Stettler Alberta Then & Now: Stettler Hotel

We have a conflicting love/hate relationship with these then and now articles. Sure, they’re an absolute delight to do, when all the pieces fall together that is, but at times they’re a bringer of great frustration. For every one that works, there’s many that don’t. We strive not to just show you what the scene is today when compared to an old photo, but to duplicate the old shot as best we can angle wise and in composition. And here in comes the problem…because we want a level of accuracy, few “thens” make the cut, even with all the forethought and planning. A failure means much wasted effort.

Plus then and nows rarely get picked up by other publishers (it’s happened only twice I think), meaning the time put into them, often a lot, both in the taking of the photo and the resultant research phase, is never recouped. But hey, that’s another story my friends. We do them, as resources permit, out of love and the sheer fun of the experience. That’s how we roll…when we can.

Most difficult of the then and now shots is when the subjects are very close in the foreground, especially when it comes to buildings. Like what’s seen in this post. Tight framing will exaggerate any misalignment we do, even minor, and will ruin a shot. In our earlier T&Ns, you’ll see this more often. Recall we have to match camera position, angle and also estimate focal length (and if a tilt-shift lens was used) and many other important factors. In tight, it’s a real challenge, where in contrast a broad scene is a literal cake walk.

This then and now took about twenty five tries to get it right, with the better part of an hour spent fiddling, repositioning and readjusting “the grid” so it’d work. It’s not easy nor quick and still we’re only sort of happy with the results. It’s close but not enough to quiet those nagging inner-critics.

Anyway, enough jabbering on about the how’s and why’s, let’s talk about what’s seen.

Then! It’s the Stettler Hotel, in downtown Stettler Alberta, in all its glory. Built in the late 1940s, it’s definitely a design of that era in style and vibe. Bricks and more bricks, stonework with parallel lines, glass blocks, shining tiles of black, chrome and neon. It’s unmistakable from when it came. This building replaced an earlier hotel on the same lot, the National which burned down a few years prior.

It’s quintessential small town accommodations for the time, with two floors of lodging and at ground level a lobby, beer parlour (where the real money was), a cafe/coffee shop is mentioned, and on the left side a drug store. That’s pretty much everything a traveller needs and without ever leaving the building.

Check what’s parked out front…all those wonderful vehicles! They’re just ordinary rides back then but today they’d be something highly prized and collectible. From left to right: what we think is a late 1930s Ford Pickup, a 1958 Ford Station Wagon, a 1957 Chevrolet (one of the most sought after by car buffs), a 1957 Pontiac Station Wagon and finally a 1957 Plymouth. Ahh, the tail fins on that last one! We so love 1950s over the top car design.

We’ve made zero attempt to ID the specific model of each car. Quite honestly, we’re not that good (hacks are we). Suspect a number of these cars belong to patrons stopping by for a cold one. This is farming country and that’s some thirsty work. An imagined back-story plays in our minds. Who owned these cars, what’s their story? We squander a lot of time day dreaming.

Back when you got a new license plate every year, each a different colour, which helps us easily date the then photo. Yellow was used in 1958 and 1961 so we know it’s from one of those two years. Now wasn’t that easy? It was not until the mid-1970s before the colour was used again and before, it was 1951, so we’re certain we got it right. The cars look a tad dusty, speaking of the lack of paved roads in rural Alberta in the old days. Heck even in 2019, excepting highways or secondary mains, most are of gravel (or mud come wet weather).

We wonder if any of these vehicles exist in the area? Farmers, who we suspect owned at least some of these rides, are famous for not throwing anything out. Park it in the back forty when it dies along with all the other cast off machinery, and forget it. That’s how they roll as proven by all the old car collections we’ve photographed over the years, found on rural properties.

The then image was send in anonymously by a reader. Thanks who ever you are. We looked around afterwards and see the photo’s well shared on the Internet – we found many copies. It looks to be a scan of a post card which suggests it’s in the public domain. It may have been an advertising premium given away by the hotel itself – this was common. If you know of or have an old photo we should use as then and now fodder, drop us a line. It has to be your copyright (so from a personal collection) or one in the public domain, and most old post cards are. We’re always looking for fresh meat. It should ideally show a street scene, landscape, or some such thing where there’s something left we can use to to connect the two eras.

Now! What can we say, so little has changed. Sixty years and it’s much as it was and now we’ve got nothing to talk about! Sure, the tile work is different, but is similar in feel to the old, the drug store location is vacant (not what was there last if not it), and the old lobby sign is different. That’s it! They kept that most amazing sign on the corner and it’s gorgeous!

This then and now filed under “little changed”. In 2019, one need only take away the modern cars and it could be sixty years ago all over again. The Stettler Hotel is timeless and we hope they keep it this way. It’s a throw-back to when this was how things were done when it came to lodging. Next time we’re in town, we should pay it a personal visit.

The colours in the original image differ a great deal from today, but old photos often fade or shift in that regard over time. That explains the yellow brick and non-existent red in the sign.

You may have heard us use the term “grid” when we speak of how we line up the now shots. Without going into too much detail, it’s the grid lines in the camera eyepiece, along with lots trail and error, and experience, that allow us to get it close as we do. Still, there’s a boat-load of rejects in the recycle bin and many then and nows photographed but never to be seen.

They’re saying…

I enjoy your posts and the adventures you guys have! Matt Germscheid.

Why were we in Stettler? For this of course…
Alberta Prairie Railway Tours Ride Along

More small town then and nows…
Sandon BC.
Unity Saskatchewan.
East Coulee Alberta.
Shaunavon Saskatchewan.

If you wish more information on what you’ve seen here, by all means contact us!

Date of Adventure: June, 2019.
Location: Stettler, AB.
Article references and thanks: Carson Ellis, Stettler Independent.

In Stettler Alberta some sixty or so years apart.

A bit of neon heaven.