'It is important for me': Sask. couple preserving village as a museum

A Saskatchewan couple are working to preserve the village of Scotsguard, Sask. as a museum to showcase its history.

Keith and Beverly Hagen moved to Saskatchewan from Alberta in 1987. They bought a house in Scotsguard and started farming.

Over time, many people left the village due to the lack of infrastructure. Now, they are the only residents.

“There were a lot of activity and a lot of people around here,” said Keith Hagen, a resident of Scotsguard. “Each family had from five to seven kids.”

To preserve the history of the village, the couple decided to turn it into a museum.

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“It is important for me as far as we’re preserving history because … there are so many people that come back and are interested in what’s happening with Scotsguard,” said Hagen.

Many items from Scotsguard are directly connected to Hagen’s family. Beverly has been restoring some parts of the church where she and her husband got married. Keith also repaired a car that his father used to drive.

“We’ve got something tangible that they can actually put their hand on,” said Beverly Hagen. “Maybe their relative ancestors actually sat in that pew or went to that church.”

Bruse Deg, one of the museum’s guests, said he plans to come back with his family for a tour.

“There is a little reminder of how things were back then, what the people of that country had to go through sometimes just to create a living in the society,” said Deg. “So, I find that very interesting.”

The museum of Scotsguard is getting more popular, with around 100 people visiting this year according to the Hagens.

Scotsguard is located approximately 85 kilometres southwest of Swift Current, Sask.