The destructive force of fire is always a part of the history of the prairie town.
60 years ago, on an October night, one fire had an impact on the valley, and it came on the cusp of one of Drumheller‘s greatest athletic achievements, the Allan Cup victory that hockey season.
Going into the hockey season was like any other; the Drumheller Miners had made some tweaks to their lineup, 26-year-old Jim Fisher was beginning his second season as manager for the team, and the Drumheller City Council had recently installed heating in the arena.
That all changed on the evening of October 10 when the Drumheler Memorial Arena caught fire.
According to a report, the Drumheller Memorial Arena, which was originally built in 1923, went up in flames with an explosion and lasted three hours, completely razing the building.
Fire Chief Bud Hansen was reported in the newspaper as saying, “Some type of explosion at the north end of the arena was heard. People nearby heard a big explosion, and one man said the roof just lifted off the back of the building.”
He said the department’s main task upon arrival was to save the nearby curling rink, power and water plants, and nearby houses, which were evacuated. The roof of the curling facility was on fire when the department arrived at about 10:15 p.m. The miracle of asbestos siding saved the curling rink.
Manager of the Drumheller Miners Jim Fisher was in Olds when it burned, but he heard right away from Bruce Vickers. This was a setback for his team before the season began. They had to reconfigure their schedule and moved to Hanna for the 1965-1966 season.
“We're just about ready to start training camp, and we thought for about 10 seconds that we should drop out of the league for a year. We didn’t think about that too long, and we got a tremendous reception in Hanna. They said ‘take everything, any of the times you want’ and they would work all of their minor hockey around us,” he said.
They managed to resurrect the season, but it was a little bit tough for the players themselves.
“The majority of our team lived in Calgary, so that was a long drive for a home game,” Fisher chuckles.
City council immediately began settling the insurance claim and appointed a rebuilding committee with Alderman Bert Ickringill as chair. They aimed to open by next October.
Within a couple of weeks, arrangements were made for the team to play 14 of their 125 home games in the neighbouring berg, and a “Drive for Wheat” from farmers from the Drumheller area was launched. Farmers could swap wheat for tickets, and according to the Mail, “Any extra bushels would be much appreciated as any donation will go to help keep the club a strong contender.”
On October 31, the Edmonton Oil Kings, the Lacombe Rockets and the Red Deer Chevys provided players to play in an exhibition game in Edmonton to provide funds to the Miners.
Despite the fire, the Miners prevailed, winning the Allan Cup National Championship, and by January 1967, they had their home ice back.
While residents still talk about the fire, one detail that is often missed is that it was arson. In June of 1966, a 22-year-old Drumheller man named James Lawrence pleaded guilty in Vancouver to starting the blaze and three weeks later, a vacant building. He was sentenced to two concurrent four-year sentences.
“His dad had the body shop in town,” said Fisher.