2 minute read
The old Lund Hall is hallowed ground; time for a new gathering place
ORIGIN STORY: Many memorable acts including the Lund Theatre Troupe trod the floor boards at the Lund Community Hall starting in 1932. Now the Lund Community Society is hoping Area A will vote for an expansion. (Photo courtesy of the Lund Community Society)
BY SANDY DUNLOP
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Memories of the old Lund Hall linger happily in the mind of anyone who lived in Lund before the rotting building was condemned in the early ‘90s and demolished in 2016.
Construction on this legendary building began in 1928-31, presumably not long after Fred Thulin, the owner of the Lund Hotel, offered the property to the community.
Every nail and board was hammered into place by volunteers eager for a community centre in which to gather and have fun. Since its official opening in 1932, pretty much everything that happened in Lund for the next sixty years happened there. A whole lot of fun for a whole lot of people.
The Lund Theatre Troupe
(Photo courtesy of the Lund Community Society)
The Lund School Christmas concerts were a social highlight for the region, with attendance by folks from up and down the coast, whether or not they had children in Lund School. The wedding receptions and countless dances on the maple sprung floor had musicians coming to perform from near and far (last dance was 1989).
The Halloween dances were particularly memoriable because the homemade costumes were astounding. Imagine Louis Meilleur as a slug, with a tapered tail dragging along the floor, unwinding Saran Wrap as it passed. The annual Father's Day prawn feasts were legendary. The first Christmas Craft Fair started there in 1982. The Lund Theatre Troupe performed numerous plays to packed audiences. There was a Preschool, a hot lunch program, PE classes, game nights, and many more events.
The old Hall was a key community feature for all those years, bringing the community together in ways that enriched and nourished. It is sorely missed and the impact on Lund is deep. It's hard to come together without a central gathering place.
