Enjoy a bit of history with us. Town of Stettler DOWNTOWN HISTORICAL WALKING TOUR Walking Tour Inside this brochure you will find a map and a brief write up on some of the historical downtown sites in Stettler. We think you will find the tour most enjoyable.
Page 2 Table of Contents 1. The Body Mill Ltd. 2. Brennen Funeral Home 3. Royal Hotel 4. Sears Appliance Centre 5. Tom s Western and Work Wear 6. Johnson-Connor Agencies 7. Stettler Answering Service 8. H&R Block 9. Stettler Pool Hall 10. Wares Jewelers Ltd. 11. Fran s Flowers & Fudge 12. Royal Canadian Legion 13. Stettler Post Office 14. Heartland Promotions 15. Stettler United Church 16. Gazzola Home 17. Apollo Lodge The Old Town Water Tower was located where the Saan Store now stands. Town of Stettler Box 280 Stettler, AB T0C 2L0 403-742-8305 403-742-1404 (fax) stettler@townoffice.net
Page 18 17. Apollo Lodge Town of Stettler Page 3 1. The Body Mill Ltd. MASONIC HALL This hall was built in 1933. It is home to the following fraternities: Mason Lodge Apollo Lodge #27 A.F. & A.M. Grand Lodge of Alberta. Chartered in 1908, they meet the 3rd Thursday of each month except in July and August. Order of the Easter Star Victoria Chapter #14. Chartered in 1913, they met at Carter s Hall until this building was erected in 1933. The meetings are held on the 3rd Monday of each month except for July and August. Royal Arch Masons Lebanon Chapter #38. Chartered in 1964, they meet the 4th Thursday of each month except for July and August. This dwelling was constructed circa. 1905 by Mr. George R. farmer who owned the first hardware store in Stettler. It later became the Presbyterian Manse for many years. In the early 1920 s the house because the Mills Hospital, supervised by Dr. (Col) Archie Kennedy. The Mills Hospital is believed to be one of the first Hospitals to serve Stettler and the surrounding rural area. There are still many living residents in Stettler who were either born in or operated on in the house during its hospital years. In the late 1920 s the house reverted to a private dwelling. During the 1940 s it was owned by a well known school inspector, Wm E. Hay after whom the local High School was named. The house remained in the Hay family until 1971. Over the past 20 years, the house has continued to be occupied by various families in the community. The Bell s emigrated from South Africa in November of 1993. After interior renovations were completed the doors were opened to the public on February 17, 1994 as Bell s Tea House. The house was sold and reopened as the Body Mill Ltd. in December of 2001.
Page 4 2. Brennen Funeral Home Town of Stettler 16. Gazzola Home This building was home to the wife of Carl Stettler. More to come... Page 17 This building was one of the 1 st Churches constructed in the Town of Stettler. The year was 1906 when The Knox Presbyterian Faith built it. This original portion of the building still exists today as the front Chapel portion of the Funeral Home. In 1925 the Church was sold to the Stettler Baptist Congregation. It became available to them due to the union of the Methodist and Presbyterian congregations, which marked the beginning of the Stettler United Church. During the next 22 years major renovations took place. A basement was placed under the church in 1947, the sanctuary was expanded in 1954, the entrance enlarged in 1964 and a two story Christian Education wing was added in 1969. John Brennen added the garage portion of the present building in 1978 when he purchased the church and moved his business, Brennen Funeral Home, from its smaller location on Main Street. In the fall of 1978 the building was restuccoed due to vandalism but no structural changes were made. The original pews from the Baptist Congregation are still in use today. Brennen Funeral Home has endeavored to keep in use many of the original items from the building hoping to preserve its history.
Page 16 15. Stettler United Church Town of Stettler Page 5 3. Royal Hotel This location was originally the sight of a Swedish Lutheran Church built in 1906. This church was destroyed by fire and the United Church of Canada subsequently purchased the property. The original sanctuary was dedicated to the Glory of God in January 1928. This united the Presbyterian and Methodist congregations. The sanctuary was then enlarged to seat 250 in 1952. The Casavant Memorial Pipe Organ was dedicated in 1955. In 1967 the Christian Education wing was added to enhance the community focused ministry of the Stettler Congregation of the United Church of Canada. MAL DAV HOLDINGS Liquor licenses, containing the names of all the owner/managers of this hotel, can be found on site dating all the way back to the 1925 s. John Good was the first recorded owner. The present owner, Mac and Trudy Richards have been with the hotel since May 1, 1978. In 1946 Edward Ambrose Hart, one of the owners of the hotel, had the foresight to build his own residence nearby and in such a fashion as to house the overflow from the Hotel.. Heavy Tamarack posts were used as the foundation for this well built hotel. Tamarack posts are made of extremely hard wood and although not pressure treated they remain strong and rot free for many years. They can still be found holding the building secure and upright. A large addition was added to the building in 1983. The Royal Hotel is still going strong today.
Page 6 4. Sears Appliance Centre Town of Stettler 14. Heartland Promotions Inc. Page 15 Vern Richardson, a local plumber, constructed the original building in 1925. Richardson ran his business from the main floor and was responsible for the training of many early Stettler Plumbers. Dr. Wright was a dentist who had offices on the top floor of the building. Built in 1915, Jacobson and Petherbridge ran J & P Foods. This grocery store was fondly referred to as the jump and push. G & H Foods also operated from this site and was a great asset to our community. Jimmy s Hardware previously occupied the corner lot by the alley to the south of the J & P Foods building. A Town resident would have no problem finding that elusive item in those 3000 square feet of store space. As well, there were three suites upstairs. Over the years, this building has changed hands a number of times. Many different types of businesses operated in the building including The House of Beauty and its current owner/occupant, Heartland Promotions Inc. In 1986 the building was demolished and a new building added onto the existing Home Hardware building effectively making this into one property. Currently the property is a Sears Appliance Centre.
