French-speaking Belgians were among the European immigrants who settled in Western Canada after 1890. By 1921, there were over 5,000 people of Belgian origin in Manitoba, almost 3,500 in Saskatchewan, and some 2,600 in Alberta although the Census does not distinguish between Flemish and Walloon. Many of these undoubtedly immigrated during or immediately after World War I, although both the Canadian and Belgian governments agreed that the war-ravaged country needed all its human resources for reconstruction purposes. In Manitoba, the Belgians settled around Bruxelles, St. Alphonse, and Swan Lake in the rural area, and in what was known as "Belgian town" in St. Boniface. Here they built their own church and started a popular Belgian Club. As a group, they were mostly involved in market gardening, public works, and the construction industry. This 5-horse team pulls a 1900 version of a road grader manned by an unidentified crew of Belgians.
