Description of Historic Place

Eason’s Grove is a Municipal Heritage Property located on a small bluff within the Wood River Valley in the Rural Municipality of Gravelbourg No. 104. The property is located about 15 kilometres north-east of the Town of Gravelbourg. It features an open grassy field with trees on its outside edges and includes the remains of a baseball diamond.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of Eason’s Grove lies in its use for more than 50 years as a recreation spot and meeting place for residents of the Gravelbourg district. Eason’s Grove was typical of the locations used by early settlers for recreation purposes prior to the establishment of formal parks and recreation sites by governments in later decades. Pioneer immigrants began using the site for recreation shortly after the area was opened to settlement in 1907. The property’s large, open grassy field, its position in the Wood River Valley, which provided access to water and trees, made it an ideal location for picnics. Due to its frequent usage, a baseball diamond was built on the south side of the property and both organized and pick-up games were played there. Political party meetings and meetings of local farmers’ groups also occasionally took place at Eason’s Grove. On weekends during the 1940s and 1950s, farmers from as far away as Limerick would charge local young people a small fare to transport them in grain trucks to Eason’s Grove. Unlike many similar early recreation spots, Eason’s Grove was never established by any level of government as a formal park or recreation site. As a result, by the 1960s, use began to decline as residents started patronizing the facilities established in formal park systems. Eason’s Grove is no longer used for recreation purposes and has been converted to pasture-land by a local farmer.

Source:

Rural Municipality of Gravelbourg No. 104 Bylaw 4/81.

Character-Defining Elements

The heritage value of Eason’s Grove resides in the following character-defining elements:
-those elements that reflect the property's former uses as a recreation spot and meeting place, such as its location in the Wood River Valley, the presence of trees and the open grassy field, as well as the remains of the baseball diamond.