Page 14 13. Stettler Post Office OWNER JORDAC BUILDING CORPORATION Constructed in 1954, the Town of Stettler had a new post office. Jim McQuarry was the first postmaster in the new offices. The building was also the home of the Stettler RCMP detachment. One side of the top floor housed the living quarters for the Sergeant as well as sleeping quarters for other officers. The jail cells were located in the building as well. The notorious Robert Raymond Cook spent plenty of time in these cells before he was transferred to Ponoka for assessment. In the basement of the building is a bomb shelter. It is a small room, which remains stocked with water and rations. Also located in the basement was the RCMP firing range. Town of Stettler Page 7 5. Tom s Western and Work Wear This building was constructed in 1920 and was owned by the Randon Family. History indicates that Mr. Adam s then owned it from 1922 to 1925 at which time it was sold to Basil Armstrong. Previously occupied by Robinson Stores, David Melvin purchased this building in 1976 and moved Mel s Shoes, which had been located further down the street, to this location. Many of Stettler s residents remember getting ready for the first day of school by taking a visit to Mel s Shoes. Although the business has changed hands over the years, good quality shoes and accessories are still purchased in this historical building. 6. Johnson Connor Agencies Built in 1909, this building was the original home of the Stettler Medical Clinic. Over the years it housed a number of downtown businesses including Lou s Fashions, Grahams Jewelers and currently Johnson-Connor Insurance Agency. We are proud to be in one of Stettler s original Main Street Buildings.
Page 8 7. Stettler Telephone Answering Service Town of Stettler Page 13 12. Royal Canadian Legion OWNER ERNIE & ANNA SHIRREFF This downtown office building was constructed in 1907. The main floor was later occupied by a Real Estate Agency run by Mr. Ernie Salt. This was also a dry cleaning outlet and Men s Clothing store. Prior to the 1950 s the upstairs of the building housed the law firm of Bennett and Feir. Mr. Feir left his practice to join the military and upon his return to the law practice he was appointed a Judge in Lethbridge. He later became the Chief Judge for the south half of the Province of Alberta. In 1954 the law office of Legg and Sloan took over the building. They stayed in partnership until Mr. Legg moved to Edmonton to become a Magistrate. At that time Mr. MacNaughton joined the firm. Constructed in 1955 this building was the original home of Jenkins Groceteria. After being purchased by Stettler & District Investors, the building was converted into a recreation center including a bowling alley and pool hall. Clark Burlingham, the Town s first recreation director, was instrumental in establishing this Rec Center. In 1973 the Royal Canadian Legion #59 converted the building to a dining room and canteen. They purchased the building in 1976. Major renovations were completed in the early 1980 s. The Legion began leasing the restaurant portion of the building to private operators. They currently operate the whole building. Building renovations were completed in 1984. The current owners took up residence in 1997 as Stettler Telephone Answering Service.
Page 12 11. Fran s Flower & Fudge Town of Stettler Page 9 8. H&R Block The year on this building is 1938. As far as memory serves, Town Historians recall this as the home of a butcher shop, a car dealership and an insurance agent. B.J. Johnson Sr. operated his business here. When his son took over the business, a partnership was formed and Johnson-Connor Agencies became one of Stettler s prominent insurance agencies. They continue to serve the community. In 1994 the building was sold and the Flower Boutique relocated to this site. The wonderful smell of flowers and fudge is always welcome on Main Street. OWNER HARRY & MILDRED LONG This building was constructed in 1952. The original owner of the building was James Davis who ran an accounting firm from the location. He sold the business to an up and coming accounting firm who is now well known in Stettler as Gitzel, Krejci, Dand & Peterson. The original duo of Gitzel & Krejci rented the building until 1963 when they relocated to new offices. Ed Gibson purchased the building and rented it to the local school board office. After the school board moved, the building was rented to the new Stettler radio station. Q14 continues to deliver wonderful country music and up to date news to the community. The building was once again sold in 1979 and renovated to house Penny s Knit Shop. Currently the building is home to H&R Block.
Page 10 9. Stettler Pool Hall Town of Stettler Page 11 10. Ware s Jewellers Ltd. OWNER JOAN HEUER John Opitz built this structure in 1920. Many older gentlemen around town tell you stories of the exciting events which could be found taking place inside the local Pool Hall. Along with a good time you could receive a wonderful trim from the resident barber. Along the north wall a large buffalo head hung on the wall. In 1924 Star Bowling lanes were located in the basement. A large addition was built onto the back of the building at this time. The lanes were mounted overtop of slate which was laid as the floor. At this time there was a common basement building beneath the pool hall and the Club Café next door. Young boys were hired to reset the pins and were paid $.05 per game Jenkins Groceteria constructed this building in 1950 after one of Main Streets infamous fires, which claimed many buildings over the years. In 1956 Jenkins sold the building to John Ware, a local jeweler. After some renovations to the building, he relocated his business from down the street. Ware s Jewellers occupied half of the main floor. A wall was built down the middle of the store and the Betty Shop leased the other half of the main floor. The Betty Shop spent 20 years in this building. Five offices were also set up in the basement of the building. These were leased to 2 hairdressers, the Fish and Game Board, Manpower Office and a Cemetery Plot sales office (referred to as the Graveyard Man). The upstairs of the building was residential living space. In 1958 a large exterior neon sign was erected. Mr Ware had written a letter to Rolex asking for assistance with the sign costs. Rolex agreed with the proposal and a company out of Calgary supplied the sign. The residents of Stettler have depended on this accurate time-