Editing Exshaw (section)

== History ==
Sir [[Sanford Fleming]] named Exshaw after his son-in-law, [[E. William Exshaw]] (15 February 1866, [[Bordeaux]] – 16 March 1927; of Anglo-Irish descent; and [[Sailing at the 1900 Summer Olympics – 2 to 3 ton|sailing]] Olympic gold medalist at the Paris 1900 Summer Olympics), who with Fleming helped establish the Western Canada Cement and Coal Company. William Exshaw visited in 1908 when a banquet was held in his honour by the staff of WCC&C.

Robert D. Hassan, an American mechanical engineer, was hired in 1906 to build a mill in Exshaw, Alberta for the Western Canada Cement and Coal Company. He was assisted in building the plant by [[Alexander Graham Christie]]. In 1911, the plant was acquired by the [[Canada Cement Company]].

Although the original cement plant was further west, the community has had a large plant for many years.

In the 1970s, a portion of Exshaw was demolished – 47 homes, a church, and a school – to make way for expansion of the cement plant.<ref name=Lafarge>{{cite web | url=https://www.lafargeexshaw.ca/lafarge-exshaw-plant-history | title=Our History | publisher=Lafarge | accessdate=September 28, 2024}}</ref>