Soo Line Historical Museum

The Soo Line Historical Museum is a Municipal Heritage Property occupying one city block along Highway No. 39, one of Weyburn’s main traffic arteries. The property features a one-storey, red-brick structure with a smokestack.

The heritage value of the Soo Line Historical Museum lies in its association with the establishment of Weyburn as a prominent centre in southeast Saskatchewan. As the city’s population grew following the arrival of the Soo Line, the Canadian Pacific Railway component of the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railway, so too did the need for more power. By 1909 the City of Weyburn formed its own power generating station and constructed the current building. The provision of power also contributed to attracting business and industry to the community, which contributed to Weyburn's growth. The original power plant consisted of a 75-kilowatt generator serving no more than fifty customers. At the close of its private operations, when SaskPower purchased it in 1960, the plant served more than 2,500 customers. The power plant and smoke stack consist entirely of Estevan brick. The building's utilitarian design is a typical example of larger power plants constructed during this period in Saskatchewan.

Source: City of Weyburn Bylaw No. 91-1793.

The heritage value of the Soo Line Historical Museum resides in the following character defining elements:

-those elements that are reflective of Saskatchewan's early industrial architecture, such as the restrained use of windows, the smokestack, and the building's proximity to the railway and downtown businesses;

-the use of Estevan brick as the main building material.