On this day in 1888, a public notice announced an auction for the exclusive right to operate the ferry at Fort Saskatchewan, about 25 km northeast of downtown Edmonton.
Up for auction was the right to run the ferry for two years, charging 25 cents per vehicle, "drawn by single horse or other animal with driver," and 50 cents per double vehicle, "including two horses or other draught animals and driver." A quarter in 1888 had the purchasing power of about $6.00 today.
The Fort Saskatchewan ferry likely would have been quite busy as settlers poured into the areas now known as the counties of Strathcona, Lamont, and Two Hills.
However, the ferry operator had to deal with a fair amount of risk. In 1886, "the cable snapped and the ferry had to be retrieved from downriver," says the Kalyna Country website, and in 1887, "an errant scow from Edmonton so severely damaged the ferry and its guide wires that both had to be replaced." This might explain why the contract came up for auction in 1888.
The ferry service at Fort Saskatchewan ended in 1905 when the Canadian Northern Railway arrived, along with a bridge.
This clipping was found on Vintage Edmonton, a daily look at Edmonton's history from armchair archivist @revRecluse.