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On the Brink – Snapshot of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon and Campus

Life on the brink of the Great War was to many one of peace, security and potential. Since the defeat of Napoleon at Waterloo, there had not been a European conflict that had involved all of the major powers.  There had been the threat of general war on several occasions but it had always been prevented by diplomatic means. The hundred years of peace had created a society where there had been great advances in science, philosophy, medicine and art. It had also seen the advancement in the design and production of weapons of war. There had been small and bloody conflicts but nothing could prepare the human mind for what was about to happen.

In the Canadian West, the future seemed to hold great promise, as the land was settled by ten of thousands of settlers and the virgin prairie produced larger and larger wheat crops. It was to be Canada’s century. Nothing could stop us.

Material in the section gives us a glimpse of the world on the brink of the war.  The University of Saskatchewan, the Province and Saskatoon were all less than ten years old when war broke out.  

The material in this and other sections is taken from the collections of University of Saskatchewan Archives and Special Collections and has been divided into three sub-categories. Though the items presented here are local in nature, they reflect the greater society of the time.