Our Heritage

The story of the Town of Altona actually begins across the ocean, on the wind-swept steppes of the Russian Ukraine. It was here, in the prosperous, orderly Mennonite villages, amid religious persecution and threats to their unique culture, that the German-speaking Mennonites first decided it was time to emigrate. As expert grain farmers, they were attracted to the rich farmland near the Red River, in a region the Canadian Government dubbed the "West Reserve". As a deeply spiritual people, they were drawn by the promise of religious freedom. The first vast wave of immigrants arrived in southern Manitoba in the 1870's, eager for a place to finally call home.

It's hard to imagine what thoughts ran through the minds of the first settlers to arrive in the area that is now Altona. There were no conveniences, no amenities. Nothing but tall prairie grass, howling winds, and not a single tree in sight. In Russia they had already made the transition from subsistence to commercial farming. Now, the back-breaking business of breaking and cultivating new land and providing for their growing families began. In the true pioneer spirit, the Mennonites carried on, introducing Russian practices of shelter belts, dry farming and summer fallow to the area.

In 1880, the first homestead was established in what is known as the "Old Altona" village. As farms flourished, commercial farming became cumbersome since harvested grain had to be hauled to elevators located on railways in nearby towns. The coming of the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1882 made shipping easier and also brought entrepreneurs and organized commerce to the area. With the construction of a rail siding north of the village in 1895, the new community of Altona was born.