Lougheed House recreated in ornate, 1925-esque fashion
Tricia Lo | CBC News | Posted: August 24, 2016 8:49 PM | Last Updated: August 24, 2016
Many items recovered after a major 1938 auction during the Great Depression
It's like stepping into a scene from Downton Abbey, except it's here in Calgary.
The Lougheed House drawing room has been entirely recreated in its 1925 fashion, with much of its ornate original furniture, copper wine decanters, a "chock-full" china cabinet, porcelain figurines, and restored paintings.
From now until Sept. 11, Calgarians can explore what would have been the city's most influential and thoughtfully decorated room in the post-First World War era.
"It gives a sense of how people lived — of course, of a certain class of people," said Sandra Morton Weizman.
Here, royalty, prime ministers and other distinguished individuals would dine while visiting Calgary.
Notable guests included the Prince of Wales, King Edward VIII, and the Duke of Connaught, who was the first member of the Royal Family to become Governor General of Canada.
A homecoming for the furniture
The room's decoration is based on the only remaining photograph of the furnished room, which is believed to have been taken for insurance purposes in 1925.
Most of the artifacts on display originally belonged to the Lougheed family, though they've changed hands more than a few times.
By 1938, the family had had fallen on hard times in the midst of the Great Depression. A major auction was held, and many of their possessions were sold.
When the house was restored in 2005, various people, usually descendents of those who bought at that auction, donated the items back to the house.
"So to speak, these pieces of furniture have come back home."
Many of the larger items had to be re-upholstered and conserved, while several of the original paintings had to be restored. The smaller items were collected for the room's recreation over a period of two months.
Other pieces are on loan from various public and private collections.
"It's very exciting to see it completed. It far exceeds my expectations," Morton Weizman said.
"Even the gold in the frames. It really picks up the highlights in the panels in the walls. I think it really does it justice."
The Lougheed House celebrates its 125th anniversary this year.