In the sunny afternoon of late July, Andy McCracken, a septuagenarian, takes a moment before dialing his late father’s number on an old rotary phone at a “wind phone” near a graveyard in Alberta’s Rocky Mountain foothills. This symbolic phone allows visitors to have one-sided conversations with departed loved ones. The wind phone, situated at Mountain Park Cemetery in Yellowhead County, is the highest elevation cemetery in Canada and now houses the highest elevation wind phone in North America, at nearly 1,900 meters above sea level.
Yellowhead County recently installed the wind phone at Mountain Park, where Andy and his wife, Anne McCracken, plan to be laid to rest. Andy’s roots in a Coal Branch town near Mountain Park, where his father worked as the mine doctor, qualify the couple for a plot at the cemetery. The McCrackens have already chosen a spot with a view of Cheviot Mountain, where they hope to rest peacefully in the future.
Mountain Park, established in 1911 as the terminus of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway line, thrived until the coal mine’s closure in 1950. The community once housed around 1,000 residents in 100 homes but is now a ghost town, with only the cemetery remaining. The cemetery, with 269 documented burials starting in 1913, serves as a historical site reflecting the town’s bygone era.
Madison Sharman, Yellowhead County’s heritage co-ordinator, shared insights into Mountain Park’s past during an interview at the cemetery. She highlighted how the town relied on the railway for connection to the outside world, with the train tracks being a central feature of the community. Residents found entertainment in foot races up Mount Baldy and journeying to neighboring towns for social gatherings.
While the allure of a secluded life in the mountains may seem romantic, Mountain Park Cemetery bears witness to the hardships faced by its early inhabitants. The burial ground holds stories of tragedy, including infant burials and fatalities from mining accidents and pandemics like the Spanish flu. The cemetery stands as a poignant reminder of the challenges endured by the town’s residents.
The restoration of Mountain Park Cemetery by volunteers like Mary Salzsauler has preserved the site’s history and ensured its upkeep. Today, Yellowhead County manages the cemetery, offering new cremation burials for those with ties to the area. The McCrackens, along with other residents and notable figures, find solace in the serene surroundings of the cemetery, where stories of the past echo through the landscape.
In the wind phone booth, a poem penned by Sharman encapsulates the essence of the site: “May this wind phone remind us that love transcends goodbye, memories endure, and every tale shared with the wind becomes a part of the landscape once more.”