BY DUCK PATERSON
It took more than 100 years, but Ladysmith’s Aggie Hall finally has a proper sign in place.
The Ladysmith Lions Club gathered this month for the unveiling of the sign and acknowledgement of the club’s role in the preservation of the historical building.
Built in 1922, the Agricultural Hall and surrounding fields were built for community sporting and social events. The building, which is home to the air cadets along with Ladysmith Family and Friends, celebrated its centennial in 2022.
Community love and support is a very strong reason of why the structure is still in fantastic condition and still fulfilling its mandate, and a cornerstone of that support is the Ladysmith Lions Club.
Al McDermid, club secretary, said the Lions leased the hall they year the club was founded in 1941 and held a children’s Christmas tree party. He said the club has been “instrumental in keeping the Aggie Hall functional for many years.”
Club president Lia Versaevel added that “our membership has always been interested in youths and trying to have a healthy community lifestyle that will help them.”
The Royal Canadian Air Cadets Parallel Squadron 257 has called the lower level of Aggie Hall home for more than 80 years, and the Lions noted that the cadets have also played a pivotal role in the venue’s history and preservation.
The Lions have funded $30,000 in improvements at the site, including three playgrounds, the field, a grandstand and a midway and the club managed, repaired, and ran dances at the Agricultural Hall for more than 10 years. Other Aggie Hall Lions club activities included indoor sports with the purchase of 300 roller skates.
“In the sixties there was a movement that wanted to tear down the Aggie Hall. The Ladysmith Lions rallied and were able to persuade the town council to keep the Aggie Hall,” McDermid said.
Also in the 1960s, the Lions club laid the current hardwood floor. In 1971 the town used provincial grant money to remove the grey plaster that had been applied over the original wooden shake exterior, and restored the hall to its original look with shake siding.
According to archive findings, the building has not been significantly altered since it was built, except for the removal of the main entrance from the east to the north side and the application of shingle siding.
McDermid said in 2021, when Aggie Hall’s 100-year anniversary was approaching, a celebration committee consisting of the Town of Ladysmith, the Ladysmith Historical Society, the air cadets, the Lions club and others were planning on a series of events to mark the centennial, and accessed federal heritage funding.
“It was a great party, but the committee was left with only $400 to put towards signage for the hall, which in all its years of operation, never had a proper sign,” McDermid said.
The Lions took on the project to have a sign created with those $400, and after working with local heritage experts and Al Moore of Spyder Graphix, the sign became a reality.
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