Time rushes forward and its passing sees old buildings disappear, sometimes without a murmur, sometimes in spite of strenuous protests and sometimes, fortunately, they are spared the wrecking ball.
Just recently, Sudbury historians (and any other Sudburian who admires classic architecture) breathed a sigh of relief with the knowledge that a home once belonging to one of Sudbury’s first families is (apparently) safe from the wrecking ball and on its way to rehabilitation. The same could not be said for the fate that befell its former neighbour 47 years ago.
In 1908, longtime Sudbury physician Dr. W.H. Mulligan built a ten-room mansion at the corner of Cedar and Drinkwater streets. With its stylish turret and the fact that it sat overlooking Junction Creek and part of the Town of Sudbury, it gave the appearance of a sentinel watching over all.
Mulligan was one of the first doctors in the Sudbury area and was a pharmacist as well. Born March 5, 1864, Mulligan became a doctor in 1891. He opened the very first pharmacy in Sudbury in 1891 and in 1898 became the resident physician at St. Joseph's Hospital.
As with many pioneers, tales grew up around Mulligan. Being a doctor in a sparsely settled area, his practice included thousands of miles of territory. As one story tells it, he once paddled a canoe half way to James Bay to perform an amputation. That trip, in the days long before OHIP, took four days.
Mulligan also spent 20 years tending to the workers in the CPR construction yards west of Biscotasing, as well as serving as the physician to the Whitefish Reserve and the Hudson's Bay Company.
Besides the odd canoe trip, he also got to his patients by horse, on railway jiggers and tagging along on lumber wagons. Of course, we must remember that paved roads were non-existent and most land travel was done over corduroy roads.
Mulligan remained in Sudbury where he passed away on Feb. 28, 1950.
Maybe owing to the fact that he spent so much time away from home, in 1910, a short two years after the house was built, Mulligan sold it to Louis Laforest, a Northern Ontario lumber baron. On the death of Laforest in 1923, his son-in-law, Mr. J.N. Desmarais, moved into the home and lived there with his wife and eight children until 1949.
At that time, it was sold to the Sudbury Branch of the Canadian Red Cross Society for $28,000.
This, at last, gave the Red Cross a permanent home after years of constant movement around the city. In 1933, the society’s home was specifically listed as being in the “basement of the Grand Theatre,” at 24 Elgin St.
In the 1940s, the Red Cross split its programs between multiple locations, including 152 Elm St. and 99 Larch.
Before we continue, those who never got the chance to set foot inside Dr. Mulligan’s abode may be asking yourself, “what did it look like inside?”
Well, we can get somewhat of an idea since the former Fournier home (or Girdwood, depending on what time frame you know this home from) at 249 Cedar Street, is a twin to the Mulligan home. In fact, Mulligan loaned his house plans to Fournier, who proceeded to have his house constructed to the rear and facing Cedar Street.
Unfortunately, after just shy of three decades of use, the Red Cross outgrew the building. It had already been on the chopping block for several years as a result of a long gestating plan to erect a new Red Cross home.
However, instead of undertaking another move into a much larger building, the decision was made to demolish the home Mulligan had built and replace it with a new facility on the same property.
Myrna Faddis, the local Red Cross administrator at the time, explained that Sudbury hospital officials were dissatisfied with the facilities and services offered by the Red Cross.
“At present,” said Mrs. Faddis, “the Sudbury Red Cross unit is only equipped to operate a blood donor clinic, thereby forcing the hospitals themselves to carry out the necessary typing and testing of the blood.”
Officials championed a central blood testing laboratory as part of this new $1.4-million structure. Since the city had three hospitals at the time, there were savings that would result from doing away with the unfortunate duplication of laboratory staff and facilities at each hospital.
The Sudbury Red Cross was one of the few big city blood centres in Ontario not operating under the National Blood Transfusion Service, which would offer a complete typing and testing capability to all hospitals in the immediate vicinity.
Plans for a national blood transfusion centre had been in the works since 1975 when a $20,000 feasibility study gave Sudbury top priority for such a facility. On Oct. 11, 1977, Ontario’s Ministry of Health finally approved the construction of a Blood Transfusion Centre here in Sudbury.
When the construction was announced, the Metro Centre Board of Management and the Desmarais family immediately expressed concern over the possible demolition of one of the city's oldest landmarks.
The destruction of the house "will make me feel a little bit sad." said Mr. J.N. Desmarais at the time. "For quite a while, it was one of the nicest homes in town."
His son, Robert Desmarais, even told Northern Life he was going to "explore the possibility of saving the building,” but refused to divulge any of his plans.
