There are several theories about the origins of the name, Fife Lake – a freshwater body located 73.2 kilometres south of Assiniboia.
Some believed the lake was named after the County of Fife in Scotland. Others said the lake’s name came from a Scottish engineer named Fyfe. Further speculations suggested the lake’s title arose since there are five smaller lakes making up the larger lake, resulting in Fife (or five) Lake.
One of the more colourful theories about the lake’s name origins came from a story about four brothers named McDonald from Scotland who settled in the area in 1888.
According to this legend, the brothers often played their bagpipes at the lake and the sounds of their fifes resonated throughout the South Central Saskatchewan community.
Still, another notion about the lake’s designation suggested the lake was christened after Jeremiah Fyffe of the North-West Mounted Police. Fyffe joined the police force in Calgary in 1881 and served in southern Saskatchewan until July 1903. The Irish-born officer was known for his patrols throughout the Fife Lake district on horseback.
Rockin Beach Park on Fife Lake has been a local tourist draw for many years. The park was closed this year on September 15 with the power and water turned off after another season.
Rockin Beach is located on the south shore of the Fife Lake – the beach is 9.3 kilometres east of Rockglen on Highway 18. The park run by a non-profit offers camping, league baseball games, fishing, boating, a fish filleting station, camping, water sports and team sport amenities.
Future additions will include a boat wash, reunion site rentals, Quonset rentals, portable washrooms and showers.
Many noteworthy events have been held at the lakefront park. A Saskatchewan Wheat Pool Rally was held at Rockin Beach – then known as Grant’s Beach – on June 10, 1946.
Baseball diamonds are a special feature at Rockin Beach with ball games being an essential draw to the park. An article from the Moose Jaw Times Herald in July 9, 1955 read “Close to the entire population of the community turns out to watch the baseball team’s home games and a large turnout of hometown fans is in evidence at the out-of-town games, whether they are played in Moose Jaw, or nearby Rockin Beach at Fife Lake,” (Gathering of Memories, p. 52).
Fife Lake was known for having notable Walleye fishery until the lake began to dry up in the 1990s. Since the latter part of the 2000s, the lake’s water levels began to recover and the fish were restored
“When the lake began to fill again in 2011, the Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation began doing water quality assessments on the lake to see if Fife could potentially become a fishery once more, and in spring 2016, 200,000 walleye were introduced to the lake.” (Chelsea Walters, Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation, December 5, 2018).
Earlier, the Water Security Agency noted the water level changes in the lake were related to coal mining operations 21 kilometres southeast of the lake near Coronach. According to the WSA, the hydrograph for WSA Fife Lake exhibited periodic variations of water levels measuring from a few centimetres to over half a metre. Seasonal measurement limits occurred in the spring with the lowest levels recorded in the autumn and early winter seasons.
Starting in 1983, the WSA hydrograph showed a steady decline of water levels lasting until 1993. Water levels stabilized after 1993 then nearly recovered, although they were still well below the levels measured in the mid-1970s and early 80s.
Fife Lake highest recorded water level in 1979 measured nearly 802.7 metres. Fife Lake’s lowest level of 800 metres transpired from measurements completed in 1993.
Following low levels recorded in 2009 and 2010, the lake’s water levels improved by over a metre to about 801.4 metres thereafter.
