Description of Historic Place

The Girvin Pump House is a Municipal Heritage Property located on a 380-square metre parcel of land near the railway tracks in the Village of Girvin. The property features a small, red vernacular pump house constructed in 1906.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of the Girvin Pump House resides in its association with the early development of the area. Built to provide water for horses that hauled grain to Girvin, the townspeople also used its water for laundering. The tower portion of this building is a smaller version of the traditional railway water towers that were common across the prairies. An attached pump house was a later addition; this housed an engine that operated the pump, which filled a large tank in the top of the tower. Water was released to a trough at the front of the building by pulling a rope. Eventually, the pump house went out of regular use when horses were no longer the standard transportation for hauling grain. A village landmark, the pump house continues to be valued by the community. It is the only known structure of its kind in Saskatchewan.

Source:

Village of Girvin Bylaw No. 3-94.

Character-Defining Elements

The heritage value of the Girvin Pump House resides in the following character-defining elements:
-those features that reflect its railway-influenced architecture, such as its octagonal shape with gable roof, its materials and forms, including its wood construction and shingles, windows, and doorway;
-those features that illustrate its vernacular construction, including the pump house addition with gable roof and lean-to, the pulley system extending through the centre of the addition, the lightening rod, and the red colour;
-its original location on the edge of the village.