Description of Historic Place

The Soldiers’ Memorial Hall is a one-and-a-half storey building with white clapboard siding and a lateral gable roof. It has a portico with square pillars and interesting curved pediment above the door. The building was the second Gagetown Grammar School from 1870 until 1918 when a new school was built. Architecturally, the design of the current structure, renovated between 1919 and 1923, appears to have been influenced somewhat by the work of Frank Lloyd Wright.

Heritage Value

The Soldiers’ Memorial Hall is designated a Local Historic Place for its use in commemorating soldiers and for its architecture.

The Soldiers’ Memorial Hall commemorates the enormous contribution the Village of Gagetown made to the First World War effort. Gagetown was, and is still, a small village, but by 1916, at least forty-two men and three nursing sisters from the village were overseas. The Soldiers’ Memorial Hall was begun in 1919 on a large corner lot facing Tilley Road, as a memorial to the soldiers from the area who had died during the First World War and also to recognize all of the local men and women who stepped forward to serve their country in time of need. The Hall was finished in 1923, partly through the efforts of the local Women’s Institute who raised $3,000 toward the project.

Although it incorporates the former second Gagetown Grammar School (1870), the current structure is typical construction for a public building in the post World War I period. During renovation, several changes were made to the school building for better access and for use as a general auditorium and community centre. The boys and girls entrances on Court House Road were boarded up and the main entrance shifted to the long side of the main section facing Tilley Road. Dormers were added to the high Victorian roof, the school bell and the cupola were removed, windows were redistributed and new ones added, an ell added to the west side, and the decorative elements of the eaves were simplified. The curved pediment and shaped dormers over the entrance suggest Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired Craftsman influences. Remnants of the 1870s decorations are visible on the north end of the building. The interior of the building has been changed somewhat over the years. The stage is still there but generally unused, and most of the windows have been blocked for privacy and heating reasons. The walls and woodwork are original, as is the well-used hardwood floor. For many years, this facility was the largest available site for community events.

The Canadian Legion took over responsibility for the hall from the village in 1966. They hold their activities there and make it available for all sorts of community events. From the exterior it appears much as it always has. It sits quite close to the street, yet is surrounded by grass-covered terrain at the rear and to the north. To the north of the doorway there are flag staffs and the cenotaph which lists the names of those who served.

Source: Queens County Heritage Archives – Gagetown Historic Places files

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the Soldiers’ Memorial Hall include:

Exterior
- rectangular one-and-a-half storey massing with smaller-scale ell to the north;
- white clapboard siding with corner boards;
- square pillars supporting a curved pediment at the doorway;
- shaped dormers;
- decorative wooden trim in ell gable;
- gable roof with returned eaves.

Interior
- walls, woodwork and floors mainly original;
- stage;
- Legion memorabilia very much in evidence.

Grounds
- modern memorial cenotaph;
- flag staffs and flags;
- background of trees.