Description of Historic Place

The Vehicle Garage is a small one-storey building with a simple rectangular form and a gabled roof covered in cedar shingles. The exterior walls are covered with beveled siding. The colour scheme of barn red walls and white trim follows the Prairie tradition. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

Heritage Value

The Vehicle Garage is a Classified Federal Heritage Building because of its historical associations, and its architectural and environmental values:

Historical value:
This building is one of the best examples of the national theme of ranching in Alberta, and its importance in the development of Canada. The building is a component of the Bar U Ranch. The Vehicle Building is also associated with Patrick Burns, who purchased the Bar U Ranch in 1927 to add to his vast cattle empire. Burns who is recognised as the kingpin of the meat processing industry in western Canada during the mid-1920s, has been designated a person of national significance.

Architectural value:
This agricultural building is a very good example of agricultural storage practices at the Bar U and in the region. Its value lies in its functional design and form, simple massing, common construction details, exterior finish, interior layout and setting. It has a character of simplicity and functionality.

Environmental value:
The Vehicle Garage is part of a cohesive complex of buildings arranged to great functional effect in an exceptional site and beautiful, ranch setting. The building is a subsidiary site feature which contributes to the character of the Bar U Ranch.

Sources:
Edward Mills, Historic Bar U Ranch Headquarters, Longview, Alberta. Federal Heritage Buildings Review Office Report 92-017

Vehicle Garage (Building 24), Bar U Ranch, Longview, Alberta. Heritage Character
Statement 92-017

Character-Defining Elements

The following character-defining elements of the Vehicle Garage should be respected, for example:

Its agricultural building type and good quality materials and craftsmanship as manifested in: the light timber structural system. the gabled roof clad with shingles. the small four pane, and sash windows. the two doors the exterior cladding. the red and white colour scheme.

The manner in which the building reinforces the character and setting of the Bar U Ranch.

Heritage Character Statement

Disclaimer - The heritage character statement was developed by FHBRO to explain the reasons for the designation of a federal heritage building and what it is about the building that makes it significant (the heritage character). It is a key reference document for anyone involved in planning interventions to federal heritage buildings and is used by FHBRO in their review of interventions.

The Vehicle Garage at the Bar U Ranch may have been built in the 1920s, judging by its materials and appearance. Originally located within the residential area of the ranch, it was moved to its present location behind Foreman Pearson's House after 1947. The structure's original use is uncertain, but it is believed the building was purpose built as a single-bay vehicle garage, and it continues in this function. The building is associated with Foreman Pearson's House and is a component of the Bar U Ranch National Historic Site. Parks Canada is the custodian. See FHBRO Building Report 92-17.

Reasons For Designation

The Vehicle Garage, as a component of the Bar U Ranch complex, was designated "Classified" because of the historical associations of this building and the ranch as a whole, because of the exceptional qualities of the site and setting, and because of its contribution to the overall aesthetic qualities of the complex.

The Bar U Ranch is strongly associated with the development of ranching in Alberta. As part of the Bar U complex, the Vehicle Garage played a supporting role in this development. Its function and early construction date illustrate the ranch's early use of vehicles for transportation, reflecting the its success and stature. The Vehicle Garage is also associated with Patrick Burns, who purchased the Bar U Ranch in 1927 to add to his vast cattle empire. Burns, who is recognized as the kingpin of the meat processing industry in western Canada during the mid-1920s, has been designated a person of national significance.

As part of a cohesive complex of buildings arranged to great functional effect in a simple and beautiful natural setting, the Vehicle Garage, along with the Coal Shed and the Privy, reinforces the function and importance of Foreman Pearson's House within the ranch complex.

The Vehicle Garage contributes to the ranch's utilitarian character through its functional use and simple yet pleasing design, and blends well with the other buildings on the site.

Character Defining Elements

The heritage character of the Vehicle Garage resides in the utilitarian nature of its form and massing, in its materials, windows and doors, in its exterior finishes and in its setting.

The garage's simple form and massing reflect its utilitarian function. It is constructed with stud walls clad with bevelled siding, a construction system employed for many of the ranch's buildings from 1906 onward. Its gabled roof is covered with milled cedar shingles. The manual-opening garage door, the wood side door and the three wood sash windows are other practical features. Its colour scheme (barn red walls and white trim) keeps with tradition across the Prairies and visually links it to the other buildings on site. All of these features contribute to the building's heritage character and should be protected in any future modifications and maintenance work. The simple nature of the materials and the existing level of craftsmanship should be respected.

Any developments should seek to retain the functional quality of the site and respect existing patterns of access and circulation. Any changes to circulation or access should consider historic patterns related to the movement of transportation vehicles and pedestrians. The relationship of the Vehicle Garage to the Coal Shed and Privy, to Foreman Pearson's House and to other buildings on the site should be maintained.