archives in 2018. When he received the vintage sweater, said to be formerly worn in Lethbridge, Collections Technician Kevin MacLean was skeptical. The sweater, of the relatively unknown Lethbridge "Vets" hockey team, sounded too good to be true until the collections staff began to take a closer look into its background.

The Lethbridge Vets hockey team was formed by soldiers returning from their deployments in the First World War. The Vets went on to play twice in the Alberta Senior Playoffs, winning the playoffs once. They also participated in the Western Allan Cup Playoffs, ultimately losing to a team from Fort William, Ontario.

Collections Assistant Kirstan Schamuhn was tasked with cataloguing and researching the sweater, but it remained a mystery. "The oral history Kevin MacLean conducted with the donor, Harold Palmer, presented a lot of what we consider circumstantial evidence," said Schamuhn.

"There was evidence that tied the sweater to southern Alberta, but not a lot of first-hand accounts or documentation to connect it to Lethbridge. Harold Palmer didn't have memories of the sweater, and he wasn't able to shed light on the sentimental ties or proof his father, the original owner, had to the sweater. There were no photos of Palmer’s father wearing the sweater or of him playing hockey."

"The team was the pinnacle of hockey for Lethbridge at the time," Schamuhn noted. "A Herald article from 1920 after they won their first Amateur Playoffs said that the community was surprised that Lethbridge had a strong hockey presence. The complexity and importance of this story are enhanced when you add that these were veterans of the First World War playing hockey, bonding as a team, as soon as they returned home. It gives perspective into yet another aspect of their lives as veterans, and I find that incredibly special."

Schamuhn was hired to catalogue recent collections acquisitions through a grant received in April 2019 from the Alberta Museums Association, funded by the Government of Alberta. Schamuhn was tasked with cataloguing 63 recent donations in her project. The Vets hockey sweater presented several challenges for its lack of first-hand memories and evidenced connections to the Lethbridge Vets. The Galt’s collections staff continue to seek information on the Lethbridge Vets hockey team and appreciate any knowledge of the team that may be shared by the public.

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This media release can be found at www.galtmuseum.com/news.

Media Contact:

Graham Ruttan (he/him)
Marketing and Communications Officer
Galt Museum & Archives | Fort Whoop-Up
graham.ruttan@galtmuseum.com
403.320.4009