The town of Cadillac was founded in 1911 and reached village status three years later. At its peak in the 1920s, the community boasted a population of about 300 and many more folks were living on farms in the immediate area.

It was named after Cadillac, Michigan, the town from where the area’s first postmaster hailed. Many early settlers were French-speaking and from that same region of the US. To this day many descendants of these early settlers continue to live in this part of Saskatchewan.

The Cadillac Hotel is on the corner of Centre Street and LaSalle Avenue. This put it just across from the train station and interestingly, that building still exists. It is now located a couple blocks away and was incorporated into the Community Hall.

The current hotel dates from 1946 or 1947 and replaced an earlier, much larger hotel of the same name that once stood on this property. That one went back to 1914. It was three stories tall and had over 30 rooms, whereas the current one is two stories and only about one-third the size.

This earlier incarnation was famous as a supply point for illicit booze heading south during US prohibition. The taps were shut off longer down south, and Canadians were happy to help with the supply.

The original hotel was lost to fire in 1946 in a melee that saw many other buildings in downtown Cadillac either lost or damaged. Hotels back in the day seemed to go up in flames with alarming regularity.

“A big, giant, big dragon breath thing. Like you could put people in it. Yeah, you could get rid of people really easily in those.” – Allison (speaking of the old boiler downstairs).

From the local history book regarding the rebuilding of the hotel: “At that time the Board of Trade had purchased cement to build their new curling rink. Cement was scarce. When the hotel burned in 1946, the Board of Trade loaned their cement to Mr. R. Charlebois so he could rebuild.”

Many different owners and managers have operated the business since it was rebuilt. Research suggests there were at least eight of the former, and many more of the latter.

Ladies were first allowed in the Cadillac Hotel Beer Parlour beginning in 1964. This meant adding a separate “Ladies and Escorts” door. This was required and we have seen evidence of such entrances in many of the old hotels we visited.

“I’m here at five o’clock, if I’m not harvesting or spraying…this is Bryce’s chair (pointing down).” – Bryce.

The laws in Saskatchewan allowed this as early as 1959, but it took a while to catch on in small towns. It was noted at Hotelier Conventions in the early 1960s that allowing ladies in gave establishments “an air of decency.”

In years past, and as recently as the late 1950s, there was also a dining lounge in the hotel. A barber shop is also mentioned in the history books and for a time the hotel hosted a doctor once a week for the townsfolk to visit. The doctor did a circuit of the villages in the area and operated out of whatever place was made available to them.

For a time the hotel also hosted the village telephone switchboard, which was common practice at the time. This would have likely been in the 1920s and at the original Cadillac Hotel.

Early on this establishment had some competition. The Vendome Hotel was in business starting about the same time as the Cadillac Hotel and operated until it burned down in 1924. It was located across Centre Street and a little north of here. In this instance, it was never rebuilt and to this day there remains an empty lot where it once stood.

Shortly after our visit in June 2024, the Cadillac Hotel abruptly closed its doors and was put up for sale. We and locals alike were taken by surprise and disappointed on hearing the news. It seemed to be doing a decent business. At the time of posting this, it remains for sale. It does seem in decent shape, so perhaps it has a future with someone new.

“Do I have to smile?” – Allison (on posing for a photo). “No, you don’t have to…be who you are.” – Chris.

The streets in Cadillac are named after cars from the old days. There is LaSalle, Buick, Nash, Hudson, Napier, Russel, Humber and others. It is not clear when this practice began, but old photos from the 1920s show that at least some of the names were in use at that time.

Cadillac, Saskatchewan: Population about 100, located in the Rural Municipality of Wise Creek and 65km directly south of Swift Current.