Historic Mount Allison: Charles Fawcett Memorial Hall (1910-1965)

Construction for the Charles Fawcett Memorial Hall began in the Fall of 1909, and was formally opened May 26, 1910. It was located on the site of the former residence of founder Charles Frederick Allison, facing York Street. The wood frame structure which seated approximately thirteen hundred people was painted grey with white Corinthian columns and trim. It replaced Lingley Hall as the campus auditorium and emulated its predecessor with its stately Classical design.

Originally from Saint John, New Brunswick, architect Willard Morse Mitchell (1879-1955) worked in Amherst, Nova Scotia.  He was a noted painter of miniatures and a woodcarver in addition.

The building was named in memory of Charles Fawcett, father of Charles W. Fawcett and Mabel Fawcett Ryan, who were the initial contributors toward the cost of the building. Their family had opened the Fawcett Foundry in 1852 and this production facility for cast iron stoves and other objects soon became one of Sackville’s main employers. 

The Charles Fawcett Memorial Hall was demolished in June 1965 and replaced by the Marjorie Young Bell Convocation Hall.