Description of Historic Place

This Canadian Pacific Railway station is a picturesque Chateau style structure with a steeply pitched roof line and polygonal towers. It is a substantial yellow brick building located at 305 Idylwyld Drive N. in downtown Saskatoon.

Heritage Value

The Saskatoon C.P.R. station was designated a Heritage Railway Station for its association with railway expansion in Canada. It was built in 1907-1908, and is the only station surviving in Saskatoon from the 1909-1913 period of phenomenal growth when the city became the regional centre for three major railway companies. The architectural design of the station by J. Carmichael of the C.P.R. Engineering Office in Winnipeg is also important. It is a good example of the streamlined Chateau style favoured by the C.P.R. for both larger divisional stations and smaller depots in the 1900-1914 era. This is one of the most readily identifiable buildings in Saskatoon, and it constitutes a landmark within the city’s historic urban fabric.

The heritage value of this building resides in its picturesque Chateau-inspired style, distinctive form, use of materials, and construction technology. It also lies in the setting and site of the station.

Source:
· Heritage Character Statement, Canadian Pacific Railways Station, 31 August 1990. Heritage Assessment Report RSR-17, 1989.

Character-Defining Elements

Character-defining elements of the Saskatoon Canadian Pacific Railway Station include:

- its found footprint, vertical massing and distinctive silhouette with a prominent tower and steeply hipped roof,
- its irregular Chateau-like proportions,
- its picturesque design features, particularly its wide overhanging eaves with brackets, dormer windows, polygonal towers, prominent chimney, and decorative detailing such as the pressed/turned metal roof finials and rolled ridge caps,
- the varied colours and textures of its original exterior building materials: yellow smooth faced brick with contrasting white Tyndall limestone for the plinth, stringcourses, sills, lintels, corner quoins, eave bracket corbels, and tower; ashlar faced limestone on the large eave brackets and date block; cedar shingle roofing; pressed and turned sheet metal work; timber eave brackets; and mullioned wood window units,
- the craftsmanship evident in the preparation and assembly of these materials,
- the steel frame construction technology of the building,
- any and all surviving original interior materials, forms and finishes,
- continued legibility of its original interior public spaces,
- continued legibility of its original sub-division into functional spaces as a railway station,
- the continued presence of movable objects possibly related to the station’s original use, particularly a large oak table, wall-mounted pendulum clock, and upright cabinet.