More about my town

Yesterday I blogged about how Weyburn is a good place to live if you happen to be an aging boomer with cancer who was born here and grew up just 20 miles west of here on a farm. 
Weyburn still has that rural feel to it. 
It has claims to fame beyond agri-Culture, however. 
1. W.O. Mitchell, a famous prairie author, grew up here, wrote about it. 
2. Tommy Douglas, the father of Medicare, premier of Sask. during my childhood, a Baptist minister here in earlier times. My dad participated in a group that saved his church from being torn down, moved it up the hill beside St Mary's hospital* for safekeeping. My dad's funeral was held there. The place was packed. He would have taken a bullet for TC Douglas probably. When I was around 4 or 5 years old Douglas even came to our farm for a visit. Weyburn made him a statue, down by the river. Kiefer Sutherland, his grandson and well known actor, attended its opening. 
3. There used to be a humongous mental hospital here, from 1921 until it was torn down in 2009 (according to Wikipedia): 2009 was the year I moved back here from Vancouver, coincidentally. 
4. There is a silver teapot museum here, a huge collection that an eccentric farmer gave to the city to keep polished after he died. (He also left behind a stuffed calf that was born with eight legs, housed in the same museum. I have seen it with my own eyeballs.)

When I first moved back here I was still operating with big city stress responses. I remember how slow it felt. Like I had jumped into a swimming pool full of peanut butter. I eventually slowed down to match over time, but it took a long time. I would feel irritable when people stopped to yak with each other in the grocery aisles.  Nowadays I do that myself sometimes. 

Grass grows up through cracks in broken sidewalks, everywhere. Drives my sister nuts when she comes to visit, because she needs to walk long ways for long times to self-regulate. If I walk with her I can feel her slowing herself down so I can keep up. I have shorter legs and I'm 7 years older and I have incurable cancer now. (But at least I can see, that's something.)
I imagine when she walks by herself she walks a lot faster with much longer stride length. 

The speed limit is 40KPH everywhere unless otherwise posted.
Most intersections are four-way stops.
Everything here seems designed to slow drivers down. Keep collisions from happening.
There is a new traffic circle over where I like to go to get gas, built just last year when I still had cataracts, that I'm still getting used to now that I don't have cataracts anymore and am driving a lot more.  The speed limit there is just 30KPH. 

That's probably enough about where I live. For now. 
.........................

*St. Mary's was just Weyburn Municipal Hospital until 1952, at which time it was sold to nuns who ran it as a nursing home. 





Comments

  1. IoneAugust 11, 2026 at 2:54 PM

    I enjoyed this blog about Weyburn. I have been criticized for not visiting Charlie, last name forgotten, silver collection. I would not like working there. I found it a chore to clean my own silver which were all gifts. I’d never buy silver myself.
    Weyburn was our city for banking, shopping and restaurant meals while I was growing up. Every once in awhile dad would take us on a tour and often through the grounds of the mental hospital. I had all the windows up and doors locked. I had the same reaction when near a reserve. I was quite racist back then
    I enjoy the buildings up on the hill but I can’t place St Mary’s hospital unless it is the tower building. I’d like to go back there. I have a picture of me with TC. CCF was a big part of my life. I think it was grandpa who instilled that in all of us. Scharnattas were CCF and some still NDP.
    I enjoy how you express yourself. I have always enjoyed your way with words. A lot of them are beyond me especially health words. I’ve had to look up a few when reading your posts. I also like your made up words. You have a very creative mind. I’m glad I didn’t teach you in English classes. Home ec was my more comfortable mode and even then as a beginning teacher I feel like I was learning along with my students.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Diane JacobsAugust 11, 2026 at 4:32 PM

      Hi Ione,
      Yes, it was not "St Mary's" until it became a nursing home after the new hospital was built down the hill in the early 50's after I was born. My mistake.
      Thanks for your thoughts.

      Delete

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