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ELECTIONEERING BROUGHT CITY A NEW COURTHOUSE: 1930

Written By: Michael Dawe
Published By: Red Deer Advocate Centennial Book
Article Used with permission. © Copyright Michael Dawe and the Red Deer Advocate, 2007
2007-01-01

Electioneering brought city anew courthouse

One of the most beautiful old buildings in Red Deer’s downtown is the old Red Deer Courthouse.

However, when it was built in 1930, it was also one of the most controversial projects in Red Deer’s history.

For many years, Red Deer had needed a new courthouse building.

Since 1916, the provincial government had rented a renovated blue jean factory on the northeast corner of49th Avenue and 51st Street.

There were many problems with the building. It also did not adequately meet the needs of Red Deer’s legal and judicial community.

Ironically, it was the onset of the Great Depression that finally prompted the government to do something about the situation.

Unemployment was rising dramatically. The provincial government was facing an election.

Major capital projects were a means of both providing new jobs and securing votes.

A new courthouse for Red Deer suddenly became an "urgent priority.”

From the outset, there was a terrific amount of wrangling and political debate over where the new building should be located.

The provincial government owned a site on Ross Street, east of 47th Avenue.

However, this was felt to be too far from the downtown core.

City council agreed to arrange a land swap for four lots on the north side of Ross Street, half-way between 48th and 49th Avenues.

However, the provincial government thought that this site was too small and too close to the Alberta Government Telephones exchange building.

A suggestion was then made that the courthouse be built on 48th Avenue, east of the current site of City Hall.

A great public outcry, led by the Red Deer Advocate, greeted this proposal.

The site was held to be too low and too hidden from the view of the main business district.

This site, to which there was such a strong objection, is the same one where the new courthouse was built in 1981.

The provincial government then suggested the corner of the City Square (now City Hall Park).

City council coolly replied that the City Square was for city purposes only.

The issue became so hot that the Premier of Alberta, John Brownlee, made a special trip to Red Deer to negotiate with the mayor and aldermen.

Yet another site, on the northeast corner of Ross Street and 49th Avenue was picked.

Finally, everyone agreed. A brief controversy flared up again when it was suggested that the building should face west instead of south towards the City Square.

However, the building superintendent, D.E. MacDonald, stated that this change would involve too much work. The idea was quickly dropped.

The architectural plans were published in the Red Deer Advocate within two weeks of the premier’s visit.

The construction contract was let in early May to J.P. Desrochers. Work on the foundation began by the first of June. On June 18, 1930, the general election was held.

The government candidate, George Wilbert Smith, was successfully re-elected as the MLA for Red Deer, albeit with a somewhat reduced majority.

The official opening of the new courthouse was held on March 6, 1931.

A lavish banquet was held at the nearby Elks Hall.

After the banquet was over, the ceremonies were moved to the courthouse.

Premier Brownlee formally opened the front door with a gold key.

He described the new building as a "monument and temple of the British tradition of even justice."

After an inspection tour of the building, the crowd gathered in the main courtroom.

Chief Justice Horace Harvey opened the court as if it was in regular session.

The "first case" involved Mayor James Douglas of Edmonton, who was supposedly in "contempt of court" for saying he had little use for courthouses.

After a mock trial, Justice Harvey found him guilty, but gave him a suspended sentence.

Red Deer now had a beautiful new public building.

The courthouse was the last one to be built in Alberta with classically inspired details. The provincial coat of arms was included as a relief on the building’s pediment.

Unfortunately, George Wilbert Smith, the MLA, passed away in August 1931.

The provincial government lost the ensuing by election in November.

Despite the great pride that the community had in its new courthouse, the continuing tragedy of the Great Depression had erased any afterglow of popularity for the government that had built it.

This article was written by Michael Dawe for the Red Deer Advocate’s Centennial Book. The Heritage Community Foundation would like to thank Michael Dawe and the Red Deer Advocate for permission to reprint these materials online. Please visit the Red Deer Advocate online.The images in the article are part of the collection of the Red Deer Archives. Please visit them online.

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