La Survivance Building

The Printing Presses

Sources: Photo: Provincial Archives of Alberta OB8502


Raising the Flag on the Second Floor Roof

Photo: Provincial Archives of Alberta, OB11221

La Survivance needed space, and building a second floor was the perfect solution.


Specialized Equipment

Photo: Provincial Archives of Alberta OB11227.

In addition to the newspaper La Survivance, the printing company also printed various publications in French and English. 


The Employees

Photo: Provincial Archives of Alberta OB11233.

Unfortunately, we have lost the names of these brave printers, but they were among those who ensured the survival of French in Alberta.

Text version of the audio

This building was not only the first permanent home of Edmonton's French-language radio station, CHFA, but also of its newspaper, La Survivance, which circulated for 39 years before changing its name to Le Franco-Albertain in 1967. 

The journalistic precursors of Le Franco date back to 1898. L'Ouest canadien, Le Courrier de l'Ouest, Le Progrès Albertain and L'Union were all popular French newspapers before La Survivance was launched in 1928. Since its inception, this weekly has been supported by an army of volunteers. These community members, who preferred language security to financial reward, demonstrated the tenacity of the Franco-Albertan community to fight for the culture of its subscribers. 

CHFA radio began broadcasting in 1949. Largely funded by donations, it was owned by Association canadienne-française de l'Alberta (ACFA). When the radio station was purchased by the CBC in the early 1970s, the profits from the sale were, and still are, used to ensure the financial health of the Association. 

In addition to the offices, the building also housed the newspaper's printing plant with its huge presses. In the fall of 1960, a second floor was built to meet the space needs of francophone associations and businesses. In 1964, the Caisse populaire Saint-Joachim (credit union) moved into the Survivance building.

In 1986, following the purchase of Centre 82 by Francophone investors, the ACFA moved out of the building, whose space was taken over by other businesses that were no longer Francophone. The move is one of the last steps in the migration of the French community from central Edmonton to the French Quarter in Bonnie Doon.

Extract of
Francophone Heritage in Edmonton

Francophone Heritage in Edmonton image circuit

Presented by : Conseil de développement économique de l'Alberta (CDÉA)
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