Bragg Creek's Round Hall to hold big 100th anniversary bash

BRAGG CREEK - One of Bragg Creek’s most historic buildings, The Round Hall, is celebrating 100 years this month with two big events – a dance with a live band on Sept. 16 and a more subdued evening a couple of weeks later for those wanting to share some memories on Oct. 1.

First up will be the dance at the Round Hall with a 50s retro band, which will be a fairly close approximation of the Saturday night dances locals enjoyed for decades.

Barbara Teghtmeyer, who Bragg Creekers know as the owner of the Trading Post (and the Round Hall) is looking forward to welcoming people back to the hall for the dance Sept. 16.

There is no charge for tickets, but Teghtmeyer’s invite comes with a small request.

“Bring your stories as we look forward to hearing them, and then please RSVP,” she said.

The Swamp Donkey Musical Theatre Society will provide the food for the dance (hot dogs, just like in the ‘old days’) and they need a head count.

Teghtmeyer’s mother, Mary Elsdon, came to Bragg Creek in 1938, where she met her husband Jack.

Teghtmeyer met her husband Robb in Bragg Creek as well, in fact, at the Round Hall.

She said they’re going to have a small box set up at the door, where people can deposit a dollar, which is what the admission was back in the 70s.

“It started off at 50 cents and then it went to 75 and then to a dollar.”

All the proceeds will go to the Swamp Donkey society.

Teghtmeyer plans to have the band take an intermission to allow for some rest and mingling.

“I'm not renting tables and chairs, so people will have to dance or sit on the benches,” she said.

She added that the dance will be a nice wrap-up to the Arts, Eats and Beats Festival, which ends at 6 pm that day.

“It’s my invitation to the community to have a fun evening,” Teghtmeyer explained.

To register for the head count, email [email protected] or call 403-949-3737.

The Round Hall is located at 52 Bracken Road in Bragg Creek.

The second event Teghtmeyer is organizing to celebrate the 100 year milestone will also take place at the Round Hall on October 1, featuring the Wardens, a musical group that she described as “hilarious.”

They’re made up of former and present wardens from Banff National Park. 

“They're singing and telling stories about their experiences and they have a slide show showing some predicaments in the back country,” she said. “Anyone who has seen the wardens is usually hooked.”

Jake Fullerton built the hall in 1923. In the 1920s, ‘30s and ‘40s, people often came to the dances on horseback, sometimes sleeping overnight in a nearby hayloft. The kerosene lamps of that bygone era are still in place however, dating back to before electric power came to Bragg Creek in 1957.

For decades, the Round Hall was the social hub of the community – school Christmas concerts, fundraisers, polling station during elections, birthday parties, and even a belly dancing class were all hosted there.

Judy Norman from the Bragg Creek Historical Society said the Round Hall was the centre of the community for years.

“Everyone in the whole district from Cochrane to Millarville to Calgary would come out, and many boys and girls met their future wives and husbands there, and it was just always a gathering place because at the time we didn't have a community hall,” Norman said.

In those days, all ages attended the dances, Norman said.

“They had a cloak room, so if your children were small, you'd go to get your coat and be stepping over all these kids sleeping on the floor,” she said.

The single men would lean up against the cloak room, and usually it was the girls who asked the boys to dance, as the boys were “just all eyeballs,” she said.

But perhaps the most resourceful practice took place on the mornings after the dances.

Since alcohol wasn’t allowed inside, it was common for imbibers to sneak out to the parking lot for a nip. If the police showed up, the rule-breakers would scamper down to the creek to hide their beer.

The next morning, Norman and her teenage friends would ride along the creek on horseback, with a ready supply of chilled beer awaiting their rescue.

Following the Wardens performance on Oct. 1 at 2 pm, The Bragg Creek Historical Society will provide refreshments. 

Tickets are $20, available at the Trading Post.