The MD of Bighorn is seeking to designate the Morleyville Methodist Mission as the municipality’s first historic resource.
Over the past year, Bighorn’s Heritage Resource Committee has worked to identify a building or site it could recommend as a candidate.
The McDougall Memorial United Church, centerpiece of the Morleyville Mission, is already a Provincial Heritage Resource, however, the provincial designation, granted in 1979, does not take into account the entire 17.28-hectare site.
“Our statement of significance included the buildings and the area. That was a major concern of the HRC. We’ve captured more than the provincial designation. We have captured the entire property,” said Robert Ellis, director of planning services for the MD.
According to the Statement of Significance prepared by Luxton and Associates, the Morleyville Mission, founded in 1873, was the nexus of the Bow Valley’s first community with its church, several ranches and farms, sawmills, trading posts, outfitting operations and a NWMP office. The mission itself consisted of the church, built in 1875-76, a mission house, a school, an orphanage and a teacher’s residence.
The McDougalls were a prominent family in Alberta. They were one of the first families to settle in Alberta in general and southern Alberta specifically. The mission is also a symbol of “the collaborative relationship for mutual benefit between the Stoney First Nations and non-native community during a dramatic era of transition in the Canadian west.”
Before it can designate the mission site as a historic resource, Bighorn must provide the McDougall Stoney Mission Society with a notice of intent indicating the municipality intends to do so.
The society, according to a letter from Sarah Harvey, secretary of the McDougall Stoney Mission Society, is already in agreement.
“We are excited by the recommendation to designate the site a Municipal Heritage Resource. We are honoured to be considered for this designation and would be pleased to enter the designation process and to offer our support,” Harvey wrote.
At a council meeting March 11, Ellis said the McDougall Stoney Mission Society requires no compensation for the move to declare it a historical resource. Owners of historical sites are entitled to compensation, as a structure or site cannot be changed once it is declared a historic resource.
A site cannot be declared as a historical resource without the property owner being in agreement.
If passed, a bylaw declaring the site a municipal historic resource is registered against the title of the property.
A public hearing has been scheduled for the June 10 council meeting.
