The Greenhill
BP 2.0 and 2.1: The Greenhill Tavern at the Greenhill Hotel, Blairmore (Municipality of Crowsnest Pass) Alberta, built 1921. Visited twice: September 2022 & September 2023. Team: Rob, Margarit, Chris & Connie. Gear: 4×5″ Ebony Film, Contax 35mm Film, Canon 6D & 70D.
The Greenhill Hotel was constructed in 1921 (a few reports say the year prior) for the mining firm West Canadian Collieries. They owned the nearby Greenhill Mine, as well as other coal diggings in the area. It’s located right between the railway line and the old Crowsnest Highway (20th Ave today). The trunk road now bypasses town but in the old days everyone driving through went right past here.
The Greenhill was constructed during prohibition, but likely in anticipation of that law ending within a few years. Research suggests the writing was already on the wall and so they simply played a waiting game. Therefor it had no bar for the first few years yet magically there was space set aside for later.
West Canadian used the hotel as a convenient place to house visiting dignitaries, investors, company directors, government officials, and to host meetings. They disposed of the Greenhill shortly after the Second World Was and it has had many owners ever since.
Rooms were available at least until the late 1990s but mostly that space has remained unused ever since. The uppermost floor was often home for the resident manager or owner.
The current owners (and it changed hands between our two visits) are fixing up the place, including turning the otherwise disused space on the two upper floors into apartments. They did this to the closed Bellevue Hotel, further east in Pass, which they also own.
During ongoing renos to the Greenhill, upwards of ten layers of old shingles were found on the roof. That’s a weight lifted.
The Greenhill Beer Parlour was a favourite of team member Chris’ old man when passing through town and a stop here was always mandatory. The kids would keep busy while the folks went inside for “just one beer” and now you know how that section of the website came to be named.
Blairmore, Alberta: Population about 1500, located in the Municipality of Crowsnest Pass (total population approx 6000) and it’s about 140 km west of Lethbridge. Blairmore is one several former mining towns amalgamated into one but everyone still calls each by its old name. They’re all close to each other and Blairmore is the largest of all.
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