Description of Historic Place

The Stable, Building 6 is located at Fort Walsh National Historic Site of Canada. The log structure has a long, rectangular design, small regularly placed, high windows along the sidewalls, and a double door. Wooden roof ventilators top the gabled roof and the exterior of the structure is painted white. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

Heritage Value

The Stable, Building 6 is a Recognized Federal Heritage Building because of its historical associations, and its architectural and environmental values.

Historical Value:
The Stable, Building 6 is a very good example of a structure associated with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), with their symbolic importance in 20th-century Canada and with the force’s equestrian tradition. For 25 years, the structure served as the principal stable for the RCMP’s horse breeding operation, until its move to Pakenham, Ontario in 1968. The present structure is a conjectural representation of 1870s vernacular architecture reminiscent of the original Fort Walsh era, and is one of the ‘historic shells’ built at Fort Walsh. The federal government designated Fort Walsh a national historic site of Canada 1972.

Architectural Value:
The Stable, Building 6 is valued for its good aesthetic design. The structure, which attempts to replicate 1870’s vernacular architecture, displays elements of the rustic style including regular log diameters, the gable and purlin log construction, and fully intersecting cross walls. The interior layout, with single standing stalls, arranged along opposing walls, and a central combined driveway/feed alley, proved to be of good functional design. Roof ventilators further point to the structure’s function, while the small high windows and double doors express good craftsmanship.

Environmental Value:
The Stable, Building 6 6 reinforces the historic character of Fort Walsh National Historic Site of Canada and is a familiar landmark to residents and to visitors.

Sources: James de Jonge, Ten Buildings, Fort Walsh National Historic Park, Saskatchewan, Federal Heritage Buildings Review Office Report 88-068; Stable/Building No. 6, Fort Walsh National Historic Site, Saskatchewan, Heritage Character Statement 88-068

Character-Defining Elements

The following character-defining elements of the Stable, Building 6 should be respected.

Its simple aesthetics, very good functional design and very good quality materials and craftsmanship, for example:
-the simple, single-storey massing of the long, rectangular building;
-the gable roof, the purlins, and the wooden roof ventilators;
-the exterior walls of regular diameter peeled logs;
-the double door at the south gable end and the small high windows;
-the interior configuration, with a central combined driveway and feed alley that serves the stalls.

The manner in which the Stable, Building 6 reinforces the historic character of the fort and is a well-known local landmark, as evidenced by:
-its simple design and rustic materials that harmonize with the other buildings and within the historic fort setting;
-its role as an important component of the group of structures from the Fort Walsh National Historic Site of Canada complex that makes it familiar to locals and visitors.