Wetaskiwin District Heritage Museum Centre & City of Wetaskiwin Archives

This week we’d like to take a moment to celebrate our largest artifact. It is one of our oldest, definitely the neediest, and the only one that we have ever purchased. It protects all of our other objects and provides a friendly gathering place for the local community. It is our historic building! In 1903, John West built the first two story brick building on what is now known as Main Street. The Star Trading Co. opened in November the same year and was operated by E.D. McLaughlin, W.W. Sharpe, & R.B. Price. It had a giant white star painted on its side to attract customers, many of whom were immigrants. West’s nephews Hugh and Frank Montgomery eventually purchased the building and Montgomery’s Department store was the retail hub of our community for decades, only closing in the ‘90s. In 2004, with the help of the Montgomerys and support from community members, the building was purchased by the Wetaskiwin & District Museum Society, which had outgrown its space in the old Calgary Power Waterworks building (which now is home the Wetaskiwin Theatre Society). The old Star Store continues to welcomes thousands of visitors each year from all over the world.