While at a meeting, the Metro Centre expressed concern over the fate of the building, and agreed it should be saved for its historical value. By the 1970s, the brick building consisted of three floors and a basement, with seven bedrooms. It was cited as being in an excellent state of repair.
Asked why the existing structure could not be transformed to accommodate laboratory facilities, Mrs. Faddis explained the design requirements of the new centre and the necessary professional standards required were judged to be incompatible with the existing structure. Demolition of the 70-year-old building and the construction of a new facility on the same site were cited as the easiest and most cost-effective alternative since the Red Cross already owned the land.
With that, the death knell had been rung for the old Red Cross location. As mid-November 1977 arrived, the Sudbury branch collected its last pint of blood at the old building on Drinkwater Street, which was slated for demolition that very same week.
With that, they temporarily moved to the former Falconbridge Nickel Mines building at 158 Elgin St. South, where they were expected to stay for about a year until the new centre is opened.
On Nov. 16, 1977, as workmen started carrying out interior fixtures from the Red Cross building, protestors gathered demanding that the structure be retained as a historical site. Five locals with an interest in historical preservation demonstrated against the demolition of the structure. Unfortunately, as the group’s spokesman, Dan Perrin, stated, the action was “too little, too late” as an earlier demonstration had been rained out and public support against the demolition was found to be minimal.
An editorial published the following day lamented the lack of checks on the demolition of history.
“Here in Sudbury a fine old home that serves currently as the Red Cross quarters is slated for demolition so that a new building can go up in its place … . (It is) the turreted home at the corner of Cedar and Drinkwater streets, built for Dr. W. H. Mulligan and later occupied by the Laforest and Desmarais families, names well known in the city's history… .
“Seventy-year-old buildings are not that common here. Probably nothing can be done at this 11th hour about the Mulligan-Laforest-Desmarais home, but it points up the need, assuming there is sufficient interest here in preserving buildings of some historic value, of setting up something along the lines of the ‘heritage committee’ suggested to city council by the chamber of commerce not long ago, on behalf of the Sudbury and District Historical Society.”
The new centre that would go up on the Drinkwater site was designed by Sudbury architect Klaus Duda, and built by Ellis-Don Ltd. of Sudbury. Fully air-conditioned, the two-storey building provided more than 21,000 square feet of floor space. It was estimated that the new facility would be completed by the fall of 1978.
The main floor would house a lobby and reception area, staff lounge, conference room and collection, testing and refreshment areas for regular blood donor clinics. The upper floor housed the national blood transfusion centre personnel, whose facilities included a fully equipped and modern 3,000-square-foot laboratory for analysing and processing collected blood.
An added feature of the new brick building was the fact that it has been designed to accommodate the disabled in the community, architect Klaus Duda pointed out.
There are no stairs to be climbed on the building exterior, he said, and an elevator inside connects the basement and garage level with the two upper floors.
The Sudbury branch would operate expanded programs from its new home, including blood donor clinics, blood donor recruitment, homemaker programs, emergency services, water safety programming and the Red Cross Youth programs.
Planned as a national blood transfusion centre for northeastern Ontario, the new Sudbury facility would alleviate past difficulties experienced in supplying appropriately tested blood to hospitals throughout the northeast. The Ministry of Health anticipated “that establishment of this new centre will result in the creation of some 46 positions, involving the appointment of medical, technical and administrative personnel.”
Frank Scappatura, chair of the Building Advisory Committee, wrote in a letter to Northern Life, “We are confident that the introduction of the Blood Transfusion Centre in Sudbury, coupled with expansion of Branch activities, will be welcomed by the community. We feel certain that our new premises will assist us in providing a full range of Red Cross services to the people of Sudbury. We look forward to their continued support and Goodwill.”
Well, dear readers, although we do lament the loss of this magnificent structure, we would like to remember it for its importance within the community as a centre of health-related programs and services.
Over the years, the mansion on Drinkwater was the home of blood donor recruitment and collection, first aid training, water safety courses, emergency services and youth programs.
To borrow a phrase from past Red Cross advertisements, “YOU are the people we want…YOU are the people we NEED.” So, with that being said, we would like you to share with us your memories of the Red Cross during the 30 years that it existed within the house that Dr. Mulligan built.
Share your memories and/or photos by emailing them to Jason Marcon at [email protected] or the editor at [email protected].
Jason Marcon is a writer and history enthusiast in Greater Sudbury. He runs the Coniston Historical Group and the Sudbury Then and Now Facebook page. Memory Lane is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.