Exploring Alberta's Past
Written by: Fraser Shaw, Heritage Conservation Advisor Paskapoo sandstone has been maligned for poor durability, compared to Indiana limestone and sandstones from Ohio or Spain that have been used for conservation projects in Alberta. But to be fair to our homegrown sandstone, masonry in general suffers in Alberta’s climate and in the intense sunlight, drying … Read more Sandstone Conservation in Chinook Country
Written by: Fraser Shaw, Heritage Conservation Advisor Recently, I visited the Maccoy Homestead in High River after seven long years of flood repairs and conservation. Nestled in Sheppard Family Park near the south edge of High River, this was the farm and home of well-known local resident Ruth Maccoy for over 70 years. Upon her … Read more A cherished High River landmark reemerges
Editor’s note: Welcome to the final post in a series of blog posts developed with municipalities in mind who either have or are considering undertaking Municipal Historic Resource designation. In this post, we will discuss how the evaluation of a historic resource at the provincial and municipal level may result in complimentary or differing heritage … Read more Municipal Historic Resource designation refresher series: Provincial Historic Resources and Municipal Historic Resources
Editor’s note: You can read more of Fraser Shaw’s series on heritage conservation on RETROactive. Written by: Fraser Shaw, Heritage Conservation Advisor Gunshots shattered the stillness of 18 Avenue in Coleman on the afternoon of September 21, 1922. Local bootlegger Emilio Picariello and his accomplice Florence Lassandro sped off in a cloud of dust as Constable … Read more Revival of a Prohibition-Era Landmark in the Crowsnest Pass
Editor’s note: If you’re interested in other restoration projects by the government’s Heritage Conservation Advisers, read about the conservation of Circle L Ranch. Written by: Fraser Shaw, Heritage Conservation Adviser Designated a Provincial Historic Resource in 2013, the Taber Courthouse presides over a quiet park just off Taber’s main street. The building’s stately arched entryway speaks … Read more Restoration of the Taber Courthouse
Written by: Fraser Shaw, Heritage Conservation Advisor If you’ve ever driven down the beautiful Cowboy Trail, chances are you’ve driven by at least a few historic ranches. Some of these ranches, like Bar U and E.P., have been operating for over a hundred years. Another of those ranches is the Circle L Ranch, started by a … Read more The conservation of Circle L Ranch
Located on a quiet residential street in Redcliff, Alberta, St. Ambrose Anglican Church is distinguished by its buttressed brick masonry exterior, steeply-pitched gable roof and pointed arch windows. These characteristics strongly identify the 1914 church with the Gothic Revival style popular in the Victorian era for ecclesiastical architecture in England, a style also eagerly adopted … Read more A New Roof for St. Ambrose Church
Historic places are unfortunately fair game for graffiti attacks – sometimes especially so when these places are visible and widely recognized landmarks. Defined as writing or drawings scribbled, scratched, or painted illicitly onto walls and other surfaces, graffiti from a heritage conservation perspective is an intervention to be removed or reversed. It clearly differs from … Read more Dealing with Graffiti at Historic Places
The historic downtown of Fort Macleod, one of two Provincial Historic Areas in the province, is well known for its impressive commercial buildings of brick and sandstone masonry. Collectively, these Classical Revival buildings exemplify an Edwardian commercial streetscape just prior to the First World War. One of the main street’s crown jewels is the Empress … Read more In Search of Historic Colours: The Empress Theatre Marquee
Peeling paint and powdering plaster were the first indications something was amiss at the Blairmore Courthouse, a Provincial Historic Resource in the Crowsnest Pass. A leak in the cedar shingle roof, replaced just the previous year, was immediately suspected. Detailing around the dormers in particular, part of the 1922 building’s distinctive Spanish Colonial Revival design … Read more The Butterfly Effect
