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the Prairie Gamble 
Training
CoursesCelebrating the Saskatchewan Legislative Building
By Collections Curator Ruth Bitner
The Province of Saskatchewan was only four years old when the corner stone was laid for the Legislative Building in Regina. The WDM collection contains a cushion cover made from approximately 40 silk ribbons given to visitors who attended the official event. Each ribbon is printed with the words “Visitor, Laying of Corner Stone, October 4th, 1909." Unfortunately, we do not know who collected the ribbons and embroidered them in place.
Cushion
cover made from visitor ribbons
WDM photo
Ribbon detail
WDM photo
The Legislative Building embodies the vision of Walter Scott,
Saskatchewan’s first premier. Designed by Montreal architects
Edward and W.S. Maxwell, the building was to be a grand edifice,
set on the bald prairie near Wascana Creek, well away from what
was then Regina’s downtown core. The classical design of the
building, the Tyndall stone and marble materials, and the
spacious grounds set aside for a professionally-designed park,
symbolized Scott’s hopes and dreams for the rapidly growing
province.
The October 4, 1909 event was celebrated in Regina with great
fanfare. A huge flag-decorated welcome arch, similar to those
erected for the province’s inauguration four years earlier, was
erected on the Regina street that led to the building site.
Officials from across Canada were invited and people came from
near and far to watch Governor General Earl Grey lay the corner
stone.
Crowds
gather for the laying of the corner stone, Regina, 1909.
Saskatchewan Archives Board, R-A2273
The passage of time has shown that Premier Scott chose well.
Today, the Legislative Building, now a National Historic Site,
is a jewel set in one of the country’s largest urban parks.
Saskatchewan people are proud of their impressive legislative
building which stands amid beautifully landscaped grounds in the
heart of Regina.
The cushion cover, returned to Saskatchewan in 1955 by a donor
from British Columbia, is a tangible link to Premier Scotts’s
vision for a grand building in a new and prosperous province.
One hundred years ago, on October 12, 1912, the Saskatchewan
Legislative Building was officially opened.
Architects
Maxwell and Maxwell's drawing of the Legislative Building.
WDM collection, WDM-2004-S-719
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