For three-quarters of a century, it has been home to dances, wedding receptions, movie nights and just about every other type of gathering one might expect in a small community.
And to mark the Bearberry Community Hall's 75th anniversary this year, the society that operates the hall is calling on anyone who has enjoyed a laugh, a song or a game of whist at the facility over the years to come together and share their experiences at a celebration on September 6 and 7.
According to the Bearberry Community website, the aim of the event is to “reconnect the Pioneer Families, their descendants, other former residents and people (that) call Bearberry home today.”
“If you wish, bring your story or old pictures you would like to share,” the site states.
Edna Bakken, a member of the Wapitana Society, which oversees the hall, said the hall has for decades served as a focal point for its surrounding community.
“It is about the only thing that we have that is common, because Bearberry is not a residential area,” she said. “It's all farms and acreages. So the only thing that is there is the Bearberry Saloon or the hall.”
But the facility being celebrated this summer is not the first Bearberry Community Hall.
Bakken said the original hall was built just south of Bearberry, a small, unincorporated community northwest of Sundre, in 1913 when community members came together to establish a facility for gatherings.
It was built on Hans Hermanson's homesteader property and Bakken said with a large Scottish population in the area, the hall was used for dances, card games and Robert Burns celebrations and was likely about half the size of the current hall.
By 1939, the community determined the aging hall was in need of many repairs.
“And rather than repair it, they thought they should build a new one,” Bakken said.
The old hall was torn down and, using some of the materials from the original building, work on the new hall was carried out in 1939.
In January 1940 the community held its first meeting in the new hall, which is located near the junction of Highway 584 and Rge. Rd. 72 A northwest of Sundre.
It would be roughly another quarter-century until the hall was wired for electricity and the Bearberry Wapitana Society became responsible for the hall in 1960.
According to a report from 1963, the capacity of the hall at that time was 205 people.
Bakken said one of the first major expansions of the hall happened in 1960s when a school near the facility was moved and attached to the rear of the hall after the busing of schoolchildren to Sundre began.
Over the years, she added, the hall was used for every type of function including turkey suppers, Christmas concerts and movie nights.
“All kinds of things that people would do in a community when they want to get together.”
And even when people were cash-strapped, the community came together to make sure a good time could still be found at the hall.
“The dances, sometimes when times were tough, the orchestra just got a thank you in their lunch at the dance,” Bakken said. “They didn't even get paid. But they did keep coming back.”
Right now, organizers of the 75th anniversary gala are trying to find descendents of people involved in the founding of the hall in order to invite them to the festivities.
“And we're down to great-grandchildren in some cases,” Bakken said, adding the event is open to everyone.
Along with the anniversary gala, the society is holding a re-enactment on August 23 and 24 of the wagon ride settlers made when travelling to Bearberry to draw attention to the hall's 75th anniversary celebration.
Both events will take place at the hall and its grounds and in the Bearberry Heritage and Arts Centre.
Ingrid Mayr, an event organizer with the society, said the society intends to collect stories and other information during the celebration from the community's pioneers and current and former residents and money raised from the event will go towards historical research.
“Funds will be used for activities like finding out who homesteaded and owned a property in the Bearberry area over time,” she said in an email. “The goal is to create a historical document. The finished documentation will be part of our Heritage and Arts Centre and a lot of the gathered and compiled information will be made available online for future generations.”
One other motivation behind the 75th anniversary festivities “is the revitalization of community spirit through activities for all residents,” Mayr said.
For more information, including schedules, about the historic wagon ride and the anniversary weekend, visit http://www.bearberrycommunity.com/events.html or call 403-638-4443.
"Rather than repair it, they thought they should build a new one."Edna BakkenWapitana Society
