Description of Historic Place

Lions Community Hall is a Municipal Heritage Property located on one civic lot in the Town of Rosthern. The property features a vernacular, one-storey, stucco-clad building constructed in 1927, with a 1977 addition.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of the Lions Community Hall resides in its use as a meeting hall for community groups in Rosthern, beginning with the Free Masons. From 1899 until 1905, before they had enough members to form their own Lodge, Rosthern's Masons met with the nearby Duck Lake Lodge and were an active part of its affairs. By 1905, with enough members to form their own Lodge, they were granted a dispensation to organize Rosthern Lodge #22. Its meetings took place in various temporary locations until 1927, when the Lodge appointed a building committee to obtain plans, specifications, property, and financing to construct a Masonic Lodge. Completed in July 1927 at a cost of $4000, the lodge was an 8 x 21-metre vernacular building with gable roof, which resembled a small house with central front door flanked by double-hung windows. A 1977 addition, which significantly altered the building, relocated the front door to accommodate a wheelchair ramp, replaced the double-hung windows with one large picture window, and added a kitchen, washrooms, and a stucco façade. These additions met the changing needs of its members and ensured its on-going use by the community.

Used actively as a Masonic Lodge for 64 years, the building was purchased by the Lions Club in 1991 and continues to be valued as a gathering place by the community.

Source:

Town of Rosthern Bylaw No. 9305.

Character-Defining Elements

The heritage value of the Lions Community Hall resides in the following character-defining elements:
-those features that reflect its use as a meeting hall, such as its vernacular form and massing, spatial interior layout, gable roof, picture window, and 1977 addition with improved access.