On September 20, the Humboldt and District Museum and Gallery (HDMG) celebrated the designation of the building it occupies as a provincial heritage site.For the City of Humboldt, designating the 100-year-old former Humboldt Post Office building at the corner of Main and 7th Streets is another feather in its cap.On the podium for the unveiling of the official plaque were dignitaries Kevin Doherty, Minister of Parks, Culture and Sport, Donna Harpauer, Humboldt MLA and Minister of Crown Investments, Humboldt mayor Malcolm Eaton, Reverend Al Hingley for the Friends of the Museum, and Master of Ceremonies Carol Oleksyn, chair of the HDMG."We stand in front of an outstanding example of a historic building," Oleksyn said to the public in an opening address. "And today we mark the building's prominence and significance to Saskatchewan's history."The Minister of Parks, Culture and Sport was the first to bring greetings on behalf of the province."There are only 50 provincial heritage properties in our province," Doherty told the public during the ceremony. "That's an indication of how special a place must be to attain the status."The Minister went on to explain that in order to become a provincial heritage property, a building must be associated with an important aspect of Saskatchewan's human or natural history."It must be about outstanding provincial significance and it must still have visible features that convey its heritage value," said Doherty, "and the Humboldt Post Office meets all of those requirements."When it was Harpauer's turn to speak, the MLA reminisced back to the days when, as a child, she would come to Humboldt from her hometown of Guernsey for special shopping expeditions. It was always an adventure, she said, and she recalled fantasizing that the stately post office building was a fortress that guarded the city.At the ceremony, she acknowledged all the hard work from the people who contributed to making the building what it is today."I'd like to thank all of those - Jennifer (Hoesgen), her staff, the volunteers and the museum's board - who worked tirelessly to ensure that this building not only remains a landmark here within the city," she said, "but have added to it every year, treasuring everything that is in it."Mayor Malcolm Eaton expressed his thoughts about the significance of the ceremony on behalf of the city of Humboldt."This is indeed another great chapter in the Humboldt story that we are celebrating today," he began. "The story of our community's past as it is told in this building. Our museum's 30-year history of great work in preserving, sharing, shaping our history, our heritage, and our cultural roots." The last person to speak before the unveiling of the plaque was Rev. Al Hingley, who spoke on behalf of the HDMG and recalled for the public how the museum had evolved from its humble beginnings 30 years ago to what it is today."Community support continues to be the most important aspect of the museum's operations," Hingley began. "The Friends of the Museum group was formed in 1994 to fundraise and assist with special programs, and over the years there have been numerous milestones."He cited developments such as the Humboldt Sports Hall of Fame collection, the establishment of an archives and a research room, the writing of a book ("100 Interesting Stories about Humboldt"), the purchase and development of the Original Humboldt site and its ongoing archaeological work, the partnership with the Humboldt Arts Council to bring art exhibits to Humboldt and promote the work of local artists."The museum houses over 16,000 artifacts and offers a myriad of public and education programs," Hingley said in conclusion. "The museum is proud to serve the growing needs of this community."After the unveiling of the plaque, the festivities continued with samples of homemade bread baked by staff members in an outdoor clay oven, homemade jam and churned butter, and a celebratory cake for the occasion.
