Patrick and Lucie (nee Baker) Rooney, originally from International Falls, Minnesota, moved to Northern Alberta in 1917 to partake in land ownership by means of homestead applications. Although Pat had filed a homestead application on SE 34-72-3-W6 in 1919, they remained in Grande Prairie until 1920. Shortly after the Rooney’s settled into their log home in the Lindsay District, they decided to open a store and post office that became known as Smoky River. As the family grew in size, it soon became apparent that the current house was not large enough to accommodate a store and provide adequate living quarters. Therefore in 1926, Pat and Lucie made the decision to re-locate to the NE corner of NE-10-72-3-W6 which had access to the main road that provided service from Sturgeon Lake to Grande Prairie. The logs used to build the new larger store/house were from the Presbyterian Church that had been located at the Bezanson Townsite. The Post Office Districts of Smoky River and Bezanson merged and the new enlarged area became known as the Bezanson Post Office. In 1930, the Rooney’s expanded their business and opened a store and post office at Crooked Creek and filed homestead applications in the same area.
Dorothy, born at the family homestead, was the third of eight children in the family – Ilene (1917), Marie (1920), Dorothy (May 22, 1922), Donald (1923-1944 KIA), Virginia (1925), Bruce (1927), Mona (1929) and Constance (1932). Dorothy and her siblings received their education at the Lindsay One-Room School. From October 17, 1938 through to March 2, 1944, Dorothy was employed as an Assistant in the Accounting Post Offices of Bezanson and Crooked Creek, Alberta.
Dorothy enlisted with the Canadian Women’s Army Corps on June 26, 1944. From August 1944 to August 1945, Corporal Rooney was attached to the Staff of the Base Post Office, Canadian Postal Corps in Ottawa. She was discharged from the Canadian Women’s Army Corps on September 5, 1946 and received the War Medal 1939-1945 and the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal.
While on a trip to International Falls, Minnesota to visit her Aunt and Uncle; Jane “Jennie” (nee Baker) and Fred Rasmussen, she was introduced to one of Fred’s cousin, Jim Rasmussen. They fell in love and were married on August 19, 1947 in Littlefork, Minnesota. The Rasmussen’s spent the majority of their lives in the Littlefork area raising their family of six children (5 boys and 1 girl) with short periods of residency taking place in Arizona and Washington. It was while living in Arizona in 1954 that Dorothy became a US citizen.
Dorothy passed away July 4, 1989 at the age of 67 and is buried at the Littlefork Oakley Cemetery in Littlefork, Minnesota.
Contributed by Wanda Zenner
Sources
Information provided by Jim and Pat Rasmussen Jr.