Heritage Character Statement
A Complex Of Utilitarian Structures For; Water Tower, Power Plant, Laundry, And Carpenter's Shop. The Power Plant And Laundry Are Designed In Keeping With The Edwardian Commercial Style And Feature; Brick Construction, Double Hung Wood Windows, Simplified Cornice, And Prominent Smoke Stack. The Water Tower Is Wood Frame And Features; Octagonal Plan, Heavy Timber Structure Clad In Drop Siding, And Timber Water Tank. The Carpenter's Shop Is Wood Frame And Features A Pyramidal Roof With Cupola. The Water Tower Is A Prominent Visual Landmark In The Community.
Summary History
Lacombe Home Is The Historic Name For A Site And Complex Of Buildings In Midnapore, A Settlement Originally Known As Fish Creek And Annexed To Calgary In 1961. Lacombe Home Was First Developed In 1909-10 As An Orphanage, School, And Home For The Aged. Since 1999, The 35-Acre Site Has Been The Campus Of St. Mary's University College, A Post-Secondary Liberal Arts And Science Institution. The Site And Complex Has Strong Associations With Roman Catholic Personalities, Organizations And Institutions. The Site And Its Historic Buildings Were Declared A Provincial Historic Resource On February 14, 1979. It Is Situated On A Rise Of Land East Of Macleod Trail, And Has Been A Highly Visual Landmark For Nearly A Century.
Like Most Of Southern Alberta, The Subject Property Was Covered Under Treaty #7 Of 1877, Which Extinguished Aboriginal Title. John Glenn (1833-1886), A Roman Catholic Settler And U.s. Civil War Veteran, Established A Pioneer Farm At Fish Creek (Later Renamed Midnapore) That Included The Future Lacombe Home Site.
Calgary Rancher Patrick Burns (1856-1937) Bought Glenn's Farm In 1905, Adding It To His Own Considerable Holdings.
In 1909, At The Request Of Father Albert Lacombe (1827-1916), Burns Donated 200 Acres - Which Included The Two-Acre St. Patrick's Site - To Les Soueurs De Cherité De La Providence (Sisters Of Providence) For The Development Of The Lacombe Home.
The Original, Main Building Was Expanded In 1921, 1955 And 1966. It Was Heavily Vandalized In The Late 1960's And Early 1970's. The Historical Portions Of The Building Were Destroyed By Fire On April 1, 1999. The Remaining Historic Buildings Covered Under The Provincial Designation Include:
-A Cottage With A Cupola, Presumed To Have Been Built In 1909 On The Present Site Of The Power House. The Cottage Was Relocated To Its Present Site North Of The Water Tower By The Late 1920's.
-A Two-Storey Brick Laundry Plant With A Full Basement, Built Circa 1913. The Second Floor Was Converted Into Two Classrooms Circa 1914. Around 1924, The Classrooms Were Replaced By Housing For Ambulatory Aged Men Who Resided At Lacombe Home. The Space Again Became Classrooms In The 1940's. The Laundry Equipment Was Updated In 1944. A Commercial Tenant, Village Ceramics, Occupied The Main Floor From The 1980's Until Around 2001.
-A Wooden Water Tower Was Constructed Circa 1920 And Repaired In 1926.
Earn 10 points!
Photo: Image from historicplaces.ca (http://www.historicplaces.ca/hpimages/Thumbnails/16339_Medium.Jpg)