Rocanville Saskatchewan logo from town website rocanville.ca
Canadian Can Do!
Rocanville, SK
This Roadside Attraction coffee is a tribute to the hard work and entrepreneurial spirit of the folks in Rocanville Saskatchewan - home to the largest oiling can in the world.
“What’s an oiling can?”
Also known as oilers, and oil cans, oiling cans are containers to hold oil for lubricating engine parts and other equipment.
Rocanville’s giant oil can is a tribute to the local Symons Oiler factory which produced over 1 million oil cans during WWII.
In 1924 a local entrepreneur, Ernie Symons, began mass-production in Rocanville of an oil can that he designed for use on farm and industrial machinery. Symons Oilers proved to be the best of their kind, and a small shop turned into a factory.
During World War II, the oil cans were greatly in demand for the maintenance of aircraft, tanks, and other military equipment. By the end of the war, over ONE MILLION Symons Oilers had been produced at the Rocanville plant.
On July 1, 1973, the community honoured Ernie Symons for 50 continuous years in business: the day was proclaimed Symons Day, and a giant-scale model oiler was erected at the east entrance to the town.
After Symons’ death, the factory was purchased by another company, which changed the oil can’s design. Unfortunately, it proved unsuccessful and the plant folded in the late 1980s.
According to our sources*, Rocanville is also known for crop circles.
Does the giant oil can act as a beacon to extraterrestrials? Do aliens stop by, hoping to solve that pesky squeak on the ship with a few drops from the giant can? We think more investigation is needed. And a bold coffee.
* Sources: Wikipedia, Town of Rocanville, Virtual Saskatchewan
Rocanville is VERY close to the Manitoba border and just a short hop off the highway. Worth taking a detour to!
Crop circles were found in Rocanville in 1996. Was it visited by aliens?
The Roadside Attraction Coffee Series
The Roadside Attraction series of seasonal coffees celebrates our love for coffee, for road trips, and for Canada by creating limited edition coffees named for and inspired by Canadian Roadside Attractions.
Wach one is a limited edition, around for only a few weeks so try it out while you can!
Canadian Can Do! with Rocanville’s Oil Can on its label, is made from an organic coffee from Chiapas, MEXICO, dark roasted to bring out smoky, bittersweet chocolate flavours with just a touch of cinnamon and orange.
Enjoy this coffee and dream of your next road trip!
Hear about our next seasonal coffee and other coffee news: