The "Then" photo here was likely taken in the 1920s, not long after the tower was completed. Both photos were taken from across what is now a parking lot, looking northeast. The Lacombe Home itself, which burned in 1999, is the large building to the left of the tower in the 1920s pic.
The Lacombe Home was built by the legendary
Father Albert Lacombe, a priest of the Oblate Order and one of the best known and most revered early missionaries to work in Western Canada. The Lacombe Home was built on 200 acres of land near Midnapore donated by equally legendary local cattleman
Pat Burns. As well as the land, Burns also donated beef, dairy products and dairy cattle to the home. Lumber, coal, cash, even transportation of materials were all donated to build the home by well heeled friends of the Father.
Officially opened in 1910, the home continued in operation until fire claimed it in 1999. Several ancillary buildings survive, including the water tower, the site now the campus of
St. Mary's University. St. Mary's, which had its beginnings in 1985, moved to the site in 1999, offering a liberal arts program.
The 80 foot tall water tower, built entirely of heavy timers, once held 1,898 litres of water which supplied the home for several decades. Taken out of operation in 1959, the water tower stood unused for well over half a century. While there was consideration given to demolishing the tower, it survived until 2011 when the new president and vice-chancellor of the university saw value in the structure and by 2018 had turned it into an art gallery,
The Mauro Gallery.
LACOMBE HOME
The Lacombe Home site is a collection of structures situated on approximately 15.6 hectares in Calgary's Fish Creek Park/Midnapore community. Extant structures on the site include a brick laundry and frame shed, both built circa 1910, a heavy-timber water tower and a brick carpenter's shop, both built circa 1920, and a 1927 brick heating plant.
The heritage value of the Lacombe Home site lies in its association with pioneer missionary Albert Lacombe and his establishment of one of the earliest homes for the orphaned, the aged, and the poor in the province.
Albert Lacombe was a legendary figure in early Alberta, a man of rare energy and will whose abundant charm, incisive intellect, and indefatigable spirit shaped the social and spiritual landscape of the province. Born in Saint-Sulpice, Lower Canada, in 1827, Lacombe was ordained as a secular priest in 1849 and became a member of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate (O.M.I.) in 1856. During his long career as a cleric, Lacombe travelled extensively throughout the vast North-West Territories as a missionary. Among Lacombe's many accomplishments were his essential role in establishing St. Albert and other Alberta communities; his diplomacy in resolving disputes between Natives and Euro-Canadian settlers, businessmen, and politicians; and his status as a strong advocate for French and Catholic culture in western Canada.
Lacombe's last major project in Alberta was the construction of Lacombe Home, a substantial facility to accommodate orphans, the aged, and the poor. To capitalize the undertaking, Lacombe - a master fundraiser - approached some of his well-heeled friends. From Calgary cattle tycoon Pat Burns he received 200 acres of picturesque ranch land north of Midnapore; after the construction of Lacombe Home, Burns also provided the home with abundant supplies of fresh meat, butter, and dairy cattle. Lacombe's long-time friend Lord Strathcona contributed a "petit souvenir" of $10,000 to the enterprise. A colliery owner in Lethbridge donated several railcars full of coal, another associate contributed lumber to erect the outbuildings, and two railway companies generously agreed to transport these materials without cost. Lacombe also managed to convince the Sisters of Charity of Providence to operate the facility. The Lacombe Home was officially opened in 1910. Ever solicitous for support, Lacombe persuaded attendees at the opening to donate both money and linens for the undertaking. Considered by Lacombe the culmination of a life dedicated to ministering to the most vulnerable in western Canada, the home was likely the first of its kind in Alberta.
Tragically, the Lacombe Home was destroyed by fire in 1999. Nonetheless, several significant ancillary structures associated with the home still exist, including a brick laundry, frame shed, unusual heavy-timber water tower, brick carpenter's shop, and a brick heating plant. The water tower possesses particular significance for its prominent verticality, marking it as an important landmark in the area. The collection is an excellent - and perhaps the only extant - example of such an early institutional complex.
From Historic Places Canada