Chateau Qu'Appelle
Encyclopedia
The Chateau Qu'Appelle was a Grand Trunk Pacific Railway
hotel planned for Regina, Saskatchewan
. Construction was started in 1913 at the corner of Albert Street and 16th Avenue (now College Avenue). Rising costs, labour and material shortages, and the bankruptcy of the railway stopped the project before it was completed. The unfinished structure was eventually dismantled.
Designed in the Scottish baronial style
, the concrete pilings were sunk in 1913 to support the ten-story structure. As well, there were two sub-stories of reinforced concrete basement under the northwest corner of Wascana Park. The hotel's girders were already up when construction was halted - World War I
had broken out, and the combination of labour shortages and material rationing meant that the lavish hotel's construction would be delayed until after the war.
However, construction was never to resume; in 1919, the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway went bankrupt. The Canadian National Railway
, a government-owned venture, eventually acquired the GTP's lines, but the construction project was never completed. For ten years, the five-storey-high steel skeleton of the Chateau Qu'Appelle became an embarrassing eyesore for the city. The land was eventually given back to the city, and the girders were dismantled. The steel beams from the project were eventually used in the construction of Regina's new lavish railroad hotel, the Hotel Saskatchewan
. Other building materials intended for the hotel had also been used to construct two houses for James Kirkpatrick, superintendent of the Grand Trunk's station on College Avenue.
The Royal Saskatchewan Museum
, built to celebrate the province's 50th anniversary, now stands on the site of the ill-fated Chateau Qu'Appelle Hotel. Partly for aesthetic reasons and partly to avoid the expansive task of uprooting the pilings, the museum was built on an angle.
Grand Trunk Pacific Railway
The Grand Trunk Pacific Railway was a historical Canadian railway.A wholly owned subsidiary of the Grand Trunk Railway , the GTPR was constructed by GTR using loans provided by the Government of Canada. The company was formed in 1903 with a mandate to build west from Winnipeg, Manitoba to the...
hotel planned for Regina, Saskatchewan
Regina, Saskatchewan
Regina is the capital city of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province and a cultural and commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. It is governed by Regina City Council. Regina is the cathedral city of the Roman Catholic and Romanian Orthodox...
. Construction was started in 1913 at the corner of Albert Street and 16th Avenue (now College Avenue). Rising costs, labour and material shortages, and the bankruptcy of the railway stopped the project before it was completed. The unfinished structure was eventually dismantled.
Designed in the Scottish baronial style
Scottish baronial style
The Scottish Baronial style is part of the Gothic Revival architecture style, using stylistic elements and forms from castles, tower houses and mansions of the Gothic architecture period in Scotland, such as Craigievar Castle and Newark Castle, Port Glasgow. The revival style was popular from the...
, the concrete pilings were sunk in 1913 to support the ten-story structure. As well, there were two sub-stories of reinforced concrete basement under the northwest corner of Wascana Park. The hotel's girders were already up when construction was halted - World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
had broken out, and the combination of labour shortages and material rationing meant that the lavish hotel's construction would be delayed until after the war.
However, construction was never to resume; in 1919, the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway went bankrupt. The Canadian National Railway
Canadian National Railway
The Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....
, a government-owned venture, eventually acquired the GTP's lines, but the construction project was never completed. For ten years, the five-storey-high steel skeleton of the Chateau Qu'Appelle became an embarrassing eyesore for the city. The land was eventually given back to the city, and the girders were dismantled. The steel beams from the project were eventually used in the construction of Regina's new lavish railroad hotel, the Hotel Saskatchewan
Hotel Saskatchewan
The Hotel Saskatchewan is a grand hotel located in downtown Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, overlooking Victoria Park.One of a chain of hotels constructed and owned by the Canadian Pacific Railway, the railway's earlier hotels, such as the Château Frontenac in Quebec City, the Chateau Lake Louise and...
. Other building materials intended for the hotel had also been used to construct two houses for James Kirkpatrick, superintendent of the Grand Trunk's station on College Avenue.
The Royal Saskatchewan Museum
Royal Saskatchewan Museum
The Royal Saskatchewan Museum was established in Regina as the Provincial Museum in 1906 to "secure and preserve natural history specimens and objects of historical and ethnological interest." It was the first museum in Saskatchewan, Canada, and the first provincial museum in the three Prairie...
, built to celebrate the province's 50th anniversary, now stands on the site of the ill-fated Chateau Qu'Appelle Hotel. Partly for aesthetic reasons and partly to avoid the expansive task of uprooting the pilings, the museum was built on an angle.