How come more effort is not being put into constructing historical monuments that were promised to the residents of Weyburn? We have been waiting years for a monument that will commemorate the former Souris Valley Extended Care Centre and also the Post Office bell.
It has been six years since the former Souris Valley was demolished. During the demolition, a number of items from the building’s exterior were saved for a monument — but that was the last information we were provided on the situation.
How are these historical bricks and artifacts from the former Souris Valley being stored? From the sounds of it, they are left in the elements.
Who is actually responsible for creating the monument? Should it be the City of Weyburn itself? Or should we be leaving a part of Weyburn’s history in the hands of the developer that now owns that land?
It also seems that neither party wants to admit that nothing has been done. Six years later and those historical stones are still untouched. Is this a way of brushing ‘everything under the carpet’ because many people have already forgotten about the monument?
There is also the fact that during the centennial celebrations for the City of Weyburn which were held in 2013, the former bell that once hung in the first post office for the city was brought out. Once again we heard promises that it would be used for a beautiful monument to commemorate our history.
Two years later and nothing. Once again there have been no updates to what is being planned to showcase the historically significant bell.
We have seen how some groups are able to move mountains to get commemorative monuments placed in a prompt manner. Recently, the Pioneer Woman Statue committee unveiled the efforts of their group during an untypical bright and sunny November Sunday afternoon.
But one should note that it took some time for the location of the statue to be prepared. Originally, their plans was to unveil the statue in May. Five months later, it was finally unveiled to a large crowd.
I have also seen some of the historical brick and stone from the former Weyburn Collegiate Institute being put to use as landscaping is completed around the grounds of the newly renovated Weyburn Comp.
Right now the only physical keepsakes of the former Souris Valley grounds is in the Soo Line Historical Museum. They have kept some historical pictures, the time capsule, and the James Eadie mural (which had to undergo restoration itself).
So what about these other monuments? Is the problem that there is not enough funds in the coffers? If so, why hasn’t there been more of an effort for a fundraising drive to ensure these monuments are built?
Perhaps the problem is that there isn’t a committee who is working behind the scenes to ensure that these monuments are going to be built. We need people who are not attached to the city or the developers to ask the hard questions, and ensure that something is being done to commemorate our past.
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