The name McNaughton is almost as familiar to people in the Moosomin area as the town name itself. The day that R.D McNaugton chose Moosomin’s location to establish his general store—at first in a tent—can be seen as the day that Moosomin was born.
1882 to 2015
Before there was a province of Saskatchewan, there was Siding Four and there was R. D. McNaughton’s tent.
McNaugton’s first stock came by cart, and the tent was set up when the rail reached what is now Moosomin, said Neil Russell, from the R. D. McNaughton Hardware Restoration Committee.
The tent was soon replaced with a modest one-and-a-half storey wood structure facing South Front Street in 1882.
This wooden structure is what Russell and his committee is trying to save and restore, as it is the oldest commercial building in Saskatchewan.
When the R. D. McNaughton company erected a Fieldstone building to accommodate its expanding business in 1886, the wood structure was moved south, to the back of the property and became the plumbing and hardware department.
The wooden building was then moved across the street when the stone building had a large brick addition added to the south side extended.
The wood structure would sit on skids for the better part of a century before getting moved one more time.
The building was under private ownership when it was designated a heritage property.
The R.D. McNaughton Hardware Restoration Committee was formed to preserve the building.
Russell took on the restoration job on urging from his wife.
“I got talking to my wife and she said, ‘that could be a good project for you.’ That following Monday I talked to a few people. I took it on,”
Other members of the R. D. McNaughton Hardware Restoration Committee, include Francis McDougall, Greg Nosterud and Alex Gray.
In December 2015 the town of Moosomin granted the building a tax abatement for 2016.
2016 and another move
The R.D. McNaughton Hardware Restoration Committee purchased a portion of the lot from the previous owner, built a foundation, and had the building moved onto the foundation.
“So, when we bought the building we had to move it off of the property,” said Russell.
The building would first have to be prepped for the move and then there would be a lot of waiting as the committee would rely on grants and donations for funds to get the project moving.
“The floor was completely gone, the foundation was gone, the building was sitting at an angle. It would not have made the winter. We had to pull it up right, we had machinery sitting on one side and cables ran through the building and pulled it back. Then we had to jack it up. We tore the whole floor system out of it, we ordered in floor joists and once we had that and once we put the floor back in we sat it down. Then we were able to dig the foundation and once we had that, we got it stabilized and then we were away to the races,” said Russell.
Kola Building Movers donated $6,000 to the committee. $3,000 would go directly to moving the building and $3,000 would go towards other restoration cost in the future. Monday October 24, 2016 the building was ready to move.
The task of taking an entire structure and moving it onto a new foundation is a big job.
2018-2019
Along with grants from various government organizations, the committee held a few fundraising events to help get supplies to start fixing up the building.
The “Thanks a Bundle” campaign allowed individuals and businesses to contribute money towards the purchase of shingles for the roof, and on May 4 of 2018 the committee held an event at the Moosomin Armoury Hall that includes a roast beef supper, silent auction and guest speaker Bill Waiser a Canadian historian and author.
In the spring of 2019 work started on the roof of the old building and also the new lean-to that was added at the back of the building to restore it to its original state.
2020 and COVID-19
The work has slowed but Russell says the committee still plans to complete the restoration.
“We do some work when we can all get together and do something, but that is far and few between. It is not as frequently as we like. I am going to get the windows in this year,” said Russel.
“There is five to six of us, it has been a lot of work. I know people drive by and don’t see anything done. This year has been an exceptional year because of COVID-19,” said Russell.
It may be slow progress but it is clear that there has been a lot of work done by the small group.
“We are very happy. We started in the basement, we went straight up getting everything stabilized and solid so it won’t move, we were even in the attic getting it all done,” said Russell.
“We got a grant from the Saskatchewan Heritage Foundation for the foundation and we got one for the roof for shingling the roof both front and back are done in cedar shingles and I actually had a phone call from the Foundation the other day asking if we would consider applying for another grant. I am in favour of it, its just we got a lot of stuff on our plate right now,” said Russell
“If I can get the back lean-to sided we can put in an application to get it painted. It would be well worth it,” said Russell. “Before there was a lot of negative, now there is a lot of positive.”
End Goal
Once the work is done, there are big plans for the little building. “We do have a couple of people interested in the end. One is thinking of a seasonal tea house type of thing, and you can even get local artists to be involved in it,” said Russell.
Looking at the stair that lead to the attic Russell feels strongly that this building needs to open for the public.
“Try and put it into your head who all had walked down these steps back in 1882. That is a huge thing.”
Inside the building the materials are stacked up, ready to be used. “Everything is ready to go, we just got to get the time when more than one guy can come and work,” said Russell. “It is tough because even if you get a grant you still gotta pay your part. With the Saskatchewan grant they take into account the amount of donated hours, so that helps,” said Russell.
