It was in Calgary, Alta. where Keith Lee uncovered a little sliver of Humboldt's history.
Carefully chipping away at the thick, worn- out paint on a 1958 Volkswagen single cab, he saw it.
The words "Humboldt Co-op" were staring him in the face.
With just a handy razor blade, Lee had chiseled back to nearly 60 years ago.
Lee, a collector and aficionado of vintage Volkswagen models, first heard about the '58 single cab through a friend.
His friend was at a storage yard in Saskatoon seven years ago when he spotted the late 1950s model, as well as a '62.
His friend, also a die-hard collector of the cars, bought both but soon came across an even rarer find - a 1955 version - at a farm auction.
So, he offered up the rusted, paint-chipped '58 to his buddy, Lee, for free.
Of course, Lee accepted.
"It was a rusted hunk of junk when I got it," Lee laughs. "Had probably sat in a field for years."
Words like "Campers" and "Trailers" in faded yellow font were discernible on the side gates.
From what Lee could tell, the cab was last used by Sportsman Campers, probably to shuffle around campers on their site.
But that was a long, long time ago. It was clear the cab hadn't been more than a shell of itself for decades.
With other vintage cars to restore in his downtime, Lee, a mechanical engineer by profession, didn't get around to the old '58 beat-up cab until 2010.
"I had actually left it in my mother-in-law's garage for a few years," Lee says. "But I finally had time to work on it, so I figured ok, here we go. Let's do this."
It was quite the project.
Lee spent 16 hours on each side gate, using a dull razor blade to chip away at the layers of hand-painted logos. Because the paint was thick, it was easier to pop off, revealing the next layer underneath.
Eventually, he was able to make out the message in the side gates: "Owned by the members it serves!"
Spending another eight to 10 hours on the front door, revealing the Humboldt Co-op logo, Lee, a lifelong resident of Alberta, knew he had found a time capsule in Western Canada's history.
"It was probably used as a delivery truck for groceries, dry goods, hardware, that sort of thing," Lee says.
After spending even more time polishing up his new baby, which he affectionately calls Daisy, and getting quite a tune-up, Lee was eager to get it on the road for a special event: the annual O.C.T.O. (Orange County Transporter Organization) meet in Long Beach, Calif. for vintage Volkswagen buses.
Lee goes every year.
Driving down from Calgary, it's about a two-week trip, with Lee even making a pit stop in Las Vegas, Nev. where he was able to snap a photo of Daisy sitting outside the retro-looking Palms apartment complex.
For just a brief few minutes, she fit right in, back in the era she came from.
But Lee is more than happy that Daisy sticks out like a sore thumb among the sleek two-doors and SUVs on the road today.
"Oh, she's jaw-dropping, that's for sure," Lee chuckles.
He takes Daisy out for spins often, even using her in his own job when he needs to load up the back.
And, needless to say, the classic cab gets many second-takes and honks of acknowledgements, even thumbs-up from Calgary's other drivers.
"There's a certain 'Je ne sais quoi' about her," he says.
But it's probable that seeing Daisy chugging along the streets of Calgary warms a little nostalgia in the hearts of Canada's western residents, those that grew up shopping at the local Co-op, maybe even using their delivery service.
It's part of the reason Lee feels such a kinship to the obsolete cab.
"My dad's parents were very active in the Co-op movement in Nipawin," Lee says.
After all the arduous work he put into restoring Daisy back to her glory days, Lee is still marveled at how smooth the single cab runs and the remarkable condition she's in for an old broad.
"Cars nowadays can run for 20 years if you take care of them. But back then, a car's lifespan was about 10 years maximum. She probably burnt out around the late '60s," he says.
Lee, who also owns a 1961 Volkswagen bus, hopes to get Daisy down to Humboldt for a visit in the near future, so she can be among the streets and sights that she belonged to long ago.
"She was definitely a diamond in the rough," Lee says.
A daisy among weeds.
