Gravelbourg

Gravelbourg was founded in 1906 by Louis-Pierre Gravel, a priest who recruited French-Canadian and French families to settle the district, and it became the centre of francophone Saskatchewan, with a cathedral, a college and a convent built on a scale that surprises in a town of about a thousand people. Charles Maillard, a priest and trained artist, painted the interior of Our Lady of the Assumption Co-Cathedral almost single-handedly between 1921 and 1931, covering the walls and ceiling with murals and trompe-l'oeil. The town is a National Historic Site for its ensemble of institutional buildings, and French is still spoken.

What you actually see

• The painted cathedral - ten years of one priest's murals and trompe-l'oeil.
• The institutional buildings - college, convent and bishop's residence in one town.
• The francophone community - French still used in a prairie farming town.
• The National Historic Site - the ensemble recognised for its scale and coherence.

When to go

May to September, when the cathedral keeps regular visiting hours; winter access depends on arrangement. The town is quiet at any season and a short stop.

Honest expectations

Cathedral access outside summer may need a call ahead. The town is small with limited services. It is well off any main route, over an hour from Moose Jaw.

Nearby

Moose Jaw lies northeast; the Big Muddy is southeast.