Calgary then and now – Hillhurst School

We love producing these then and nows posts as a silly little diversion. In this T&N it’s a look at one of Calgary’s many (roughly) century old sandstone schools with this example found in the community of Hillhurst just north of downtown. First, we look at an old image showing the structure not long after it was built and we’re going to see how it compares to today.

The “then” image is from an undated postcard contributed by a reader of this blog (thanks who ever you are). It shows the place, the south facing side, likely not long after being completed in 1912. That date it somewhat of a guess, but the fact that nothing can be seen behind helps provide a clue. We have seen photos from circa 1913 and 1914 and houses by that time have appeared. The original shot has that area as empty, meaning it must have been taken quite early on.

In the “now” image we do our best to replicate the old postcard shot. I am afraid, however, that matching it exactly was not possible. A fence and some trees meant we had to come in a bit closer than we’d have liked. This caused the building to look as though tilting back more than in the original. Also, it’s as though the old image was shot from higher up. From a platform maybe? Our position clearly is…well…lower. While we strive to shoot a version that is as close to the original as possible, sadly, like we’ve seen here, that’s not always possible. In fact we make a mess of it most times, but it’s all for fun recall.

Little has changed in the hundred years since the building was originally photographed. There are things that differ through time – the parapets, the fence looking structure on the roof, has been removed at some point and of course large trees have grown up in the meantime. Otherwise it’s much as it was. It looks good then and now!

Even as one of Calgary’s oldest schools, the building’s future appears solid. There’s an enrolment of close to three hundred students spanning kindergarten through grade six at the time this post was originally published. At various times in the past, it also served and a Junior High School or as a combination Elementary and Junior High.

An addition from the mid-1960s houses the gym. According to legend, Hillhurst School is haunted by the ghost of its original janitor. While no mention is made, this might just suggest he died on the job. Ghosts surely don’t commute, do they?

Hillhurst is one of close to twenty sandstone schools that were built in the city, most of which exist today and look very similar in overall architectural style. The first example is from the 1890s with the last constructed in 1914. Many are still used as schools while others have been repurposed for other uses. This author even attended one back in the 1970s, Sunalta School in the community of Scarboro.

The surrounding community was established around the time Hillhurst Sschool was constructed. After all, a new neighbourhood needs facilities like this. The area is a mix of century old housing and much newer apartment blocks. Right beside the building, to the east, is Riley Park and on the west 14th St is a busy, noisy road. To the south is housing and a church and to the north, the old Grace Hospital, now a medical centre. Beyond, a large escapement rises up steeply.

The postcard image is tinted, so called because it was shot in black and white and then when printed was hand painted using a thin wash, which made it appear as though photographed in colour. This was common in the era when this card was produced and at that time, full colour postcards were neither practical or economical to produce. Hand tinted cards were made up until the 1940s, although they seemed to be most popular in the 1910s and ’20s period. Our “now” image could perhaps use this tinting treatment – the day was so dull and blah and absoululetly colourless.

As mentioned, the original image, a scanned image of a postcard, was supplied by a reader. If you have an old picture or postcard that shows a street scene or building that you’d like to visit to see how it looks today, send it our way. We’ll give it the full treatment and chat about it here on this website.

To see some nearby buildings, themselves a subject of a then & now, go here…
Calgary then and now – Normal School – Institute of Technology and Arts – Heritage Hall SAIT.
Calgary then and now – Jubilee Auditorium.

To see more schools we’ve shot, follow these links…
Edmonton then and now – Norwood School.
Superman 1978 highschool – then and now.

If you’d like to know more about what you’ve seen here, by all means contact us!

Date: December, 2013.
Location: Calgary, AB.

Hillhurst School seen in a old postcard.

A fence & trees prevented us from duplicating the angle seen in the original image.