Pictou County Sports Heritage Hall of Fame to get permanent home in Trenton

The Pictou County Sports Heritage Hall of Fame is a step closer to having a permanent home in Trenton, N.S., where it began more than three decades ago.

It is currently housed in a rented space in New Glasgow.

On Saturday, the provincial and federal governments announced $3.75 million in joint funding for a new multi-use building that will house the hall of fame and provide community meeting facilities.

Nova Scotia is contributing $1.5 million and Ottawa is contributing $2.25 million.

The land on Main Street in Trenton was donated by the town. 

'Overwhelmed'

Ken Langille, chair of the hall of fame society's board, said he was "overwhelmed" when he learned the project was fully funded.

After he and other members had spent years meeting with government officials, Langille said the funding announcement was the highlight of his career.

Langille said the idea for a Pictou County sports hall of fame started in 1989.

"It started with a bunch of sports guys who were sports-minded in Trenton," he said. "We managed to get enough people together to go on a board … and then we started looking for a place to house it."

That first home was a former meat-packing plant in Trenton.

Langille said when the building was put up for sale, the society's entire collection was moved into storage at a Trenton school. It remained there for almost four years.

When the post office in New Glasgow moved across town, the society rented the old building that is the current home for the collection.

According to Langille, many people from Pictou County have done well in sports and the society wants to preserve that history.

Sports-minded community

He said Pictou County has a strong sports-minded community and people have donated so much material that there isn't enough room to display the collection in the current building.

Speaking at the funding announcement, Sean Fraser, cabinet minister and MP for Central Nova, said he hoped the new hall of fame would be inclusive and reflective of the diversity of Pictou County.

"Today's funding announcement for the future Pictou County Sports Heritage Hall of Fame will ensure that proud history, and the accomplishments of African Nova Scotian, Mi'kmaw and First Nations athletes, will be preserved for years to come," he said.

Trenton Mayor Donald Hussher, who served on the hall of fame board for eight years, said Pictou County is proud of its sporting history and the town was proud to bring the hall of fame back to Trenton through its land donation.

Hussher said new names continue to be added to the hall of fame and athletes from the area continue to represent Canada at international events.

"That's something that the youth can look up to and carry on the torch that was left by the members of the sports hall of fame from years past," he said