Minto Park
Minto Park
Minto Park
Minto Park
Minto Park
Cultural History
Cultural History
Three years after the OTAB was completed, the rough frame buildings located on the corner of Church Street and Fifth Avenue in the Government Reserve were removed and a formal park was established. It was named Minto Park after the Canadian Governor-General. William Horkan, an Irishman and naturalized American, came to the Klondike in 1897 and was awarded the initial landscaping contract. The front lawn was landscaped and there were playing fields to the south used for military drills, sports and public events.[13] Tennis courts were also established to the southeast of OTAB, and gave rise to a thriving tennis club in the early part of the 20th century. A baseball diamond complete with bleachers was built in the south end of the park.[ 14] There is also a concession building. Since 1979, the main stage of the Dawson City Music Festival has been located in the park.
Established in 1904, after lobbying by the Horticultural Society of Dawson, the formal garden was meticulously maintained for decades and was a testament to the pride felt by the community. [15] Historic photographs show that the central flower bed was in place in 1909, however it likely existed earlier (approximately 1903), and was approximately 13 meters in diameter. [16] Around 1913, the flower display lost its fence, and in 1924 the flowers were replaced by a granite Cenotaph on a circular grass bed.[17] Accompanied by two field guns, the memorial was dedicated in honor of the soldiers who fought in World War I [18], and the formal park became known as “Victory Garden”. The garden and Minto Park were leased to the City of Dawson for community recreation and the eastern half of the original garden was taken over by a nursing station. The garden and Cenotaph were restored in a reduced size in the north corner of the former park in the 1980s and over-mature trees were removed from the front lawn.. The area was restored again in 1992 based on a professional historic period landscape plan. A new foundation was installed under the Cenotaph in 1993-4.[19]
In the 1992 plan the outside perimeters of the restored garden were compressed into the western half of its former space but the geometric design and overall impression is almost identical. The original granite Cenotaph remains at its original location, where the central flower bed had first been installed (now the east edge of the garden). The central flower bed is an accurate replica of the original, enclosed by a 19-sided picket fence, and planted with flowers and shrubs graduated in height from tall in the centre to lowest at the edge of the bed. Restoration with these minor modifications was facilitated by historical photographic evidence as well as on-site physical remains such as trees, shrubs and grades.[20] The setting has evolved and there have been developments such as a new hospital to the west and a train shelter to the south. These structures have compromised the integrity of the view planes from Church Street and Sixth Avenue, but the front elevation view planes of the site from Fifth Avenue are essentially intact.
The formal landscaping around the OTAB is integral to its presentation as a landmark within the community. Minto Park is a central feature to Dawson City and is instantly recognizable to community members. Minto Park, Fort Herchmer and the dyke are the only three expanses of green public space contained within the townsite.
The Royal Canadian Legion and Dawson Rangers hold a portion of the Remembrance Day ceremonies every year at the Cenotaph on the east side of Victory Gardens. This tradition acknowledges Yukoners' courage and contributions to Canadian military efforts and has deep meaning to many Yukon families who made great sacrifices during the two World Wars, the Korean War and subsequent wars. For these reasons, it is also a site of pilgrimage.
In summer, Dawson City Museum interpretive programs spill out to the exterior of the OTAB. The museum plays host to the annual and highly attended Canada Day celebrations on July 1st and other community events which are held on the surrounding landscaped green spaces.
The Royal Canadian Legion has been associated with Victory Garden since the 1920's. Frank Berton, father of well-known author Pierre Berton, was instrumental in raising funds to install a memorial at the site. The Great War Veterans Association dedicated the Cenotaph on September 24, 1924. This organization later became the British Empire League and then the Royal Canadian Legion and remains active in the Dawson community.
Citations:
12: From City of Dawson Municipal Designation file.
13: Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada Submission Report – Place: The Old Territorial Administration Building, Dawson, Yukon, 2001-06, p. 255.
14: Dawson City Museum, Frederick Nelson Atwood fonds, photograph 2006.33.1.289.
15: Fardin, Linda, Yukon Territory Administration Building, Dawson City Yukon: Period Landscape Study, (Parks Canada Engineering and Architecture,1984), pp. 2 & 8.
16: Ibid, p. 6.
17: Old Territorial Administration Building National Historic Site of Canada Commemorative Integrity Statement, op.cit., p. 16.
18: Fardin, Linda, op.cit., figure 13.
19: Myrna Butterworth, personal recollection, 2013.
20: Fardin, Linda, op.cit., p.6
