Waterdown Memorial Hall

Waterdown Memorial Hall. . , In 1919 a "Community League" was organized with the goal of constructing a building to function as both a memorial to citizens who had enlisted in World War I (1914-1918) and as a community hall. The Waterdown Women's Institute purchased this site, once the location of the village bell tower, in 1920 and transferred ownership to Waterdown Council. In conjunction with church groups, the Institute raised funds to finance construction. While under construction, the Hall was one of the few downtown structures to survive the Great Fire of 1922. The Hall was dedicated January 14, 1923 at a service which included the unveiling of a commemorative tablet bearing the names of villagers who had enlisted in the war and the 19 who had died. It is one of less than a dozen memorial halls erected in Canada after World War I, three of which are now in the City of Hamilton (Waterdown, Carlisle and Binbrook)., Memorial Hall hosted Council meetings and served as home to the Third Division Court of Wentworth County. In the 1940s the basement was used as a dormitory for farm help, and between 1948 and 1956 the village library operated on the main floor while the basement was used as a shooting gallery for the local gun club. During the 1950s a nightclub took occupancy. Memorial Hall would also serve variously as a cinema, election centre, jail, and roller skating rink. It became home to the Village Theatre in 1971, which continues to use the facility today., In 1969, the Waterdown Lion's Club took over management of the Hall until the Town of Flamborough assumed management in 1998. Following the amalgamation of Flamborough with the City of Hamilton in 2001, Memorial Hall came under City ownership and was designated under the Ontario Heritage Act in 2007 by City Council. The glass box addition and exterior restoration were completed in 2019 as part of the city's Waterdown Memorial Hall Restoration Project.